My Leadership Philosophy

Rich Weller

 

 

My leadership philosophy is born from many past experiences.  From these experiences I can formulate the following characteristics that I strive for in my leadership style.

 

 

Vision - In order for me to be an effective leader, I have to have a vision.  My vision is an end result.  It is usually intangible, but I can see it in my head and feel it in my heart.

 

Passion - When the vision is this strong, I’ve found it easy to convey my thoughts and feeling to others, and usually inspire them to join the cause.  When I feel strongly about something, this is easy to read, and people tend to believe.

 

Charisma – This is the natural ability to inspire individuals.  This is the magic that draws individuals towards a person.  It makes the leader approachable and easy to relate to.  And in a nutshell, people feel compelled to follow an individual with great charisma.  I believe I have a certain amount of this.

 

Communication – Communication is key to success.  This is the vehicle that transfers the vision to the team.  A true leader looks for any opportunity to combine his passion and charisma to communicate his vision to the people.

 

Team – I’ve always looked at myself as the Coach and I am a firm believer in teamwork.  Many times in the past I have seen a group of average or even under-achievers rise to greatness due to the strength of the team.  This is an example of the quote “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts”.

 

Trust – This street runs both ways.  You must trust in your people, and your people must trust in you.  You must lead by example.  Understand you are working for your people.  Take time to listen to their thoughts or problems and communicate honestly with them.  I believe that most people are honest and hard working.  If they understand their goals they will strive to achieve them.

 

Delegation – Delegate authority, encourage creativity, and avoid close supervision.  The goal is to empower your people.  Set the standard for excellence and people will strive to achieve it on their own.

 

Quality – A leader looks at any situation and attempts to approve it.  I believe in not only empowering people but establishing an attitude for continuous improvement.

 

Flexible – I believe a leader must act like a chameleon.  They should be able to adapt to any given situation, and take change in stride.

 

Learning – I am a firm believer in education and training.  This applies not only to myself, but also the team.  Time and resources should be devoted to extending our wisdom.

 

Humor – Make work a game and play to win!  I believe that it is possible to accomplish the goals of the organization, and still have a good time.

 

 

When working with others, I expect three things:

 

1.        Good Attitude – I prefer to surround myself with positive people who have a good attitude.  They don’t need to be the smartest or the most experienced.  I can generally teach people what I need them to know about a job, but I can not teach attitude.

2.        Productivity – I believe it is better to do something and it be wrong, than to do nothing at all.  No matter what you have done in the past, you must be producing results today, otherwise you are dead weight.

3.        Honesty – I prefer to have people report to me that will tell me the truth.  If the boat is sinking, I want to know.  Together we can fix the problem.  I do not want to be surrounded by “Yes Men”.