Four character traits of life-changing Leaders

A Newspaper article in the Business Daily by Scott Bellows an Assistant professor in the Chandaria School of Business at USIU- AfricaLeadership, leadership, leadership. The concept underpins the main organisational buzz word of the 21st century. Who has it? Who does not? Sometimes we know a life changing leader when we see one, like the late President Nelson Mandela. Other times, we clearly recognise when desperate individuals hold on to leadership for too long, like President Robert Mugabe, yet fail to truly lead.But what really embodies leadership? Surely one can tell the effectiveness of a leader by looking at the outcomes that she or he produces as a direct result of their power. A chief executive with escalating profits or an MP who wisely invests Constituency Development Funds (CDF) and boosts the economic output of a constituency might commonly receive plaudits as an outstanding leader. However, the more fascinating aspect of leadership focuses on why people follow a particular individual in the first place. The majority of our psychology around how we judge a leader and whether we follow him or her boils down to four traits. Researchers Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner captured the essence of leadership in these four traits representing four psychological constructs: competency, honesty, forward looking, and inspiring