Managers make sure the work gets done; leaders make sure the work gets done differently and effectively. Managers make sure the system is in place. Leaders catch people doing things right.
Managers improve systems, leaders develop people. Both activities are valuable and necessary, but they differ significantly.

“Each of us can look back upon someone who made a great difference in our lives, someone whose wisdom or simple acts of caring made an impression upon us. In all likelihood it was someone who sought no recognition for their deed other than the joy of knowing that, by their hand, another’s life had been made better.” ~ Stephen M. Wolf

Leadership today is either “positional” or “influential”
The biggest challenge today is that 90% of the leaders are “positional” leaders and only 10% are “influential” leaders.

How can we develop true leaders rather than just promoting them to the position? Here are seven characteristics of Influential Leaders:

1. Influential Leaders focus on people and not the profit only

2. Influential Leaders promote creativity and not the corporate traditional ways of doing things only

3. Influential Leaders get people to “willing” to achieve and not to “have to” achieve

4. Influential Leaders help people to feel as partners and not participants

5. Influential Leaders are not about “charismatic command and control persuasion” anymore; it is increasingly about the collaborative and horizontal skills of trust and influence.

6. Influential Leaders are intentional and not accidental

7. Influential Leaders lead from humility and NOT pride

“Leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less. How do you gain influence from people? You invest in them. How do you invest in them? It starts with giving them time.” ~ John C. Maxwell

Live with passion!
Farshad Asl
2014