challenge

The Essential Leadership qualities are

2009-09-04T03:09:00.000-07:00

Talented
Expert – Competent
Emotionally Stable
Friend, Philosopher and Guide
Honesty and Integrity
Shield for members
Dedicated & Devoted, Dynamic, Democrat in temperament & Attitude tolerant
Farsightedness – Foresightedness
Progressive – Development oriented outlook
Knowledge of current trend
Philanthropist
Optimistic
Feeling for the society as a whole
Self – Responsibility

Leadership Quality is the main important and necessary asset for organization development and community development. If you observed any successful organization you will find a successful Leadership Quality behind all of them.

The Power of a Day

2009-07-24T04:31:00.000-07:00

How can you create a world-class career or a gorgeous life? The answer's a strikingly simple one: Live Great Days.

Your days are your life in miniature. Just focus on making the day ahead of you your best yet. Then get up and do the same thing tomorrow and the day after that and the day after that. These days will quickly become weeks. And the weeks will slip into months. Soon, you'll have just polished of your best year yet.

The question then becomes how do we install the habit of living great days-days where we work at congruence with our values and days where we are positive/excellent and passionate?

I've had tremendous success with a concept I call "30 Day Challenges". Say you want to grow the habits of daily exercise and high performance visualization in your life. Start by committing to these 2 new habits for the next 30 days, as it will take about 4 weeks before a new ritual becomes your New Normal. Then, start recording the fact that you followed through on these 2 daily commitments in your journal before you go to bed. After a few days, you will not want to break your track record. And seeing the victories of the past days fuels forward momentum. Giving yourself 30 Day Challenges to install new behaviors is such a powerful tactic for leadership and personal success.

Please remember, mastery and greatness doesn't come from one bold act that then defines your life. Instead, they come from those small, seemingly invisible daily wins that over time amount to a Best in World career and a World-Class Life. So start today.

From Robin Sharma

Leadership: Inventing the Future Now

2009-06-25T02:13:00.000-07:00

What is your definition of leadership?—Pat Campbell, Belfast, Ireland
You ask a timeless question—which has perhaps never been more timely. People in your country, in ours, and all around the world today are confused, frightened, and angry; many feel deeply betrayed by the institutions and individuals they trusted to protect and guide their lives and livelihoods. They're wondering—like you, it appears—what kind of leadership will get us out of the mess we're in, both in government and business.
Leaders, too, are feeling the burden of these unprecedented times. Like the rest of us, the vast majority did not see the collapse coming or anticipate its scale, and few know when it will end. Indeed, all that most leaders know for sure right now is that confidence in authority is at a generational low and that the margin for managerial error has evaporated.
So, to your question: What is leadership under these circumstances?
The first answer is that it's the same as always, only in overdrive. Leaders need to exude positive energy. Define vision. Build great teams. Care. Reward. Teach. Decide. Innovate. Execute.
Some things never change. But if you're running a team, division, or company right now, there's one defining aspect of leadership that you cannot, must not, neglect in the craziness and morass. Inventing the future.
Short-Term Shortsightedness
In normal times, the central challenge of leadership is balancing your organization's short- and long-term needs. Everyone knows that. You manage people, sales, and costs to hit immediate financial commitments, and you simultaneously invest in future projects to capture market trends and ensure a going concern. As we've characterized it before, this essential paradox of leadership is the ability to do and dream at the same time.
Today, however, most managers are only doing. They're fixated on the short term. We understand; they have to be, for sheer survival. They're reducing staff, slashing costs, and squeezing productivity. They're sweating the details like never before and pushing people to find the innovative killer app that could save the organization. Moreover, leaders are turning to their people—most of whom are already feeling frantic about job security—and asking for redoubled intensity. "Work faster, harder, and smarter," they're saying, "or it could be that none of us will be here tomorrow."
But that takes "tomorrow" for granted; too many leaders are neglecting to define and create it.
Why? Partly, it's human nature. When you're drowning, you're not thinking about what to put in the picnic basket for your next trip to the beach. You're thinking, "Kick, kick, kick."
But another part of the problem is pure conflict avoidance. Leaders right now can feel in their bones how their people will react to talk of long-term planning. "How can you be spending on blue-sky B.S. when you're laying off Joe and Mary, and cutting back our benefits?" they'll demand to know.
Preparing for Better Times
Look, in a time of drastic cutbacks, spending money on anything can set off a deafening sound and fury. But don't let the noise overwhelm you. In fact, try to break through it to get your people to listen as you talk about down-the-road ideas.
The future you describe will need to be exciting and promising to overcome organizational fear and cynicism. You just have to help people understand that someday the company will be different—and better—with everyone's determination and buy-in.
We're definitely not suggesting that leaders today should try to balance short- and long-term needs 50-50. In this environment, that's overkill. But if you're a leader putting 100% of yourself into the present, you could certainly shift that to something like 75% or 80% and throw some time and energy into figuring out what your company's future could and should look like, and galvanizing your people to create it with you.
When the upturn arrives—in a year or two or three—the business landscape will be brand new. There will be fewer competitors and perhaps more opportunity for those companies that are primed and ready to seize it. So remember, inventing the future is one crucial definition of leadership. The true leaders of 2009 ultimately will be known when that future arrives.

From Jack Welch, the legendary former CEO of General Electric

How Much Do We Really Know?

2009-06-19T04:24:00.000-07:00

Contrary to popular belief, we don't know much. As individuals, as a species, our information isn't great and there is so much out there that isn't clearly understood. And all those who state otherwise, or who never admit to having their own shortcomings, shouldn't be taken seriously. My information isn't perfect, yours isn't perfect, your neighbours and friends isn't perfect.

But that's the beauty of it all - all that's out there to discover, to invest ourselves in new knowledge and discovery, and creating new and better ways of doing things. As we progress, we easily understand that yesterday's thinking was perhaps foolish, or short-sighted, or simply flat out wrong. Our fast-paced society has no time for yesterday, and the best practices spread around the world like wildfire. We learn, we grow, and we move on.

So why share this? Because knowing our weaknesses, knowing our areas for improvement, is the quickest and best way to our personal and professional development. As clearly demonstrated by this recent economic turmoil, businesses don't have a great understanding of how the world works. If they did, and their information was perfect, our world wouldn't be going through such turbulent times. So it's the businesses, and best leaders, that develop new business models, dedicate themselves to innovation and experiment, and pursue their ideas at a frantic pace that will find the best success.

Here's the lesson: personally or professionally, what you don't know could be your biggest strength. Starting tomorrow morning, and for the next 7 days, dedicate 30 to 60 minutes (your Holy Hour) to thinking retrospectively, uncovering your business' limitations and areas for improvement in your personal and professional life. And be remarkably honest with yourself.

By knowing these limitations, you'll be able to move forward with greater clarity, passion, and awareness. You'll see new areas for improvement, increased focus on your goals and where to ideate, and new best practices for leveraging opportunities. Remember, this exercise might not be comfortable at first, it might be confusing, but it could be the single best practice you complete this year.

Robin Sharma

I AM

2008-05-24T03:45:00.000-07:00

I Am
by James Ray

I know that I have the ability to achieve my definite purpose in life; therefore, I demand of myself massive, immediate, intelligent, persistent, and consistent action towards its attainment. I here and now promise to render such action.

I fully realize that no wealth or position can long endure, unless built upon truth, integrity and incredible value; therefore, I will engage in no transaction that does not benefit all whom it affects.

I succeed by attracting to myself the forces that are in harmony with my vision, and the partnership and cooperation of other people. I will induce others to serve me because of my willingness to serve others.

I eliminate hatred, envy, jealousy, selfishness, cynicism, anger, and competition by developing true love for myself and all humanity. I know that there is an unlimited supply of goodness in my universe and that a negative attitude towards others can never bring me success. I compel others to believe in me, because I believe in them and in myself.

This is my creed and my quest. To never stop climbing to the top, to always keep growing and moving forward, to always scale endless peaks of possibility and to fulfill my destiny. I KNOW that my spirit's sole purpose is for fuller expansion and expression -- that I am dying if not growing. Therefore, I learn, grow, and expand my comfort zone each and every day.

I believe in, and commit to progressive advancement, growth and improvement (P.A.G.I.).

I AM the power. I AM the magic. I AM unstoppable. I AM a winner. I promise to always be true to myself, because I AM a child of the creator and a master of my universe. I AM responsible for making a positive difference in the world and to the quality of life in it.

In leadership,

James Ray is known as the Master of the Entrepreneurial Mindset

Value of Friendship

2008-05-08T12:19:00.000-07:00

Friendship seems too to hold states together, and lawgivers to care more for it than for justice, for unanimity seems to be something like friendship, and this they aim at most of all, and expel faction as their worst enemy, and when men are friends they have no need of justice, while when they are just they need friendship as well, and the truest form of justice is thought to be a friendly quality

--Aristotle, Nichomachean, 1155a22-28

Friendship is everything. Friendship is more than talent. It is more than government. It’s almost the equal of family. Never forget that. If you had built up a wall of friendships you wouldn’t have to ask me to help. ( Don Corleone speaking to his godson Johnny)

--Mario Puzo, The Godfather

Last month, I promised a friend of mine that I would write a paper about friendship, showing thus my gratitude to him. Although I promised him, I did not have any idea about the topic until recently I have read an article Friendship and Political Philosophy of Professor James Schall, and The Godfather of Mario Puzo. These readings gave words to my feelings, the feelings the friends only can experience. let me give what I think about friendship.

What is friendship? I can say, in a few words, that it is the kind of love that make men reliable in a way that they cannot harm each other. Professor Robert Dahl said that liberal democracies allies do not fight wars together thanks to their friendships. The reason of economic calculation that some commentators claim is not sufficient. Only the quality of the friendship that implies negotiation, compromise, can explain this fact. And I agree with him. Because, when we are friends there is no need to harm, for friendship supposes compromise, agreement, unanimity in all the differences.
Friendship is really a kind of natural accountability that seemingly expresses true love.

Now it’s my conviction that what needs to be primarily promoted for the aim of peace in world is friendship between different people, between cultures in the world. Aristotle said it is what seems to hold states together. Thus, to create a better world where peace and love prevail, friendship between people, between wife and husband (to stop divorce), between Palestinian and Israelite, between American and Iraqi, is necessary

So, become friends!!!!!!!!

Friendship, Peace and Love to everybody

PS:
This post is dedicated to Martin Van Dam, my big brother and my friend for ever.

It’s also dedicated to Suzie Palmer

Martin, thank you for your help, advises and all the good time we spent together

Suzie, thank you for the nice picture! That demonstrates real friendship

Amazing NLDS in Benin

2008-04-08T03:31:00.000-07:00

Thinking about the experience of the AIESEC Benin first NLDS, I

Yesterday, when I was back home from Benin, I was wondering about what the National Leadership Development Seminar (NLDS) of Benin has brought to me as added value. My response was immediate after reminding of what said Aldous Huxley “Experience is not what happens to you, it is what you do with what happens to you.” It’s clear that receiving interesting trainings on leadership don’t mean I’ll be without any conditions leader. It’s up to me to put in practice what those talented FACI taught me. By constantly keeping in mind what I learned during Benin NLDS, by putting it in practice, I will be able to see that added value.

After the theory, then comes the practice. Time of action has come!

Now, I would like to share my feelings about the NLDS of Benin. Particularly, my concern is about young people I met, with whom I discussed.

Amazed I’ve been during this seminar. I was amazed, really limitless amazed

Amazed to see real openness! Everybody was open and cooperative

Amazed to see sincere commitment! All AIESECers with whom I discussed were speaking of the relevance of AIESEC, of the change the organisation brings to their life, and of their dedication to AIESEC activities.

Amazed to see courage! These young have left all behind in their hometown in favor of the conference. Some of them had courses, had to work, but they took break for all their activities and dedicated their precious time to this conference. That seems to me to be a real courage and sincere dedication

Amazed to see ambition! I was astonished by their positive attitude. Precisely, I can say that they are all opportunistic in the good sense. They are looking for opportunities. When they speak, we see the will to move forward by the desire to explore various opportunities.

Amazed to see fun and craziness! AIESEC is an organisation of young hard workers where we can find explosive fun and crazy!

I love you all, friends from Benin NLDS. You strongly impressed me. And your attitude reinforces my desire to set up AIESEC in Burkina Faso

Hope to keep in touch with all of you.

aiesecly!!!!!!!

Hurray to AIESEC in Benin!

2008-04-08T03:22:00.000-07:00

Hurray to AIESEC in Benin! Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!

Bravo AIESEC Bénin,

vous avez réussi,

vous avez gagné le pari,

vous avez relevé le défi

Vous m’avez inspiré

Votre leadership est un exemple pour le comité que je conduis.

Vous avez ajouté une goutte d’eau dans ma source de motivation

Je pars de votre pays encore gonflé et super motivé pour travailler dur

Yvette et toute l’équipe, vous êtes des leaders.

Yvette and all the team, this is an important step. Now, it’s time to start the next.

So keep up the good work!!!!

deserve it!!

2008-02-28T09:46:00.000-08:00

"According to the classical or Socratic perspective, the conditions for thinking clearly and well - e.g. intelligence, health, a certain amount of wealth, freedom, leisure - do not guarantee that one will think clearly and well. Nothing can guarantee understanding. Indeed, from this perspective nothing can guarantee a successful outcome to any human enterprise, practical or theoretical. In Churchill's phrase, one cannot guarantee success, one can only deserve it." (Harry V. Jaffa, Professor Emeritus, Claremont Graduate School)

What Professor Jaffa said is worth questionable. Is it right that conditions of success do not guarantee success? Is it right, as thought Churchill, that success has to be deserved?
What I can say is that everyone is successful. We are all successful even if we cannot all excell in the same fields. There are persons who can be good football players, whereas others are suited for selling. We can henceforth say that success is public propriety that nobody has mastering over it in the way to exclude others from it.
But, success is not a simple given thing. We must deserve it. In effect, only through belief, actions, hardwork, and determination, we are able to get it. It is not our conditions that absolutely and necessarily make us get the success. We are not mere products of our conditions. We can change bad conditions to good ones. We can improve satisfactory conditions in which we live. But all this begins by the will. It's up to us!
I also want to add that we need a bit of chance. Even though chance seems to me less important, it has sometime its importance. Those who succeeded did not rely only and absolutely on themselves, there were something over which they didn't have control, and that, in decisive sense, helped them to realisze their dreams.

To conclude, I once again insist that the absolute truth is that we are all successful. No matter where we come from, or where we live, success is not the private domain of a restricted group of people. And the relative truth is that only hardwork, determination and some other good values are real conditions for success. It's relative because we have to take into account the role of chance, even less important.

Friends, act now, work hard, face challenges, don't give up. And also, pray in order to put in your side some chance. And finally, deserve it!!!!!!!!!

In leadership,

PS: you can find the article of Harry jaffa following this link http://www.claremont.org/publications/pubid.8/pub_detail.asp

Inspiration

2008-01-21T03:59:00.000-08:00

Inspiration is important in commitment and achievements. It's important to know what inspire you the most. Robin Sharma gives us some ideas about inspiration. So let's delight this interesting text below:

Inspired people are the rock stars of their companies and communities. They are wildly passionate about their To Do's. They pursue new ideas, people and opportunities zealously. They get great things done. And they take charge of their own inspiration. Like the rock stars of the music world they constantly look for inspiration in the world around them.

Many of us wait for inspiration. We see it as a random event or something that only happens to artists. I disagree. Inspiration is everyone's right. And, it can be found in the most humble places. Here are the sources of inspiration that I keep going back to:

Reading is a fantastic source for inspiration. Reading a book is like having a conversation with a great mind. And we become our conversations. Choose autobiographies or the wisdom literature. You cannot help but be changed by dazzling books.

Music just makes life better. Add music to any of your days to make them extraordinary. Listen to new music and old favorites to help you reach higher and dream bigger.

Conversations never fail to provoke me. Sharing coffee with a wise friend is a sure way to recharge your battery. Listening to the people around us can elevate our thoughts and our commitments.

The human brain craves novelty. New people, new sights and new ideas all inspire us to see the world differently and pursue more interesting challenges. Traveling and art are fantastic ways to pop us out of our patterns and push us to innovation and action.

In Leadership,

Success begins by setting goals

2008-01-11T08:54:00.000-08:00

As I set my goals this year to discuss on relevant topics, in order to enhance our learning, I also decided to find relevant links and informations that can be useful for your personal development.
Last december, I spoke about our standards of success. It's now clear to you that you are successful persons. Nonetheless, it's better to know that success supposes many things. Among those things we primarily have and perhaps the most important thing Goal Setting. If you fail to set goals and plan, you're probably planning your failure. In the beginning of this year, its important to set goals so that you allow the right path. In doing so, your main wish for this year will probably be achieved.

Below are some tips provided by Hilton Johnson. So, here goes...The Top 10 Best Ideas For Setting Goals:

1. Make A List Of Your Values

What's really important to you? Your family? Your religion? Your leisure time? Your hobbies? Decide on what your most important values in life are and then make sure that the goals you set are designed to include and enhance them.

2. Begin With The End In Mind

Create a very clear image in your mind of what you want, and ask yourself how would you act to make this image real. Then, act effectively that way

3. Project Yourself Into The Future

Whatever thoughts dominate our minds most of the time are what we become. That's why goal setting is so critical in achieving success because it keeps us focused on what's really important to us. He then said that the easiest way to reach our goals is to pretend that we had ALREADY achieved our goals.

That is, begin to walk, talk and act as though we are already experiencing the success we seek. Then, those things will come to us naturally through the power of the subconscious mind.

4. Write Down The 10 Things You Want This Year

By making a list of the things that are important to you, you begin to create images in your mind. It's been said that your mind will actually create chaos if necessary to make images become a reality. Because of this, the list of ten things will probably result in you achieving at least eight of them within the year.

5. Create Your Storyboard

Get a piece of poster board and attach it to a wall in your office or home where you will see it often. As you go through magazines, brochures, etc. and you see the pictures of the things you want, cut them out and glue them to your storyboard.

In other words, make yourself a collage of the goals that excite you...knowing full well that as you look at them everyday, they will soon be yours.

6. The Three Most Important Things

Decide on three things that you want to achieve before you die. Then work backwards listing three things you want in the next twenty years, ten years, five years, this year, this month, this week and finally, the three most important things you want to accomplish today.

7. Ask Yourself Good Questions

As you think about your goals, instead of WISHING for them to come true, ask yourself HOW and WHAT CAN YOU DO to make them come true. The subconscious mind will respond to your questions far greater than just making statements or making wishes.

8. Focus On One Project At A Time

One of the greatest mistakes people make in setting goals is trying to work on too many things at one time. There is tremendous power in giving laser beam focused attention to just one idea, one project or one objective at a time.

9. Write Out An "Ideal Scenario"

Pretend that you are a newspaper reporter that has just finished an interview about the outstanding success that you've achieved and the article is now in the newspaper. How would it read? What would be the headline? Write the article yourself, projecting yourself into the future as though it had already happened. Describe the activities of your daily routine now that are very successful. Don't forget the headline.

10. Pray & Meditate

As you get into bed each evening, think about your goal before you drop off to sleep. Get a very clear colorful image in your mind of seeing yourself doing the things you'll be doing after you've reached your major goal. (Remember to include your values.) And then begin to ask and demand for these things through meditation and prayer.

January Quote

2008-01-11T08:38:00.000-08:00

"If a man knows not what harbors he seeks,
any wind is the right wind."

Seneca

Standards of success

2007-12-26T02:17:00.000-08:00

Few days before the end of this year, I want you friends to reflect on success, on your standards of success. What is success for you? Do you feel yourself successful? What are your standards of your success? This reflection below is from the guru of leadership Robin Sharma. Hope it will help you reflect on your standards, and make you feel successful in spite of your little achievements and your non-achievements of the past. Now, let's read the text below:

So many of us don't feel successful. Despite our accomplishments at work, the love in our families or our health we don't feel that we have made it. And, it's just not true. Many of us, are in fact, quite successful. Yet we don't appreciate our success because we make two mistakes when it comes to thinking about success. The first is that we are measuring against the wrong standards. The second is that our definition of success is too narrow.

The wrong standards for success are simple to identify. Any standards but your own are wrong. The most accurate and relevant way to measure success is against your own results. How far have you come in a year? How much deeper are your relationships? How much fitter are you? What did you get done this year? When you compare your current results with your past results you get the right data about your success.

The second trap is that people only measure success in terms of accomplishments. Did I get a raise? Did I win the marathon? Did I get married? Don't get me wrong--accomplishments are important. However, there are two other dimensions I want you to think about; joy and impact. Just working for accomplishments will leave you empty at the end of the day. However, if you have experienced joy and made an impact on those around you, you are truly successful.

Now that the end of the year is approaching I respectfully suggest that you look back a year (or three years or five years) at the results you were realizing and how you are experiencing more accomplishment, joy and impact now.

In Leadership,

Time to make things happen

2007-11-05T03:32:00.000-08:00

It's time to make a difference
It's time to stand up for things you believe in.
It's time to show that you care.
It's time to ask yourself: am I doing something?

quote of the month

2007-11-05T03:24:00.000-08:00

"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more than unsecessful men with talent. Genius will not, unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated dereclits. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."

Calvin Coolidge

Constant is back

2007-10-29T04:35:00.000-07:00

Since I created this personal weblog, I didn't have clear idea to make it more attractive and useful. Now, I have. Now, I'm back to embark with you on a new journey, on a exciting venture. This journey consists of allowing the path of leadership, of sincerely showing our commitment for relevant issues, of facing challenges. I Want to show my vision and share it with you. I want to express my views on some imporant issues in Africa and in the entire world.
Dear readers of this blog, I hope you are ready to embark on this journey. If you are ready, let's go.