The 8 D’s of Good Leadership
In school, you may not have been too happy with the grade of D. There was that one time in a college marketing class when I was proud of an earned D (that’s a long story), but most of the time, we want to do better.
Maybe we’ve given D a bad name sometimes…especially when it comes to leadership.
Here are 8 D’s of good leadership:
Demand – There should be some non-negotiables when we talk in terms of good leadership. Leaders need to excel in issues of such as moral excellence, responsiveness and character. (Read 7 Non-Negotiable Traits to Work on My Team)
Deliver – You need to show up as a leader. Good leaders follow through on their commitments and can be depended upon to do what they say they will do. Leaders lead so others can follow by example. (Read: The Leader Sets the Bar)
Direct – Good leaders guide and shape the path of the organization. Leaders need to clearly communicate expectations and continually follow up to ensure the organization stays on track. (Read 4 Tasks of the Senior Pastor/CEO)
Divert – Good leaders aren’t in a position to seek all the admiration for themselves. Good leaders consistently point to the successes of others on the team, and ultimately give all the recognition for any success to God. (Read Sign of a Great Leader, The Humility to Say “I’m Not the One”)
Discuss – Good leaders keep an open dialogue with the people they lead. A leader who wants to be valued by a team allows his or her leadership to be vulnerable, questioned and challenged. (Read 7 Ways to Hear “I Have a Problem with You Leader”)
Develop – Good leaders empower others and are always recruiting and developing new leaders. (Read 4 Benefits of Empowering Leaders.)
Drive – Leaders push the organization to succeed. Good leaders are strategic. They push people and the organization to greater heights taking them places others wanted to go, but didn’t know how to get there. (Read Leaders Encourage Their Team to Victory)
Decided – Regardless of what comes, good leaders stick to the God-given vision until He calls them elsewhere. (Read My Best Advice for Leaders When Things are Going Wrong)
Leader, earn your grade! Get a D in good leadership!
Be honest, which of these 8 do you most need to improve upon? (I’ll go first. My biggest weakness on the list is “Direct”. I need to better communicate expectations to my team.)
What did I miss? What words (starting with the letter D) should be on my list for good leadership?
