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[Colette Morris Company: Numis Network Contribution Level: 3]

There is a big difference between being a 'good leader' and being a 'boss'. My idea of a boss and I guess this is true of many of you too, is one who heads up the company or department and 'tells' you what he wants you to do and when he wants you to do it. Is this description about right?

Now being a 'Leader' is someone who by example and through coaching obtains the best out of their followers be they employees or colleagues so that they work over and above everyones expectations to achieve remarkable results. That would be the ideal. There have been many great leaders throughout history, many of them army generals, Winston Churchill, Colin Powell, and even the late great Steve Jobs. Ok Steve was not an army general, but the way in which he lead his company from being the bottom of the market and nearly on their way out of business to becoming the top brand and industry leader is exceptional.

There are many exceptional leaders in the MLM and Network Marketing industry, many of which did not start out in that way. A leader is someone you become. You only become that person when you have people interested in what you have to say, or people who have been affected by what it is you do in a positive way. There must be a commonalilty between you and the people who look to you as a leader.

John Maxwell in his book "The 21 IrrefutableLaws of Leadership" expresses the qualities of leaders explicitly.

"A great leader's courage to fulfill his vision comes from passion, not position." John Maxwell

Here are some of the qualities of a 'good leader' which has been recognised through the ages and ones which we should all aspire to if we are to become leaders within ourselves.

A Leader is someone who is willing to take action.

Someone who is willing to be accountable for their actions

Someone who stands by what they say, but is also willing to take on board what others say and admit where they may be wrong.

Listens actively to others and takes their suggestions on board.

Encourages others to 'step up'

Promotes leaders from within the organistion or company or department and encourages them.

Someone who is willing to walk the walk and talk the talk and is seen doing so.

Someone who regularly comes out of their comfort zone in order to stretch themselves and learn new things.

Someone who is always learning new things in life, reading, doing, seeing, going places.

Someone who shares their experiences and feelings with others and encourages them to go out there and discover the 'inner' strength inside them.

Someone who makes a difference, a positive difference in others lives.

Someone who is selfless and looks out for others first and foremost before looking out for themselves.

So there you have it some of the things I have found in my journey of life, through reading, meeting and working with great leaders what their qualities are, and ones which inspire me to look up to them. Feel free to Leave a comment below on other tips or advice for leadership



Colette Morris
A nauseating MLM statistic: 97% of MLM'ers make under $10.00
per week! Are you one of them? You don't have to be! Learn how
the top female and male entrepreneurs build empires:
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[Dallas Piana Company: Rodan + Fields Dermatologists Contribution Level: 1]

My favorite leaders have been someone who guide me into new territory.
Challenge me to stretch beyond my comfort zone while providing support and resources.
And someone who gave their knowledge and expertise away to their team freely......

Dallas

Dallas Piana

[Joyce Penner Company: Life Force International Contribution Level: 8]

Can I suggest another one, although it's implied, wasn't expressly said?

Results !

When you say 97% are making less than $10 you MUST, as a leader, be able to produce results in your network marketing business. Otherwise it's the blind leading the blind (newbie teaching newbie: wannabe leaders posing as successful). Finding the leader who has or is producing results as well as all the other attributes you mentioned is crucial.
Joyce

[Adam Taha Contribution Level: 8]

I'm with Joyce regarding the part on leadership and of course, the other traits mentioned is a must. However, in real world, no one knows you well until they get to know you.

In real world, the RESULTS is what people click on first because the first questions on their minds are..

A) Can I trust you?
B) Will it work for me?
C) Is it simple to do?
D) And where then is evidence without us, the business owners just saying it...

So my tip...

1. Focus on getting results, hence, lead by example.

You MUST have results and better not step into the world of brick and mortar on talking about results when one cannot show them.

2. Make your example louder than your words, voice.

Which is done by number 3-4 below..

3. Have plenty of customers who are active in sharing their experiences on your blog, emails, ebooks etc.

That's what I am busy with at moment now, putting this together and let such words of customers speak for themselves.

4. Let the success also of the team one is developing, helping, coaching, mentoring speak more on your own videos, blog, email newsletters and the activity shows it on facebook too.

A leader is someone who has a...SUCCESSOR/SUCCESSORS. Meaning, one must have helped others to succeed and can reveal this outright without them saying it.

Unfortunately, I do not see this often enough or if any. I see articles. I see blog post but what is totally invisible, is....revealing results.

I'm not saying how ones does it, or the 'how to.' I mean, when someone talks about something, a technique, methods, they don't say..

"And from this method I got 20 prospects signed up.."

What's a sign up? Where is the sales? Where is the result called money, sales, conversions that shows products been sold. Hence, videos showing this and let that speak in the article or blog post.

Great people saying, "I get 50 leads a day etc etc.." But, how many from the 50 were helped, succeeded in their own growth, sales and sign ups? Show this.

Now, if someone applies these, you will set yourself apart from 97%. Your example, your result will louder than the crowd who do not show the results.

Finally, why these are important?

Because people want to win.

People want to join someone who CAN do it and not someone who speaks and can't show it. They want to see that you done it and they'll understand to pay for the 'HOW TO' because that's their next step.

Adam Taha

[Colette Morris Company: Numis Network Contribution Level: 3]

My favorite leaders have been someone who guide me into new territory.
Challenge me to stretch beyond my comfort zone while providing support and resources.
And someone who gave their knowledge and expertise away to their team freely......

Dallas

Dallas Piana

Great tip Dallas, a leader should guide and stretch you beyond your comfort Zone. Thanks for sharing this valuable fore sight.

Colette
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[Colette Morris Company: Numis Network Contribution Level: 3]

Joyce, great insight, and so true, to be a leader you have to walk the walk and talk the talk, as you say show the results.

Adam, loved your response, lots of things for newbies to consider here, and for potential leaders to abide by. Having the Results matter, and then showing others how they too can achieve those results are equally important. Thanks for sharing.

Colette Morris
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[Ben Simonton Contribution Level: 1]

The only effective way to manage people is to lead them. In view of that, I have three tips.

My first tip is to follow the lead of how to become a great car mechanic and that is to study cars to find out how to maintain them in tip top condition, not what other car mechanics do. Don't study other leaders, study people so that you can learn how to put them in tip top condition.

Second, tip top condition for a person is being highly motivated, highly committed and fully engaged in their work and literally loving to come to work. In this condition, they will be at least 300% more productive than if poorly engaged.

Third tip is that people have five basic needs; the need to be heard and to be respected, and the need to have competence, autonomy, and purpose (these three being what motivates us all as proven by researchers Edward Deci and Richard Ryan). As their leader, meeting these needs 100% will cause them to become highly motivated, committed and fully engaged.

Best regards, Ben

[Hayley McKeever Contribution Level: 2]

Great post! The one thing I would add to this discussion that I don't think anyone else mentioned is that to be a great leader you first need to be yourself. Be YOU. Don't try and be someone you are not. It's not true when people say "fake it until you make it." When you are you, and you are passionate, knowledgeable, patient and helpful you will naturally draw people to you, and then you become a leader.

[Adam Taha Contribution Level: 8]

Great post! The one thing I would add to this discussion that I don't think anyone else mentioned is that to be a great leader you first need to be yourself. Be YOU. Don't try and be someone you are not. It's not true when people say "fake it until you make it." When you are you, and you are passionate, knowledgeable, patient and helpful you will naturally draw people to you, and then you become a leader.

Yes, that's true but the true intrepretation to "fake it until you make it" is misunderstood. It is misunderstood because of lack of understanding on what leaders are saying.

I had many in my team ask what does this mean, "fake it until you make it."

My reply to this saying is..

Fake it until you make it, means..

1. Understand it won't be easy to get out of your comfort zone.

2. Understand that seeing yourself as a winner is not going to be easy, because you may feel, due to where you are right now, the situation of lack of money, wealth, success as this not to be true.

3. Understand that the moment you believe in yourself, doing the actions need to be done, may seem odd to those around you - and it takes a lot of belief in your purpose to focus on your goals.

4. Understand that you need to invest in knowledge, skills to BECOME what you need to be, for success to be attained.

5. Understand that you are an entrepreneur who at the start will have limited resources and you need to make these resources work for you. Believe, start now and don't wait for the right time, right moment and vast resources.

6. And these won't be easy for you and we understand this. We appreciate it won't be easy but keep focused in changing yourself from inside, in knowing your weakness, your strengths, your habits.

Because...

""If you keep doing what you've always done - you keep being what you've always been. So change then must start with ourselves. Belief."

Hence, 'Fake It Until You Make It" does not and has never been about faking it.

It is a statement of truth, that you must BELIEVE in YOURSELF first before anyone else does. That you must BELIEVE in the best for yourself and it will take work.

And BELIEF comes before RESULT.

Because with change of thinking, comes a change of actions, change of actions that are consistent become habits.

Habit shapes one's character.

Character shapes ones fate.

Fate changes one's Destiny.

Hence, the result but it starts with Belief. Mindset change. A certain way of thinking.

Fake it until you make it means = BELIEVE in yourself and do the actions needed, but know, for a while it will be difficult, uncomfortable until you reach where you want to be. It will also make some you know uncomfortable too - and you must decide if you desire to be a leader or someone who does for sake of being accepted, approved.

I wanted to share this because I don't want anyone new thinking 'faking it until you make it' is to change oneself in lying, pretending etc. It does not mean that at all.

Adam Taha

[willie robertson Contribution Level: 4]

What Tips Can You Give to Becoming A Leader?

To become a great leader, first you must learn how to be a great follower of the right mentor or mentors.

Thus, you really have to humble yourself and admit you don't know it all, and you could use a little help in striving to reach your goals. After all no one person is an island.

Now, with that said, in chosing a leader in whom to follow, you must ask yourself, have they acheived the results that I wish to acheive and do they have the fruit to show it?

In todays marketing enviroment, especially online, damn near everyone claims to be a leader or an expert. Sure, an expert at slinging mud on the wall promoting the same B.S. over and over.

Personally I have been observing a fellow marketer in the IM indudtry, whom I will leave nameless. This young man had been working 3 jobs, and darn near 1oo plus hours per week trying to make ends meet. Then, in his very, very limited spare time he was also trying to figure out and build a business in IM.

Finally in desparation, he took his last $1000 and charged it to his credit card to hire a mentor he had found, someone that had the fruit he was seeking to grow in his life and business.

The mentor told this young man, the very first thing you need to do do is STOP BUYING MORE stuff, no more shiny object toy purchases. Then he told the young man to use and apply what he already had learned, cause for the most part, the young man already had what he needed, he just needed someone to help point him in the right direction.

Weel, within 3 months of getting and paying this mentor, this young man was able to quit all 3 of his jobs and go full time in his own online business, and, he is doing quite well.

And now, he to has become a leader and is teaching others.

That's how you become a great leader. Follow a great leader, implement what they teach you, and then after you have the results, you then can become the leader.