What is leadership? Are you leader-material?

I just attended a conference and one of the speakers was Mr. Chinkee Tan, a motivational speaker and wealth coach. I was so amazed by the topic he discussed and I want to share it with you. 

The topic was about leadership! What is Leadership?

leadership is having the ability to influence others

Normally we associate leadership with Title. When we say leader, the first person that would come into our minds is our boss, or our manager, or someone who is in the position. But true leadership isn't about the title, it is about influence.

"If your people aren't willing to follow you beyond your title, then you're not a true Leader, you just have a Title." -Chinkee Tan

In order to build influence, we have to establish relationship. In a business, it means people trust you. As mentioned by John Maxwell, "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you really care." All businesses are people business and the important factor in being a leader is to build relationships.

A true leader also walks the talk. It is not what you say that counts, it is what you do. It fits perfectly with my career as a financial adviser, we practice what we preach. It is our advocacy to share to people financial education and the importance of saving the right way and at the same time we also have our own savings program to show that we really do practice what we advise. 

A leader never forgets the basics. We should never forget where we came from. You are not what you are right now if not because of the basics. A true leader should therefore completely understand what your followers are going through right now because you have been there. 

A leader never stops learning. Just like a fruit, when it is ripe, the next thing that would happen is it will get rotten. That's why a true leader can not stop learning because when he thinks he knows everything already, it is the time that he becomes close-minded and will eventually lead to his downfall.

A leader should have a big vision! However, the bigger the dreams, the bigger the challenges ahead. It is proportional. You can not expect to achieve your big dreams with little effort, you can not be promoted without working hard, nor can you expect to have millions without having the tough discipline of saving.

Also, with these challenges it is expected that you will fail. You will fail a lot. But we should always remember that success can not be achieved without failing. Therefore to FAIL means, First Attempt In Learning.