Leadership, Friendship, and Goodwill

There are as many styles of leadership as there are leaders.
Some leaders emphasize certain traits more than others and it is always interesting to see the what cocktail of skills and experiences each leader brings to the table. Here's something I've noticed among a lot of successful leaders.

Empathy
When a leader feels empathy for his/her people, he/she will be better able to reach out and understand the person in need of understanding.

Goodwill
Giving people a general benefit of the doubt and giving them a chance to prove themselves over the long run rather than the short run has always been something that furthers the relationship between members of an organization of any kind. Imagine a parent who constantly doubts a child's honesty, whether the child is actually honest or dishonest. Arguably the outcome is the same: the child is used to being doubted and learns to act accordingly by a) becoming a terrific liar or b) learning to doubt him/herself constantly and question his/her own good intentions and capacity to do well.

Fairness
The aspect that one receives one's due fosters an important understanding and psychological contract between all people involved in an organization. Knowing what is expect of oneself makes a member of that organization more likely to hold oneself accountable rather than waiting for failure to remind him/her of his/her duties. In that way all within the organization know what is expected all over, and, given room for adjustment and error, the organization is run a lot more efficiently with positive vibes.

Loyalty
It imperative to give people a chance and to look at them with a balanced view regardless of wrongs or rights and look past their errors. It doesn't mean don't hold them accountable... what it does mean is that even while holding them accountable, encourage them to give their best shot as much as you can. Good leaders protect those with them especially if there is an established mutual loyalty. Loyalty does in fact go both ways. If you have given no loyalty, expect none back.

Strength... This one is one of the most all encompassing ideas. It is fortitude, righteousness, patience, motivation, and understanding all wrapped up in one. It is the fuel for most major principles. A good leader cannot exist without this sort of Strength.

What do you think from your past experience? When you think back you may find that at certain points in your life, you've likely enjoyed a feeling of empowerment which came from embodying one or more of these core characteristics...