The first in a four-part series on leadership and what it means to our communities

I’m always on a quest to figure out the characteristics of successful rural community leaders. We’ve long recognized the need to find and develop leaders in a community, looking from the quiet folks who have the ability to lead but have not had an opportunity to our younger, emerging leaders to develop their leadership skills in hopes we can eventually bring them home.

I had an interesting conversation last month with a new Center for Rural Affairs’ Advisory Board member who has done extensive work in and teaching of leadership. I asked if he could tell me what a leader looks like. The short answer was no, and that’s what I’d expected.

There is no template or personality type. Leaders come in all sizes, shapes, generations, experiences and so forth. And I think we have to admit that within this hodge-podge there are good, great, and not-so-great leaders.

But I’m most interested in effective leaders – what results do they achieve? According to studies by Target Training International, effective leaders share some fundamental skills:

• Interpersonal skills – the ability to interact with others in a positive way.
• Self-management – the ability to prioritize and complete tasks and deliver them within an allotted time; the ability to control oneself under stress.
• Personal accountability – the ability to answer for personal actions.
• Influencing others – the ability to personally affect other’s actions, decisions, opinions or thinking.
• Goal achievement – the overall ability to set, pursue and attain achievable personal, professional and team goals regardless of obstacles or circumstances.

These skills are important because one of the underlying components common to individuals who possess them is trust – both with individuals and groups. If you can’t trust someone to do what they promise to do, how can you trust that they will lead your community in the right direction? Once trust has been established, results can eventually follow.

In the next part of this series we’ll take a look at civic entrepreneurs and how they can impact successful rural development.

Contact: Kathie Starkweather, kathies@cfra.org or 402.438.8496 for more information.