Leaders Must Be Willing To Ask Others

For many reasons, individuals in leadership positions often feel somewhat uncomfortable asking others for help, advice, recommendations, etc. However, in over three decades of working closely in numerous capacities with many hundreds of leaders, I have come to realize that the most effective leaders overcome that hesitancy, realizing that no one individual has all the answers, and turned to others that they both trusted and respected, whenever there was a situation, topic or matter, that they did not feel they were fully cognizant of all relevant information, knowledge and ramifications. An ancient Persian philosopher stated, "Whatever I did not know, I was not ashamed to inquire about, so I acquired knowledge."
1. Effective leaders, either officially or unofficially/ casually, often depend on advisers or advisory boards/ committees. The wisest of leaders realizes and recognizes both his strengths and weaknesses, as well as those areas where he most needs assistance to supplement his knowledge and expertise. Therefore, they carefully evaluate themselves, identify their needs and faults, and find trusted individuals that possess these traits and knowledge that they need to optimize their decision making ability. However, it is important for a great leader to realize that these individuals are there to supplement knowledge and expertise, provide input, and act as a viable sounding board, but the final decision is ultimately the responsibility of the leader himself.
2. What are some of the traits, characteristics, qualities, expertise, etc., that a leader should look for, and what must he beware of? Firstly, great leaders realize that merely because someone has experience or has been around for a while, does not make him adviser material. Experience can be good or bad, quality or inferior, educational/ learning or just something done. On the other hand, expertise is based on how well someone performs certain duties, how professionally, and how thoroughly, as well as whether there is knowledge and information that someone possesses that could be invaluable as a leadership tool. Often, an individual in leadership becomes sheltered from the reality of what's going on with his organization and the members, and good leaders make sure that these advisers are not simply yes- men. It is vital that advisers can be counted on, and will do what they agree to do, or in other words, they also walk the walk, and not merely talk the talk. How fancy one's rhetoric is should have no bearing! An adviser must have certain expertise, whether it is in the area of finance/ budgeting, fundraising, member relations, events/ event planning/ negotiations, creating agendas, comprehensive and effective planning, strategically planning, consensus building, etc. The effectiveness of a leader's regime is often determined to a large degree by who he selects as his advisers.

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