Leadership is about helping others make decisions. How effective your leadership proves to be depends in large part how you lead others to make a decision. The decision is not necessarily one you favour, although the ability to persuade through compelling argument has traditionally characterized the successful leader in our western, americanized culture. No, the ability I mean reflects a servant quality of grappling with others’ perspectives and working towards a consensus that moves beyond the personal opinion of any one individual — leader or otherwise.

For this to work, the effective leader must demonstrate some self-awareness. Folly to that leader whose self-awareness does not exceed occasionally looking in the mirror!

So, how do you lead?

1. Is your natural strength of an analytical, thinking quality? Do you help others think about issues in order to seek clarity of thought and provide a clear direction consistent with stated purposes, meaning and mission?

2. Is your natural strength of a feeling, passionate quality? Do you help others get in touch with how they feel towards a subject matter, unlocking in them excitement and energy for a worthwhile cause?

3. Is your natural strength grounded in conviction and presence of being? Do you help others embrace the truth about themselves, and take action that is authentic, genuine and unflappable because it is sourced from deep within oneself?

What is your leadership style? Likely, you orient yourself most often around one of the three above-stated descriptions. Being aware of how best you function can lead you to help others discover how best they operate — and together you will make the best decisions possible.