Personal Qualities and Personality of Leaders

Emotional Resilience: Emotional stress arises in managerial positions because they work in situations that involved authority leadership, power, interpersonal conflict, meeting deadlines all with some degree of uncertainty and ambiguity. Successful Managers need resiliency to cope.

Mental Agility & Creativity: Mental agility includes the ability to grasp problems quickly, to think of several things at once to switch rapidly from one situation to another, to see quickly the whole situation (rather than ponderously plough through all its components) and to think on one’s facts. Because of the hectic nature of managerial work, successful managers must posses these abilities.

Creativity means the ability to come up with new responses and to recognize useful approaches. It involves not only having fresh ideas, but also the ability to recognize good ideas when they come from other sources.

Balanced Learning Habits & Skills: Successful managers learn independently. They take responsibility for the rightness of what they learn, rather than passively depending on an authority figure of expert. Successful managers can think abstractly as well as concretely. The relative concrete ideas to attract one (and vice versa) rather quickly. This ability, sometimes known as a helicopter mind enables them to generate theories to develop their own practical ideas.

Self awareness: The way managers view their roles affect their values, their feelings, strengths and weaknesses, and a host of other people factors. Therefore, we must help them be aware of their abilities and the part they play in determining leadership behavior.

Factors Influencing Leadership Styles:

Personality of leaderships:

Value Systems: How strongly do they feel that individuals should share in decision making? How convinced are they that the officials paid or chosen to assume responsibility should personally carry out the burden of decision making? What relative importance do they attach to organizational efficiency and personal growth of subordinates?

Confidence in Group Members: Leaders differ in the amount of trust they have in other people. After considering the knowledge and competence of a group in dealing with problems, leaders may (justifiably or not) have more confidence in their own capabilities than in those of group members.

Leadership Inclinations: Leaders differ in the way they function most comfortably. For example, directive leaders issue orders and resolve problems easily. Some leaders operate best in a team role where they continually share functions with subordinates.

Feelings of Security in Uncertain Situations: Leaders who release control over the decision making process reduce the predictability of the outcome. Leaders with greater needs for predictability and stability are more likely to “tell” or “sell” than to “join”. Social psychologists increasingly view tolerance for ambiguity as a key in people’s manner of dealing with problems.

Personality of group members: Before deciding how to lead groups, leaders also need to understand the influence of personality variables. Generally, leaders permit groups greater freedom if the following conditions exist:

1. If members have relatively high need for independence;
2. If members have a readiness to assume responsibility;
3. If they have a relatively high tolerance for ambiguity;
4. If they are interested in the problem and feel that it is important;
5. If they understand the identity with the goals of the organizations;
6. If they have the necessary knowledge and experience to deal with the problem.
7. If they expect to share in decision making.

How to be an effective Discussion Leader:

Lending a discussion effectively is a skill that few possess. This ability to bring the combined intelligence and experience of many to bear on a problem effectively and congenially can be developed with practice.

1. Make sure the discussion room is as pleasant as possible and the chairs for the participants arranged in a circle so that all participants can see each other equally easily.
2. Your first task as discussion or group leader is to explain the purposes of the meeting or the precise questions(s) to be discussed.
3. Let the group know exactly its role, e.g. to react to give recommendations, or to decide.
4. Remember the principle: Don’t do it yourself. Let someone else take minutes or be reorder. Redirect questions back to the group. Be a traffic policeman, not a goalkeeper.
5. Don’t be afraid of a little silence at the beginning as members focus on the problem.

Positive Attitude on Work Performance

Surviving a recession needs no superficial platitude. But being positive really helps. When times are uncertain the best you can do is build a positive attitude that brings optimism into your life, and makes it easier to avoid worry and negative thinking especially when you are in the workplace.

What is attitude?
Understanding the connotation of attitude is a complex task. Attitude is our acceptance and reactions of certain ways of life which stems from our individual mindset, which again develops from various factors which can be family and upbringing, environment experiences in human relations etc. Attitude could be rigid, flexible or moderate. The rigidity leads to becoming pessimistic or negative in approach.

Required at Workplace:

Flexibility in your attitude results in optimistic or positive approach. It is this positive approach that employers seek in their employees. They want to hire people who take the initiative and have the motivation to get the job done in a reasonable period of time. It is this passionate employee who creates an environment of good will and who provides a positive role model for others.

A positive something that is most valued by supervisors and co-workers; and it also makes the workplace more pleasant and fun to be in each day.

Better workplace skills:

Research has shown that employees with a brighter outlook tend to demonstrate better workplace skills, simply because:

1. Positivity and optimism develop strong ties with others – employees who are happy spread cheer.
2. Positive people are good communicators and thus the work gets done without much effort.
3. Optimists tend to develop better coping skills and a more supportive social network.
4. Positivity wards off stress.

Develop Positive attitude:

The process of developing positive attitude is gradual and a conscious effort. There are no easy answers to how you can build one, but the following suggestions do stand the test of time.

1. Know yourself – which means you need to be aware of your strengths and weakness.
2. Draw a balance between your outer and the inner self.
3. Appreciate your positive qualities and work on rectifying the negatives.
4. Contemplate upon the futility of negative thinking and worries.
5. Do not be critical of others. Instead be appreciative and respectful
6. Associate yourself with happy employees
7. Respect relationships at work and never take either your seniors or your juniors for granted.
8. Be self-reliant
9. Meditate if required.

Dealing with Negative Co-workers:

Always remember, negativity mongers need a new job, a new company a new career, a new outlook, or counseling. They don’t need you. You need to deal with genuinely negative people by spending as much time as possible. Here are some tips that will come to your rescue:

1. Avoid befriending a negative co-worker
2. Refrain from providing a sympathetic audience to the negative conversations
3. Suggest the negative person seek assistance from human resources or their supervisor
4. Persistent negativity, that impacts co-workers’ work is a work behavior that may require disciplinary action. Speak to your boss or HR manager about it.

There are people who are always complaining either about their boss, their work, their home or social life. At the same time, we also see people who are perpetually smiling and are happy. Does this mean that they are blessed in life with no problems or difficulties? Or is it just a positive attitude?

Satisfied employees are more productive, work more diligently and enhance the organization’s brand value. Satisfied employees demonstrate commitment to service with every customer/client. Pessimistic employees, on the other hand, work to the advantage of your competition while on your payroll. They are usually depressed and transmit these emotions not only to fellow colleagues but also to the clients/ customers.

Well, positive attitude is rated as one of the best traits. Being positive puts a person in command of his entire faculties.

12 things your CV should not have

~Colorful or glossy paper and flashy fonts
Your CV is a formal, official document. Keep it simple.
~ Resume or CV at the top
Many people tend to add headings to their CV. The usual are CV, Curriculum Vitae and Resume. Do not do this.
~ Photographs until asked
Do not add your photo to the CV until you have been asked for it. Photographs are required only for certain types of positions like models, actors etc.
~ Usage of 'I', 'My', 'He', 'She'
Do not use these in your CV. Many candidates write, 'I worked as Team Leader for XYZ Company' or 'He was awarded Best Employee for the year 2007'. Instead use bullet points to list out your qualifications/ experience like: Team leader for XYZ Company from 2006-2007.
~ Spelling mistakes and grammatical errors
Proof read your CV until you are confident that it doesn't have any spelling mistakes or grammatical errors. These are big put-offs for the recruiters. Moreover, sometimes these mistakes might land you in an embarrassing situation.
A candidate who submitted his CV without proofreading it committed the mistake of wrongly spelling 'ask' as 'ass'. Now you can imagine the type of embarrassment he must have faced during the interview, when the interviewer pointed it out. These mistakes tend to convey a lazy and careless attitude to the interviewer.
~ Lies about your candidature
Do not lie about your past jobs or qualifications or anything which might have an impact on the job. You may be able to secure a job with these lies today but tomorrow you may lose it as well.
~ Abbreviations or jargon that is difficult to understand
People screening your resume usually belong to the HR department. If they do not understand what the abbreviations and jargon mean, they will simply dump your CV in the trash can. Avoid over-using such terms as far as possible.
~ Reasons for leaving last job
Leave these reasons to be discussed during the personal interview. For example, some candidates write: Reason for leaving the last job: Made redundant. Avoid making such statements in your CV, they add no value. Besides, if you do get an interview call, chances are the interviewer will address the issue.
~ Past failures or health problems
Mentioning these immediately slash your chances of getting an interview call.
For instance, you have a gap in your employment because you started your own business which did not do well. Some candidates might write -- Reason for gap in employment: Started own business which failed. Do not do this type of injustice with your job hunt at this stage of writing the CV.
~ Current or expected salary
Leave it to be discussed while negotiating the salary.
~ Irrelevant details
Leave out the details like marital status, sex, passport number, number of kids, age of kids. These are usually irrelevant for most interviewers but at times could be used as a basis for discrimination.
~ References
Do not include them until asked. In fact, it is not even required to mention the line 'Reference available on request'. If the recruiter requires a reference, he/she will ask you to bring it along for the interview.
Now that you have run through the list, take a fresh look at your CV and prune away unnecessary details and unaffordable blunders that could have cost you your dream job.

Right Skills for the right job with good education

Though the economy is going through a rough patch, the education sector looks quite promising for aspirants. We take a look at the emerging career landscape in this sector.Education is one of the most important drivers of India's social and economic development. And this sector appears to be ready for big action.Analysts believe that based on the current and future manpower requirements for various sectors there is a huge demand supply gap in the education space. However, looking at the current economic scenario, the world over, a question that arises here is, how is the education sector faring in the country? This sector is actually looking at the slowdown as an opportunity. With more and more people looking at pursuing higher education and
diversifying their skill sets, institutions have a greater talent pool to choose from to admit in their courses.

Talking about the kind of career opportunities and new job roles available, the education sector can offer quite a few value adding programs. These programs can be - domain specific knowledge at process, planning and strategic level; niche and focused skill training - derivatives, IFRS, risk
management, project management etc. So what are the skills that would help aspirants grab the best opportunities in the education sector? In terms of qualifications any candidate must have a graduation, professional certification from knowledge societies (e.g. PMI certification for Project
Management etc), product certification (SAP, Microsoft), certifications from business associations etc.

Fresh graduates must make themselves unquestionably required for an organization's profit.
It is now a known fact that to keep abreast in the present scenario and shine through tough competition, it is inevitable for any individual to make sure he/she gets the best education and also masters oneself with the best of skills. Once you are ready, the world is all yours to capture.

Need of the hour:

Experts say that there will be an ongoing need for new skills for employees and aspirants.
According to industry experts, the coming year will see a growth of various job profiles. Though the old skills will still be of prime importance to aspirations and employees, they say that it will become imperative for them to be well versed with various other skills too.

With the project sizes increasing by almost ten fold and more automation coming in, it will be imperative for job aspirants to acquire the next higher level skills i.e. the skills essential to control risks associated with such large projects, skills required for construction management,
project management and program management as opposed to mere construction management. Planning accurate budgeting and use of time tested tools will be critical to get a quick handle of the rapidly changing project environment.

Organizations would expect increased deliverables, high degree of change orientation, commercial acumen and strategic thinking. Employees would also be asked to perform more than one task.
Experts say that engineers will have to acquire financial and systems knowledge, cost control skills - innovative approaches to monitor costs and continuously work to reduce costs. The new age employee will have to be a superior manager and acquire skills like talent management, expectations management, ability to mentor and coach for superior performance. They
further add that employees should be functional experts, and at the same time possess general operational and management skills. Employees must re-skill themselves in order to grasp more and also should work like an entrepreneur to shoulder more responsibilities.

The industry will continue its steadfast progress towards increased level of efficiency and productivity. Several changes in skill sets and perhaps mindsets will be required. So, if you feel that you have the right skill sets to get the right job, this is the perfect time to re-think your moves.

The Power of Expressions

The Power of Expressions

Expressions are a way of giving some life to the thoughts and feelings inside us. When you cry, you express sadness and disappointment. When you catch a good joke, you laugh a lot and express the pleasure.

Expressions are a part and parcel of every human being on this earth. Every person has the right to express himself. It is only through expressions that one can achieve a harmony between the physical exterior and the mental core. It is a way of giving life to your thoughts and feelings. But not everyone expresses freely. The main reasons are the barriers we have created within ourselves. We always think of what the world would think of us. Because of this we restrain ourselves from laughing completely, tilting our head, or even scratching our ears! We try to be not what we are, but what we think will appeal to the world. Hardly do we realize that the world is just like us. It will be busy thinking of what we will think of it, rather than analyzing our actions.

When one expresses one self freely, it's the ultimate satisfaction for the mind. This is because the physical hardware of the human body is faithfully supporting its mental software. The person then is always comfortable anywhere with anyone and at anytime! If one doesn't express properly, it won’t make the sun rise in the west, but it will only lead to increased frustrations. When frustrations increase, efficiency decreases and people start blaming the world, god or anyone in general.

Well to practically speak of expressions, once you start using them in your normal day to day life, you will get used to them. Also people around you will get used to your expressions. When the doyen of Indian film industry Mr. Amitabh Bachchan came into the movies, he had one eye smaller than the other. He however carried on without being self conscious about it and captured the heart of countless Indians dead and alive. Also Sylvester Stallone, who is the famous Mr. Big Muscles from Hollywood, was actually having some psychological problems in his childhood. Even now look at his eyes and you will get a rare glimpse. But then he came above all that and now you can all see how successful he has become.

If you are angry at some one, let him know. If you admire someone, let that person know. If you love someone, let him/her know, because life is too short to keep these things as secret. Express yourself and spice up your life.