What Makes A Good Leader?

[IKE]

Originally Posted by woody

On a similar note, Tribal Leadership by Logan, King, and Fischer-Wright is a great book focused on creating a culture of excellence within organizations. The principles they discuss are immediately applicable to FRC teams. Maybe Isaac would like to go into a little more detail on this one : )

Tribal Leadership is one of the best Leadership books I have read as far as applicability to FRC and FIRST in general. I purchased several copies and have had our other mentors read it, and passed it on to people within the CD community I have a lot of respect for (there is much more to come). You can actually download the audio-book version for free by signing up through Zappos.com
http://www.zappos.com/tribal.zhtml
It in MP3 format.
Why is an online shoe distributorship offering free downloads of a leadership book? Oddly enough for many of the same reasons 341 won Chairman's this year. SERIOUSLY! the audio-book is missing the chapter on Strategy which in my opinion is one of the best views of general strategy I have ever seen.
David, many of the things you are asking about would be much clearer after reading (or listening to) this book.
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There are a ton of different ways to lead, and what works for some may not work for others. Some leaders are quite vocal and charismatic. Others are quiet and more of the lead by example. What is important is to understand the different styles and find a style that works best for you, and the people you are leading. I don't think it is leadership to lead a group that you are the only one contributing. That is really just doing, not leading.

If you think of a team as a whole bunch of parts, a poor leader will have a mess. A decent leader will assemble and use this team in a manner that the sum of the parts seperate is actually more than them as a whole. This is underachieving, but nearly inevitable due to overlap of skill sets, timing, and budget constraints. A good leader's output will equal the sum of those independent parts. That means everyone is fully utilized to the sum of their abilities. A great leader is able to produce an output greater than the sum. That is because a great leader is able to get people to work beyond their ability and instead reach their potential.

SMEs (Subject Matter Experts) typically have trouble extending beyond good as they know things can be done better if they do it themselves. This takes them away from leading and developing others and often blocks the efforts of others (hey you guys sit back and watch a pro). A manager I really respect once told me, "The toughest part of being promoted to management was watching others get better at my area of technical expertise than me. Eventually, them getting better became the most rewarding part of my job."

[rsisk]

I see another way to divide types of leaders; strategic and tactical.

Strategic leaders are the visionaries of the team. They think in terms of years, direction, philosophy. The immediate impact of their decisions is not always visible, but in the long run, you sure are glad they guided the team in a certain direction. They are the Generals, the CEOs, the head coach.

Tactical leaders are the guys in the trenches getting the job done. They lead teams of doers to accomplish a goal. They are the ones planning out the build season, the days objectives, the competition. They buy into the vision of the strategic leaders and make it happen. They are the Captains and the Chief Master Sergeants, the senior managers, the team leaders.

Regardless of the type of leader, they all need to earn respect of those they lead. They don't need to be loved, but they do need respect in order to lead. They need to be confident in their decisions. They need to listen to many sources of input, process that information, then make the best decision they can, sometimes working on incomplete information. They need to be honest.

One of the cool things I have found mentoring an FRC team is to watch the development of students on the team as some of them grow into leadership roles. The change that occurs between freshman and senior is amazing especially when combined with the influence of a program like FIRST.

[Phoenix Spud]

Personally, I think age has nothing to do with being a leader. I have seen 10 year olds ready to lead, and 20 year olds who aren't. It has more to do with your maturity and experience than your age.

Just because someone is a senior does not automatically make them the best person for the job. At times, the right person could be a freshmen who has extensive experience. A good leader will step down so the right people are in the leadership positions, regardless of age.

My $.02

[Zack247]

As The West Wing taught me, a good leader must believe that he/she was was put on earth by God to do their job, and to never show it.

[OZ_341]

I would like to suggest that any young people interested in leadership, should read one of the many books by or about John Wooden. (storied college basketball coach) I am not a big basketball fan, but I am a big John Wooden fan. Simple and to the point. Check it out!

Another favorite is the "7 habits of Highly Successful People". There is a lot of insight into leadership in that book as well.

Both of these suggested readings make the point that you should "cooperate" with those you are leading. Something I really believe in.