The most important characteristic of a leader?

I tried googling the definition of leadership before starting this post but ended up giving up. Too many definitions. It must be important if they’re all talking about it.

As an academic, I will retain two aspects; #leadership as a research area and as a practical skill that enables an individual to effectively drive a person, a group of people or an organisation in a specific direction. Leadership is essential to get things done but, more importantly, to get them done full-heartedly.

As a discipline, of course, some will perform better than others at applying leadership. So, what characterises an effective leader? A survey by Robert Half Management Resources with 3,200 office employees and Chief Financial Officers on the most important attributes in a corporate leader shows that #Integrity is first. Dwight D. Eisenhower, former American President, did say: “The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office.” #Integrity has also been confirmed by the executives Anderson & Scholars engages in its leadership programmes.

What does integrity mean? The Cambridge online dictionary defines “integrity” as “the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles that you refuse to change.” While one can feel obliged to do what a manager asks of them as part of their job role, people only #follow leaders by choice. You follow whom you can trust. #Integrity, Brian Tracy says, “is the most valuable and respected quality of leadership. Always keep your word.”