Leadership - A discussion of traits, characteristics, and current news of leaders.

I thought I had seen it all. But until today when I saw the YouTube rant by Trisha Walsh-Smith, I realized that I still had a lot more to see in this life. As I watched the video with my eyes stretched in disbelief, I was distraught to see that some people are just not interested in practicing good manners or being a little civil in dealing with unpleasant situations. What’s going on in the world?

Today is going to be a somewhat, no a definite, stressful day for U.S. taxpayers. Meeting the tax deadline and getting the numbers right may prove to be more than most can handle. Want to reduce tax time stress?

Here are some helpful articles on tax filing, deadline information and stress reduction:

Reducing stress during tax filing time at About.com.

Tax stress relief from the IRS.

For freelancer's reporting their 1099-Misc. Income.

Tax information from the IRS.

Want to file online? Check out this site!

Tax filing FAQ's by Jackson-Hewitt.

17 tax filing resources by Office Stuffer.

A collection of great internet tax advice.

How are you coming along with your tax filing adventures? Going smooth?

Most leaders are thought to automatically be givers; not always true. Although the idea of it sounds admirable, leaders are not always givers. Phil Gerbyshak over at Slacker Manager wrote a very interesting article about Great Leaders Being Great Stewards. While I do somewhat agree with his point in theory, I tend to disagree in application. All leaders (or even the majority) are not givers. Some are just plain selfish.

Leaders sometimes want to lead for their own selfish gain. They want to be recognized for the great leadership they bring to their organizations. They want to be recognized by the media for their great contributions. They want the employees to revere them and be grateful for being allowed to work for their organizations. Think I sound a little bitter? No, I'm not. I've just seen my fair share of mediocre leaders and can spot a guise when I see one.

In order for leaders to really make an impact, they would do well to develop an unselfish attitude and show that they have genuine intentions.

How?

Start by thinking of others before yourself.

Ask people how they are doing. And mean it.

Practice charity.

See the potential in others and work to develop it.

Work with and seek to develop those with great ideas. No, brilliant ideas too.

When leaders start to embrace other things and people that don't involve them first, they are likely assured to reap boundless benefits. Respect, admiration and loyalty are some of the rewards of being selfless.

If only they could think of something else other than themselves.

When I listen to great orators like speeches given by Barak Obama, or I listen to older speeches by Bill Clinton and even older ones given by Martin Luther King, Jr., I am looking for one trait in each of them that ties them all together. They (and other great leaders) have contributed a great deal to our society to make it better. They each have their own brand of charisma and an ability to "connect" successfully with their audience's. But there is one distinctive trait that each of them has that catches my attention. And that is great public speaking.

I am a professional speaker and am constantly searching for ways to make my speeches and presentations better. I always listen to political leader's speeches, speeches given by leaders in the technological field and even to the 5:00 p.m. news broadcasters. There is something to be gained from each one. But what I'm listening for and looking for is what makes them so great.

I believe political leaders are so successful because they generally have the pulse of the people's emotions and heartstrings to get and hold their attention while they deliver their branded and labeled opinion. But what I seem to pick up on almost immediately is the speaker's perceived sincerity and their ability to lead people. I want to see if they can lead without the prepared speeches and the tele-prompters. 

Can the polished, political and perfectly prepared speaker lead without being given a demographic of his audience or being told what the income makeup of a particualr group is. Sure these things are key to giving a good speech, but a speaker who speaks from their heart is able to successfully deliver a spech to anyone at anytime, no reservation. However, this is only if it's done...from the heart.

Over the years that I have delivered speeches, I have only been successful when I felt confident and passionate about my topic. Even if the topic was particulalry boring to others, I nailed it because I felt it. By the same token, there have been times when I have failed miserably because I was trying to please everyone in my speech. Make everyone feel good and tell them what they want to hear. This doesn't make a good speech-maker nor does it make a good leader.

Are you a leader AND a public speaker? Do you think that having polished oratory skills make you an effective leader?

The college teacher who had her students perform certain "unethical" acts is still being allowed to teach. She is exercising her "creative writing" and showing students how to find their creative voice within. Although the university's Creative Writing Department's Director, Sharon Warner, stepped down as a protest to the university's lack of action against the professor, the university is still not taking action and still allowing this teacher to exercise "creative expression."

YouTube News Report Video

The university's executive and leadership board SHOULD take action. Although I am 100% for creative expression, that too should also have boundaries. The governing powers and ethics committee should have stepped in long before now and taken action against this type of behavior. What are they waiting on? Perhaps a lawsuit by a parent of a student or a student themselves who will say they were "sexually harassed" by this teacher. We'll see.

Do you think the university should have gotten involved or should the professor continue to express her creativity in that way?

What do you do if company information is divulged before the company is ready for the public to know?

How should a leader handle an individual in the ranks who can't keep a secret?

How can you tell if a person just has a BIG MOUTH?

The mastermind and creator behind the huge and phenomenal crowd-drawer music event, Lollapalooza, Perry Farrell had just a such problem last week dealing with a leak that got out about his concert line-up.

Event planners, like the ones who orchestrate events like Lollapalooza, are usually always having to deal with confidentiality issues. They must ensure that the right people have the right information at the right time. Event planners also take great pains to ensure that there are not "unnecessary personnel" on the planning staff or in the event building. I would venture to say that Mr. Farrell possibly had a person on staff who felt that it would be harmless or financially beneficial for them to share the Lollapalooza information with an interested media person.

Harmful? Probably not, but not feasible, yes. Mr. Farrell, as well as other event planning leaders, would do well to place people on a "NTK" basis (need to know), rather than information sharing across the board. This ensures that the excitement builds and people develop a "must see" attitude, thus soaring ticket sales.

After all, you don't want to spoil the fun for everyone, do you? Do you have a "loose mouth cannon" in your organization? How do you handle them?

Really? Buy more sneakers? Yes!

It seems that people who buy sneakers, and multiple pairs, on a regular basis exhibit signs that their ideas and visions far exceeds others. It is believed that they have the innate ability to authoritatively lead and motivate others. The news story highlights a Nielsen panel that shows there are multiple effective leaders who lead not by their principles but by their choice in footwear.

Some people started planning their April 1 pranks a week to two weeks to some even months ago. They started setting the mood for the joke by playing out certain scenarios and situations to set up the joke and make it more believable. For instance:

"It makes all the difference in the world whether we put truth in the first place, or in the second place."    John Morley

What do you value? If it's important to you to have facts and proven research, then the truth matters to you. If not, then your values along with your mission and objective become second importance in your organization. Treasure truth always and you will reap the benefits.