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Future Focus - What People Want from Leaders

Guest post by: Dr. Maynard Brusman

Article Overview: Some leaders are naturally future-oriented; many others excel as executors or talent managers. Still others shine at getting things done and making things happen; others bring out the best in people.

Future Focus - What People Want from Leaders

Future Focus



Question for Discussion – Why is the competency of “forward-looking” so important for leaders?

I recently read Steve Job’s biography which I found fascinating because of his creativity and the complexity of his personality that motivated him to achieve greatness. Steve Job’s passion and genius for creating products that invent the future is so inspiring. Oh Wow!

My executive coaching clients and I frequently have conversations about how marketing with a focus on the future is so much easier when your business is aligned with your values and purpose. I’ve learned over a twenty-five year coaching career that some leaders are much more gifted than others with the competency of visioning the future. Executive coaching can help enlightened leaders improve their capability to develop an agile and compelling strategy.

What People Want from Leaders

Leadership professors Barry Posner and Jim Kouzes, after surveying thousands of people on ideal leadership qualities, reveal that the ability to look forward is second only to honesty as the most admired trait.

On average, 70 percent of workers worldwide select “forward-looking” as a key leadership competency. Think about the leaders you’ve followed or admired. The great ones are visionaries who serve as custodians of the future. You want to partner with leaders who can create a better future.

As we age, gain more experience and move up the organizational hierarchy, our desire for a forward-looking leader increases, according to Posner and Kouzes. While only about one-third of undergraduate college students ranked “forward-looking” among their most important leadership attributes, more than 90 percent of senior executives had added it to their lists.

Some leaders are naturally future-oriented; many others excel as executors or talent managers. Still others shine at getting things done and making things happen; others bring out the best in people.

While achieving great results with people is always rewarding, it’s not enough for promotion to higher levels of responsibility and leadership. To take that step, you must expand your ability to communicate a vision for the future. Forward-looking leaders can spot opportunities in their day-to-day work, and they excel at anticipatory thinking.

Emotionally intelligent and socially intelligent organizations provide executive coaching as part of their high performance leadership development program. Working with a seasoned executive coach and leadership consultant trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-I, CPI 260 and Denison Culture Survey can help managers manage for progress. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become fully engaged with the vision, mission and strategy of your company or law firm.

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Article Tags: emotional intelligence, executive coaching, foward looking, future focus, leadership development



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