52 Essential Qualities and Attributes (Q & As) of an Organizational Leader: How to Transform Your Leadership Habits in 52 weeks

By Pat A. Tamakloe Ph.D.

260 Provocative Organizational Leadership Questions Answered!

In this book, Dr. PAT presents a weekly experiential guide for executive leaders to raise their leadership-awareness by employing the power of consistency over time to help them achieve success.

"He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened," said Lao Tzu, a Chinese philosopher. It is this profound quote that 52 Essential Qualities and Attributes of an Organizational Leader: How to transform your leadership habits in 52 weeks sheds light on to enhance self-awareness of practical intrinsic leadership characteristics vital to a leader's performance and operational success. This book identifies leadership qualities and attributes (Q&As) and aligns them into 5 categories:

1. Command – Power Access

2. Follower Engagement – "Street" Credibility

3. Personal Growth – Experiential Confidence

4. Professional Dominance – Mission Effectiveness

5. Operational Leadership – Vision Attainment

Pat lays out a practical method for a leader to intentionally think through and answer weekly provocative questions asked in a Why, Who, When, Where, and, What format. The leader then hones fundamental leadership Q&As within their circle of influence to determine "How" to effectively achieve desired success.

By applying the compounding value of consistency over time through self-assessment, the leader develops strengthened leadership habits and "muscle" memory that lead to successful attainment of visionary excellence in operational leadership.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 27, 2021
• ISBN: 9781098076986

Book preview

Week 1

Integrity

Look for three things in a person.

Intelligence, Energy, & Integrity. If they don’t have the last one, don’t even bother with the first two.

—Warren Buffett,

American entrepreneur and investor

This week, as an organizational leader, you know that you have to begin your week with a clear conscience, sound mind, and a sincere desire to do well for your followers and those who depend on you. You know that cannot happen unless you are true to yourself and others, regardless of who’s watching you. Consequently, your sincerity compels you to ask:

Why

Why is integrity important within my organization?

This question is probably one of the most important and essential questions, I presume, if properly embraced or harnessed will provide the most value to any organization. It is important because it sets the tone for the culture, character, and credibility of the organization’s leadership. If the organization’s leader or leaders do not have integrity, the organization’s values and relationships with clients or customers will be flawed. Now, I don’t know of any successful entrepreneur or reputable leader of any institution that desires to have a weak, so-so, mediocre relationship with clients.

Let us consider hypothetically for a moment that you are the CEO of a large organization. You hear about the successes and great customer relations of an automobile sales establishment, and you are convinced that this is the place you would want to buy your brand-new car next time. You are assured not only because you may have witnessed the perception yourself, you are likely convinced because more than a few people have referred to the organization’s performance. One day, you walk into the dealership and notice a customer from the maintenance department visibly upset for being overcharged for something. It appeared to be a completed job on a tire rotation, which turned out to be only an oil change; you see, the packaged deal you saw was intended only to get customers into the door. Now how does your perception, impression, and interpretation of the organization’s conduct change? Or does it change? Is it an isolated case? It begs the question to you of what else could be wrong within the organization than meets the eye, doesn’t it? Now think about if the shoe were to be on the other foot in your organization.

A trustworthy leader with integrity will inculcate these values in the team. Therefore, when it comes to an understanding of why it is so essential to have integrity as a leader to protect and uphold the sacred values that make leaders authentic, instead of asking why, you ask, Why not?

Who

Who must show integrity, or to whom must integrity be shown?

The question of integrity is an all too common misused, abused, and confused word that has been applied to a warm and fuzzy generation of people trying to do the right thing. Understanding first who this leadership quality refers to will allow us to understand what it is even better and how it can be sought after daily by organizational leaders. Firstly, everyone, regardless of office or title within an organization, must have integrity. Consequently, the professionalism and productivity expected in an organizational environment among leaders and their employees risk potential compromise. Especially when one is in a position of influence where people depend on you as the leader to shape not only a future of where the organization, team, or department is going, but also to possess the quality that is fundamental to every human institution. Integrity should be taught in the DNA of every member of the team since it is a quality that transcends all others regardless of one’s measure of influence on the team. Nurturing a child through the principles of integrity is as simple as guiding the child through acceptable behaviors that suggest that taking something that does not belong to you is stealing and lying about it—a breach of integrity. Likewise, teaching a team of people that anyone’s behavior conceived with malice at another’s expense is a breach of integrity. Therefore, integrity must be expressed by all members of every team, starting at the top of the leadership echelon.

When

When should I show or exercise integrity as a leader?

The timing of when integrity should be evident in a leader is debatable. When to express sincerity through his or her team is neither an art nor a science. It’s an essential quality that should be rehearsed in the ears of every team and lived through the eyes of transparency, especially during challenging times in the organization. The top three are when:

S—— hits the fan. Members of every group like yours, if you have one, are particularly sensitive to see whether the leader they follow will buckle under pressure during times of stress or will come to their aid and stand up for them when times are hard. When life is at its worst, members of your organization will expect you to step up and lead. They will expect you to do what you say you will do. For instance, if a team member’s negligence leads your organization into arbitration, where will your loyalty be shown? With the team member or with the law?

The stakes are high. Integrity is most evident from an organizational leader when members of the team are sound asleep in their beds while the leader is fighting for their cause. You may express this character in a board meeting or when the organization is at the brink of permanent loss. When the stakes get so high that you may decide to make the hard decision of dismissing people to save your organization.

No one else will. The fight to keep employee jobs in an economic downturn, for instance, or the battle to defend an employee’s wellbeing when at risk of any loss, is not only a measure of integral confidence but a selfless act. Times when your team member least expects you to come through for them in any capacity is the right time to show your integrity. After all, integrity suggests keeping it all together and doing what you say you will do for the team.

Where

Where within the organization should I express integrity?

To some, it is at the boardroom meeting where the leader is likely in the hot seat fending off would-be competitors or conspirators. To others, it might be quite different. Where your integrity is most evident is where you, as the leader, is most absent. What do I mean by that? If integrity means doing the right thing to or for another when no one is watching or with any expectation, then it goes without saying that the leader has your back regardless of circumstances. When the frontline worker or supervisor is busy turning wrenches or assembling pieces, they are doing their part and not worrying about an unbalanced ledger or a deficit profit and loss statement. The leader protects the welfare of his or her team regardless of internal or external stimuli. The earnings statement and the team’s homes is where you express your integrity by ensuring they can count on you.

What

What does integrity look like for me as a leader?

Firstly, in keeping with Warren Buffett’s quotation, the most fundamental and primary quality, I think, a leader must possess is integrity. Integrity is the soul of relationships and the heart of one’s conviction. Without it, you and I have no foundation upon which to build mutual trust. Evidence of this quality is like cold water to a thirsty person after a long day’s journey in the hot sun. But what this journey looks like for you is quite different from what it does to me, yet the path is the same. Integrity then for the leader must be the foundational cornerstone upon which you build all other values.

If you question whether you have all the right gear, stamina, and subsistence required on your leadership journey, the bigger question is whether you have the endurance for the trip. Integrity gives you endurance. Integrity is an invariably exceptional element for the leadership journey that one should have to sustain and navigate the course. You should not leave home without it. So as you reflect on this quality this week, consider the value it brings to your role in the organization and whether you possess and nurture it. To do so, you must first be able to recognize what it is.

What’s in it for me?

People tend to ask themselves whether subconsciously or overtly, What’s in it for me? when it comes to exercising their positions of authority. Any leader probably realizes that the position of authority brings increased influence with others and potential compensation with a measure of fulfillment. Therefore, there is always a natural selfish intent to desiring command of an office. The realization of the burden of organizational leadership, the accountability and responsibility of success and potential failure that it brings, compel the question of what one would get out of one’s role in a position of influence. This self-talk often yields to self-preservation and self-aggrandizement if your values are not sound. Integrity shows up here. Well, two things:

It’s not about me, I know. Being honest shifts your thoughts and attitude from concentrating on yourself to focusing on the wellbeing of others, regardless of the outcome. When this occurs, the fundamental principle of others-focused versus self-focused yields the quality of integrity to do the right things regardless of who’s not watching, who cares, what you will get out of it, or simply what’s in it for you.

It’s a good feeling to know. You have begun your week in earnest with the hope of getting through Monday without being challenged with any ethical or leadership conundrums when a report you are reading suggests that you have overpaid a contractor a little more than was initially proposed. Your signature confirmed it. You are the executive director or chief executive of your organization. What will you do? The right thing to do, since no one else but you noticed it, is to call in your accountant and address the issue immediately using the correct organizational protocol. It’s a good feeling to know you can control this. However, the monster of ego and self-preservation may come knocking on your door of integrity and forbid you to consider doing what is right when no one is seemingly watching. Only you can determine what integrity looks like in your sphere of influence and also what it should look like to those with whom you communicate. Don’t miss this opportunity. Therefore, now that you know what, show yourself how!

Week 2

Perseverance

Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.

—Newt Gingrich,

American Politician

This week you determine that for you to excel at what you do every day, you should reflect on your purpose and your desired outcomes. You understand integrity. Now, you have to focus on the goals and objectives you have established. Consequently, you cannot allow the daily challenges you endure to hinder your success and realize you have to press on toward the mark of your objectives, so you ask:

Why

Why should I show perseverance in the organization if it creates a perception of being too demanding?

This question, my friend, is the price of leadership you must be prepared to pay—being called names or being perceived as candidly demanding by some respects yet meticulously driven and task-oriented by others. It is imperative to always start your analysis with Why? Better yet, in this case, start with Why not? The answer is very simple: because you are accountable for the success and wellbeing of your organization. If you do not think so, then you are in the wrong position of responsibility and leadership. A leader who does not take responsibility for the best interests or reputation of his or her area of influence probably doesn’t belong. As I have learned from my mentor and friend Dr. John Maxwell, everything rises and falls on leadership regardless of whether you are a small, medium, large, corporate, ecclesial entity, or team in an organization.

What is the truth?

The truth is, you determine the climate of your organization as perceived by its members. In the organization, the culture you create determines the climate you generate. Did you get that lucidly clear? If not, look around you and see who else is in the position in which you have earned right now. If you find someone else in that specific position you are in, ask them how well they like leading your organization or department. Now that you can’t find anyone else but you in that position, you realize that no one else but you can shape the tone, the health, the success, the future, and the overall wellbeing of that organization by reflecting on your scope of influence, right? So to answer the question of whether to persevere at the risk of being called names or being perceived as overbearing, remember that you have an office to run. You have a responsibility and a duty to add value to not just yourself, but others as you continue to value others. Make that your objective, and your success will be evident. So that instead of asking why, you will conclude, Why not?

Who

Who else should possess the quality of perseverance?

Any leader in a capacity to influence decision-making and impact the bottom line has the responsibility to be persistent and drive change without settling for the status quo. A driven go-getter, a leader! However, does every leader possess this quality? I would argue, no! Too often, organizational leaders sit back and expect someone else to create change. If you believe that you are probably divinely inspired for change, make your environment a better place to work. There are probably two ways to find out:

The one in the mirror. Make every effort to direct, improve, or add value to others. As you explore the notion of whether you possess this quality, ask one straightforward question that may be the litmus test to whether you do: Do I feel unsettled and desirous of change when there is an existent problem within my sphere of influence? If the answer to that question, whether now or ever, is yes, then you most definitely have this quality and should drive action to resolve.

The ones you see in the mirror. A person who is either responsible for the wellbeing of others within an organization or is accountable for the success of a specific area of an organization’s discipline may sometimes question their worth or ability to add value to themselves or another. Sometimes you see others as more capable than you for one reason or another. However, when you look in the mirror today, ask yourself who you are, who made you, what caliber of person you are, or capable of becoming. After this moment of self-reflection, come back to the task at hand and apply the litmus test of whether you are a leader with a persevering quality. Once you have done so, you can begin to develop and enhance your driving spirit and attitude towards perseverance.

When

When does my quality of perseverance become evident as a leader?

When a leader and others recognize leadership in you. Yes, you. You see, you don’t become a leader and then possess the quality to lead. The qualities or attributes of leadership to lead in or lead an organization are procedural; it’s a process. One develops over time. The process of becoming is faster for some than it is for others. Yet if you are not naturally inclined to seek after making things happen, you can most certainly develop it over a series of experiential encounters with not being satisfied with the way things have always been.

As you reflect on this quality, think about the times when you have decided not to take action on something that you knew full well was within your sphere of influence. However, you said, Nah, someone else will take care of it; I’m getting tired of it. Or maybe, you were the one that said, I will pick up that phone and finally resolve this problem for good, yet never got around to doing what you said you would do. So when should you persevere? You may consider two periods:

Every time you lead. Now and every time! Leadership does not pick a time to lead. If you have been in any capacity of leadership, which I presume you have or desire to because you are reading this, you would know that the facts and circumstances of leadership are almost always inconvenient and unforgiving. The day you choose not to investigate why a client quit doing business with your organization is probably the day you lose that client. If you do so consistently, you might as well put a nail in your coffin. If you fail to identify a potential problem in your organization that the one client has told everyone else about, you fail to persevere. What have you just created by your slothfulness or lack of perseverance? A lost opportunity to be excellent and above par.

You can’t stand the status quo. So when you decide that you have had enough of that boss, that supervisor, that pastor, or that team leader, and that it is time to quit, think again. When is the tenacity of a leader the strongest? When times are hard, right? How do you then confidently argue your strength of perseverance if you are ready to throw in the towel at the least instance of frustration? The quality of perseverance becomes the most evident when it’s the least expected of you.

When all else seems to direct you to call it quits and hang up, that one edge and power to will one more time is what gets you the winning vote. It is what gets you above the rest, and it is what makes you different and ultimately the best.

Where

Where should I expect to demonstrate my perseverance?

The qualities and attributes of leadership do not pick the most suitable places for organizational leaders to express their strengths or demonstrate their prowess. Certainly, the quality of perseverance shows up often where the leader least expects it. Within the organization, you have to determine who your audience is daily and what your tasks are hour by hour.

The opportunities to demonstrate perseverance will find you. As a leader, you are likely inclined to influence subordinates or peers who look to you for both inspiration and guidance. The quality to persevere amid adversity especially shows up in different areas of your organization over time but is evident in a moment. What do I mean? Let’s examine them critically:

Responses to a procedural compliance breach. Let’s suppose you are the director of your department or the executive director of your organization; consider this to be a transitional care facility for the elderly. There are strict contractual protocols to adhere. How do you respond to a breach in the contract by a team member? There have probably been instances when someone in your organization takes a shortcut in following a protocol or executing procedures. Let’s say, for example, contract residents are to be provided full care including bathing, changing of bedding and soiled undergarments, and feeding. Yet a caregiver decides to change a resident’s bedding yet not the undergarments. What happens then? Maybe the caregiver pretends to bathe the resident. Still, evidence suggests otherwise. You now have a moment to persevere. Essentially, as the leader, upon notification of the incident or potential breach, you immediately have to assume that the risk of a breach is everywhere—from food service to caregiving to even customer service at the reception. By initiating a thorough investigation into all other areas of the organization, you may uncover several instances of potential breaches. This course of action is quite different from mediocre leadership that would only attempt to either defend the actions of team members, dismiss evidence, or fire culprits. Such reactions are quick fixes to appease stakeholders. So you see, for perseverance, as a leader, it is unquestionably an invaluable quality that you cannot take for granted.

Zero problems is too good to be true. You can expect to demonstrate this quality when you notice a situation over time. One cannot be perfect all the time. Follow your instincts. The investigations, decision-making processes, interrogations, and especially where no one would care to look or ask questions, that is where you find your strength or reason to question the unquestioned, examine the unexamined, and push beyond the status quo to bring resolve to the unresolved.

What

What then is the perseverance of a leader, and what does it look like for me?

This quality of an organizational leader is usually also referred to as persistence. Persistence to accomplish a task, persistence to drive a problem to resolution, and persistence to ensure delivery of results within constrained timelines. This persistence is perseverance. Sometimes it is the audacity to look at adversity in the eyes and say, Not today or ever again! It is the drive to overcome obstacles amid uncertainties or naysayers, the extra push to prove no is not usually an acceptable answer, and the quest to find just the right fit or solution to a long-standing problem—these are perceptive definitions of perseverance. What are you going to do about it now that you understand why?

What perseverance looks like to you may be different from what it looks like to me. However, given a perspective, I would say:

See yourself walking into your organization, such as the transitional care facility for the elderly previously mentioned, for instance, on a Monday morning and finding out that one of your most valued clients has decided to terminate a contract. This termination is due to a breach of contract that one of your team members initiated. As the leader, you are baffled by the outcome because you did not get a chance to influence the decision-making of the client before the termination process occurred. So you begin to ask questions within your organization. Why did this happen? What was the breach? Who did what? When did it occur? Who was informed that there was a potential risk of breach of contract? How does a long-term client just terminate a contract because of a breach, and you are just finding out? Peeling the onion back through the layers to find out whether the decision to terminate was an overnight decision or it is the result of a cascading effect to a more significant problem is critical. For you, identifying the problem, taking appropriate accountability actions, and rectifying processes and protocol to ensure a similar occurrence does not happen takes perseverance. More perseverant is if you, as the leader, can ultimately win back the client’s confidence, trust, and relationship to reinstate the contract under amicable terms. That, my friend, is a classic example of what perseverance looks like from an organizational leadership perspective for this week. Therefore, now that you know what, show yourself how!

Week 3

Vision

Vision is the art of seeing what

is invisible to others.

—Jonathan Swift,

Irish essayist, poet, and satirist

This week you understand perseverance, and you recall that you have heard it said before, maybe even more often than not, Where there is no vision, the people perish. Yes, this is a biblical reference, but it is also practical in the sense that people will die, possibly literally, if there is no direction or objective for their future and lives. So since you’re a visionary, you ask:

Why

Why is my vision for the organization essential to anyone?

The biblical reference to vision captured in the passage Where there is no vision, the people perish is thought-provoking. That is so true. If there is nothing to look forward to, there is a likelihood that people will give up their journey for a cause or, in some cases, even literally. There may be no desire to live. People want to feel valued and want to accomplish a notable cause or objective. So why is your vision important?

The vision is what keeps the organization moving forward. The vision is what everyone in the organization looks forward to following. There is a drive toward a common objective. The vision is what you, as the organizational leader, paints with small brushstrokes of inspiration to create a picture in the minds of your team. The vision is what everyone looks at in the mind’s eye and desires to see it come to pass. If you are not effective at painting the picture of what you want your team or organization to see when they accomplish a task, you are likely not sure what you want to see. The vision allows you to forge the future with your team and intentionally shape the daily operations of your organizational goals. Without that, you are at risk of not attaining your organizational objectives. Therefore, instead of asking why your vision for the organization is important for everyone, you ask, Why not?

Who

Who do I need to communicate that vision within my organization?

It is a fair question to ask, and it is probably an important one to consider. You are probably saying, No one reads those darned vision statements posted in the hallway anyway, why should I care? If you think no one reads it, you should, at the very least, read it and remind your team of what that vision of the organization is now and then. The real audience of that vision statement is you. Yes, you. The organizational leader. When you know where you are going, you can channel every objective and action toward that vision and show the rest of your team how you are going to get there. The vision is the destination your roadmap shows.

One of my mentors, Dr. John C. Maxwell, said, A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way. Why is this important? It is important because if the leader does not know where he or she is going, or even sure of how to get to the terminal destination or objective, how are they going to show anyone else? Unless the leader can and does effectively communicate the organization’s vision to the team by inculcation into the organization’s culture, by rehearsing it in periodic meetings or engagements, and by fostering it through the enforcement of customer or client service initiatives, it is only a statement hanging on a wall somewhere. No one will take it seriously or make it a part of their passion for enforcing its intent. Only you can check yourself or team against that vision—no one else will. The vision must, therefore, be simple and clear enough to the team member on the lowest level of the organizational echelon as it is to the corporate leader. To address the central question, you need to communicate the vision to everyone in the organization.

When

When do I need to cast that vision?

Believe it or not, casting a vision to the team or everyone in the organization is a daily task. There is no dogma or rule on when you should cast a vision for your organization. There are no rules on when a leader can get his or her team together and tell them, This is where I see our organization going! As leaders, we are often caught in our paradigms of how things are or should be and forget that we are sitting in an ivory tower of authority and position closed off from the reality of what is really going on at the grassroots level.

To cast that vision for the entire team to embrace, you probably need to