I came across some notes from a presentation by my friend Ken Hurto (who recently pleasantly surprised me by finding me on Facebook). Ken’s presentation on leadership was titled “Being a Lighthouse and Not a Bulldozer.” In it he used the bulldozer and the lighthouse as metaphors for different styles of leadership.
In his presentation he offered a list of ten traits of the self-defined leader (note his use of “self-defined” as opposed to “self-differentiated”). I think it’s a helpful and challenging list that describes something worth aspiring to. Here is Ken’s list of traits:
- Knows who she is and what she is becoming. Moves toward maturity.
- Clear about what he believes and what he values.
- Works out of a principled perspective.
- Out front on issues of importance to her.
- High tolerance for ambiguity and high tolerance for disagreement.
- Clear personal boundaries.
- Acts as a catalyst and coach to the system.
- Achievement-oriented: more concerned with results than feelings
- Loves life
- Elastic in relationships; has a broad relationship repertoire.
From, Perspectives on Congregational Leadership: Applying Systems Theory for Effective Leadership, by Israel Galindo. Check out the Perspectives on Congregational Leadership blog.
I thought it refreshing to read this and to note that you differentiate between self-differentiated and self-defined. As someone who has made a career promoting more of the former with a good dose of the other….knowing the difference is ….the difference.
Best to you,
Rob Schachter
http://www.RBSconsulting.org
Nice list.