R.A.R.E. Leadership is Rare

In the course of my professional life, I have a lot of opportunities to work with high level management. While many are great managers, few could be viewed as great leaders. You may recall that in my book, a great leader is not necessarily a charismatic figure but one who is admired by many. People trust them and would follow them unconditionally. One of them is Ted, a friend and a colleague when we both worked for an IT outsourcing company.

When you first came across Ted in a professional setting, the first thing that you noticed about him was his smile - big ear-to-ear, teeth-baring smile. It exuded warmth and happiness. If you were a newcomer to the group, Ted would be more often than not  the first person to greet you. Yet he was also known for his keen sense of discipline which was a product of his military background. He had a strong following among staff and you can see that their admiration and respect of the man were genuine. Many shed tears when he left.

How can an apparently unassuming and caring person with no hidden agenda be viewed by people around him as a true leader? I’ve learned of his secret one day over a great meal of ostrich (done rare) and grappa (served cold). In his words:

"My friend, this meal is excellent … The meat is cooked just right, I mean almost rare. By the way, RARE is also one of my favorite principles. I live by the RARE principle and I try to share it with others."

Anticipating my question, he continued:

"Rare means Unique. Rare means Precious. All the things we consider "Rare" are unique and precious like diamonds for example. As leaders, we practice Leadership and since true Leadership is unique and precious, it is RARE."

He went on to describe to me what I now call Ted’s RARE Principle of Leadership.

RARE Leadership Defined 

RARE Leadership has 4 components which start with the letters R-A-R-E.

R = Respect – Have Respect for others and earn their Respect in return.

A = Attitude – Have the right Attitude – as the common saying goes: Attitude will bring you Altitude, a leadership position.

R = Recognition – Show a gratitude for the work/contribution/devotion of others. It is also said that Gratitude is the Attitude.

E = Excellence – Get things done consistently, mainly with a strong sense of Discipline and Urgency.

E also has other meanings: Enthousiasm – Empathy – Emotional Intelligence (and Emotional Wake) - Effective Listening – Execution and Empowerment which are key elements and essential for a leader.

A RARE Leader is someone who treat all with Respect and earns it in return, inspires others through positive Attitude, ready to Recognize the worth of others and exudes Excellence in his/her field of endeavor.

In Search of RARE Leadership

How many times that you have encountered such a RARE leader?

What impact such leaders would have on the organization?

Are you one of them or in the process of becoming one?

What is keeping you from being one?

I like to hear from you.

[Note.- This post is dedicated to Ted Papadakis, a great friend. He doesn't blog and shies away from the limelight but his impact on people is undeniable. You can find his profile at LinkedIn.]

 

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