The role of leaders and leadership was acknowledged This has long been emphasized in business and the professions

We have all encountered toxic leaders and they exist in all walks of life from the business world, the military, government departs and even some entrepreneurs Toxic leaders are those individuals who because of their destructive behaviours and personal dysfunctional qualities inflict serious harm on the people they lead and their organizations

Our thoughts on leadership have developed considerably since the early part of the 20th Century when the Great Person Theories approach was in fashion It was thought in those times that you were born with leadership qualities and if you had enough of those qualities you automatically would be an effective leader

In today’s corporate world hiring managers often give as much consideration to an applicant’s personality as they do to educational background or professional experience When hiring for positions that are calculating in nature, an accountant, a technician, perhaps a computer programmer, a hiring manager will likely be looking for candidates who are reserved, focused, and task-oriented, with the belief that these character traits are important contributors for success in their line of work

Teams and groups are not the same A group is just a collection of people with a shared interest

Many years ago, two psychologists Yerkes and Dodson created an insightful law relating how people perform under pressure If a person is under no pressure at all they can be demotivated and run the risk of ‘rust-out’

Engagement is a fairly recent term in business In the past the talk was about “attracting, motivating and retaining” expatriate employees

Many people have a real fear of public speaking The irony is that almost everyone is comfortable talking to one or two people at a time but when that number grows, anxiety sets in

Throughout the centuries people have been interested in what motivates others to carry out behaviors as well as how to motivate themselves Abraham Maslow, Frederick Herzberg and Douglas McGregor to name just three gurus all had their own ideas of what enabled people to become motivated

Leadership is one of the most researched yet least understood aspects of human behaviour We all know a great leader when we encounter one but are often less confident about our own leadership ability and how to develop it