What is leadership? Its qualities are difficult to define. But they are not so difficult to identify. Leaders don't force other people to go along with them. They bring them along.

Leaders get commitment from others by giving it themselves, by building an environment that encourages creativity, and by operating with honesty and fairness.

Good leaders aren't "lone rangers". They recognize that an organization's strategies for success require the combined talents and efforts of many people. Leadership is the catalyst for transforming those talents into results.

Successful leaders are emotionally and intellectually oriented to the future--not wedded to the past. They have a hunger to take responsibility, to innovate, and to initiate. They are not content with merely taking care of what's already there. They want to move forward to create something new.

Leaders provide answers as well as direction, offer strength as well as dedication, and speak from experience as well as understanding of the problems they face and the people they work with.

Leaders are flexible rather than dogmatic. They believe in unity rather than yielding. And they strive to achieve agreements out of conflict. Leadership is all about getting people consistently to give their best, helping them to grow to their fullest potential, and motivating them to work toward a common good. Leaders make the right things happen when they're supposed to.

A good leader, an effective leader, is one who has respect. Respect is something you have to show in order to get. A leader who has respect for other people at all levels of an organization, for the work they do, and for their abilities, desires and needs, will find that respect is returned. And all concerned will be motivated to work together.