Welcome to the second issue of Leader Point — Centerpoint for Leaders and The Points of Light Foundation's newest e-publication to give you relevant and concise information on leadership and organizational development.

By Sandra Trice Gray
Might Makes . . . Wrong:
"Forced cooperation" is still an option for people in power. But what are the after effects? Often manifestations of resentment, unhappiness and mediocre results in the form of "I did what you demanded."

Collaborative approaches, sometimes employing "softer" leadership skills, can be more efficient and provide results that appear more quickly. The passion that accompanies ownership of ideas is strong indeed. Let "teams" own the ideas and the intensity of the efforts toward the goal will be compounded geometrically. Collaboration means others feel valuable and respected . . . because they are!

This strategy also helps you, as the leader, to be more "effective" working with your team—as soon as they know that their views are acknowledged and included. Collaboration Rule: we listen more intently and more carefully once we've been acknowledged.

(These thoughts are based on an idea presented in "Collaborative Workplace Advantage" by Daniel Robin.)

By Lance Secretan
How to inspire yourself and others is the subject of Inspire! What Great Leaders Do, by Lance Secretan. Secretan teaches an approach to leadership that improves organizational performance by transforming individuals, working relationships and the work-place environment. "We all yearn to be inspired. . . . Within the hearts of people everywhere, there is a yearning for something different." Drawing from Mahatma Ghandi, Thomas Jefferson, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Nelson Mandella (to name a few), Secretan lays out the qualities displayed by the great leaders and shows you how to apply their style of leadership in your organization.

Chapter One, of the book Inspire! What Great Leaders Do, is now available as a downloadable pdf (offered with permission) and available in e-book format for purchase online. For more information, see Seven Questions asked by "Higher Ground Leaders."

Servant-Leadership is a practical philosophy that supports people who choose to serve first, and then lead individuals and institutions. Servant-leaders may or may not hold formal leadership positions, but they choose to work from positions of collaboration, trust, foresight, listening, and the ethical use of power and empowerment. See The Greenleaf Center for more information about Servant-Leadership.

Is your organization vital and effective? You may find out or affirm your effectiveness by completing this survey.

(This survey is created, with permission, from the report "Profiles in Organizational Effectiveness for Nonprofits," by Jeanine Lee of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. This includes six areas of effectiveness contained within the report. <Read More>)

© 2004 Points of Light Foundation is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to engaging more people and resources in volunteer service to help solve serious social problems. Centerpoint for Leaders is a 501(c)3 that focuses on helping leaders and organizations be more effective.

Visit us on the Internet — http://www.PointsofLight.org; http://www.centerpointforleaders.org

According to Dominique Heau, associate dean of the new international executive MBA program at INSEAD, " . . . even with excellent training, the best leaders display certain personality traits that cannot be included easily on any curriculum."

Dominique Heau lists these traits:
—courage: not being afraid to stand up for what you believe in;
—authenticity: being willing to "state the truth and walk the talk;"
—a sensitivity to and superior awareness of the critical role of middle management; and
—combine that sensitivity with the ability to mobilize its competencies and resources.

(Selected from the June, 2004 issue of Executive Update, a publication of the Greater Washington Association of Association Executives.)

" . . . managers can more easily embrace [participative management strategies] when they have strong emotional intelligence, including the ability to:

—Form good working relationships,
—Be a cooperative and constructive member of a group, and
—Control anger and other impulses."

If there is a topic on leadership or organizational development that you would like to share or see us address, please send us an e-mail at info@centerpointforleaders.org.

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"Emotional intelligence can be developed and enhanced . . . Look for assessments that measure a range of interpersonal or relationship characteristics as a way to gauge your strengths and areas for improvement. Then continue with the following steps:

—Set goals to work on specific behaviors.
—Seek out experience that will help you learn and practice new behaviors such classroom training, job assignments, coaching or learning from a role model
—Identify and address any obstacle to your goals.
—Continue practicing new behaviors, and be sure you have some support for your effort.
—Review and reassess your behavioral changes to help solidify what you have learned."

(Selected from the Center for Creative Leadership's e-newsletter.)