Leadership Secrets

1
Leadership Secrets

• From Attila the Hun
• Presented by
• Mark Buckner and Terry Cook

2
ADVICE AND COUNSEL

• A leader whose subordinates always agree with him
  reaps the counsel of mediocrity.
• A wise leader never berates those bearing bad
  news, but removes those who fail to do so.
• A leader who asks the wrong questions will get
  the wrong answers.
• A wise leader never asks a question for which he
  does not want to hear the answer.

3
CHARACTER

• The greatness of a leader is measured by the
  sacrifices he is willing to make for the good of
  the people.
• A leader must always rise above pettiness, and
  encourage others to do the same.
• A leader cannot succeed if he loses his nerve.
  He must be self-confident, self-reliant, and
  willing to take risks.
• Self-centered, conceited, self-admiring
  individuals are seldom great leaders.

4
CHARACTER

• Great leaders never take themselves too
  seriously.
• A wise leader knows how to adapt and how to avoid
  compromise.
• Weak leaders surround themselves with weak
  people strong leaders surround themselves with
  strong people.

5
DECISION- MAKING

• Every decision involves some risk.
• Time does not always bring solutions, nor does it
  always improve a situation for a leaders people.
  
• Quick decisions are not always the best
  decisions. On the other hand, neither are
  unhurried decisions.

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DECISION- MAKING

• Errors are unavoidable when the unqualified are
  allowed to exercise judgment and make decisions.
• Leaders should not rush into confrontations.
  When victory will not be sweet, a leader must
  keep the people out of battle.
• The ability to make difficult decisions is a
  defining factor in leadership.

7
DELEGATION

• Leaders are only necessary when someone is
  responsible to see that actions are carried out
  and directions followed. No king, chieftain or
  subordinate leader should ever be allowed to
  serve who will not accept full responsibility for
  their actions.
• Wise leaders never place people in positions
  where their weaknesses will prevail over their
  strengths.

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DELEGATION

• A wise leader never expects the people to act
  beyond their wisdom and understanding.
• Abdication is not delegation. Abdication depicts
  weakness. Delegation depicts strength.
• Delegation, like decision-making, always involves
  risk.

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DEVELOPING LEADERS

• Strong people have strong weaknesses. A leader's
  duty is to help a person's strengths prevail.
• People learn less from success than they do from
  failure. Therefore, people learn much faster
  when faced with adversity.
• A good leader risks delegating to an
  inexperienced person to strengthen that person's
  leadership abilities.
• The experience of people must be structured to
  allow them to broaden and deepen themselves to
  develop the character they will need when
  appointed to leadership.

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DEVELOPING LEADERS

• Without challenge, a person's potential is never
  realized. Thus, people are best prepared to
  become leaders when given appropriate
  successively higher levels of responsibility.
• Two types of people gravitate toward leadership,
  those who are motivated by principles, and those
  who are motivated by self-interest. A wise
  leader will select and develop people motivated
  by principles.
• Appropriate stress is essential for developing
  new leaders.

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DIPLOMACY

• Diplomacy is the art of saying nice doggy until
  you can find an adequate stick.
• Conflict is a natural state.
• People should not apply force when they can gain
  through diplomacy.
• Do not consider all opponents, or everyone you
  argue with, as enemies.  These are accidental
  enemies.  Choose your enemies with purpose.
• Hospitality, civility, and courtesy can captivate
  the most oppressive foe.

12
GOALS

• Superficial goals lead to superficial results.
  Leaders should always aim high, going after
  things that will make a difference rather than
  seeking the safe path of mediocrity.
• Critical to one's success is a clear
  understanding of what the leader wants.
• A Hun can achieve anything for which he is
  willing to pay the price.

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GOALS

• As a group, we will achieve more if we behave as
  if the group's goal is as important as a personal
  goal.
• A person's conformance does not always result in
  desired performance.
• Written reports have purpose only if read by the
  King.

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LEADERS AND LEADERSHIP

• Never appoint acting leaders. Put the most
  capable in charge, give them both responsibility
  and authority, and hold them accountable.
• A wise leader never depends on luck but trusts
  the future to hard work, stamina, tenacity, and a
  positive attitude. Strong leaders stimulate and
  inspire performance from their people.
• Being a leader is often a lonely job.
• A wise leader knows they are responsible for the
  welfare of others, and acts accordingly. Shared
  risk-taking will weld the relationship of a
  leader with the people.

15
PERCEPTION

• A person who takes themselves too seriously has
  lost perspective.
• A person's perception is their reality.
• People who appear to be busy are not always
  working.

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PERCEPTION

• It is good if your friends and foes speak well of
  you however, it is better for them to speak
  poorly of you than not at all. When nothing can
  be said of a person, they have most likely
  accomplished nothing very well.
• Contrary to what most chieftains think, you are
  not remembered for what you did, but for what
  most people think you did.
• If all people were blind, a one-eyed man would be
  king.

17
PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT

• There is more nobility in being a good person
  than in being a poor leader.
• Great leaders accept failure at some things in
  order to excel in areas of greater importance.
• You must not let your desire to lead take the
  form of over-eagerness. You must be willing to
  temper your thirst to lead with preparation,
  experience and opportunity.
• You must be willing to remain your natural self
  and not take an aura of false pride in your
  countenance.

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PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT

• You must be willing to accept the simple fact
  that you have flaws and will need to work every
  day to become a better chieftain than you were
  yesterday.
• Be marked with armament that distinguishes you
  from the masses. Own the biggest horse and
  sword. Be first in everything, but never appear
  pompous.
• Every person is responsible for shaping their
  circumstances and experiences into success. No
  other person, and certainly no adversary, can do
  for a person what they neglect to do themselves.

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PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS

• People should be taught to focus on opportunities
  rather than problems.
• Harness your peoples' desires for short-term
  gains.  Grant small rewards for light tasks.
  Reserve heaps of booty for other times, and be
  generous with items that hold a value to
  yourself.
• Disagreement is not necessarily disloyalty. A Hun
  who, in the best interest of the tribe,
  disagrees, should be listened to.
• Some people have solutions for which there are no
  problems.

20
TOLERANCE

• Suffer long for mediocre but loyal people. Do
  not suffer for competent but disloyal people.
• Every person has value. With some, it is to
  serve as a bad example.
• To benefit from the strength of leaders we must
  tolerate some of their weaknesses.

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TRAINING

• It is the responsibility of all Huns to choose
  and fellow only those chieftains who demonstrate
  a desire to lead. Such leaders will be of no
  composite character. They will be as different
  from one another as one Hun is different from
  another. They will not be laden with all human
  virtues, nor will they possess a flawless
  character.
• Teachable skills are for developing people.
  Learnable skills are reserved for leaders.
• The consequence of not adequately training your
  people will be their failure to accomplish what
  is expected from them.

22
TRAINING

• Learning by observation and through instincts
  sharpened by tested experience, chieftains must
  anticipate thoughts, actions and consequences.
  Anticipation bears a level of risk that is
  willingly accepted by a chieftain who will excel
  when others turn to the comfort of personal
  security.

23
A Final Word from Attila

• Those of you who are overly ambitious may attempt
  to acquire these qualities over a short period.
  As I, Attila, have found in my own life, these
  qualities of leadership simply take time,
  learning and experience to develop. There are few
  who will find shortcuts. There are simply rare
  opportunities to accelerate competence, and
  without paying the price, no matter how great or
  small, none will become prepared to lead others.
  Learn these leadership qualities well. Teach them
  to the Huns. Only then will we expand our ability
  to lead our vast nation in pursuit of world
  conquest.