Friends Of STAR

A leader becomes one because he chooses to lead! A leader who is coerced to lead by supporters who support blindly often fail to find the necessary fire in his belly to be an effective leader. Leading requires knowing where you are taking your constituency to, and having the passion to make them wanting to follow! Both are needed, and both are to be supported by persistence, perseverance, and perspiration! One key ability ALL effective leaders possess is the ability to communicate and connect.

My opening paragraph above is loaded with pertinent points. Please allow me now to elaborate.

1. A leader, to be successful at leading, must be more than want to lead. He must be obsessed about leading. He fights for the throne. He gives his everything not only after winning the coveted seat, but more importantly, he make his battle cry known right from the very beginning. A true leader is driven not by the power or the status of the position, instead he champions a course! The course is where he leads his followers to.

What has been the battle cry of your leader?

2. Besides the intellectual capacity, a leader must have the courage, the energy, and the passion to go the distance until the challenges have been conquered. He will then redefine new challenges. A leader does not fear making mistakes, nor does he concern himself about saying things the right way. His only concern is to say the right thing, his way! He lives his course, and he connects and convince others to share in his mission. A true leader focus on getting things done, and getting things done through others! He gives credit to where credits are due.

What has your leader been saying, and what is his way? What are his priorities?

3. A leader can't go into incommunicado! Leadership silence invites speculations and confusion. A leader must be able to articulate his vision on day 1 into office, and to follow through with more detail articulation of HOW that vision is to be achieved. He needs to lead from the front, even with office bearers appointed. Think Jimmy Carter who swallows his words and left the whole nation of America uninspired, and think Clinton or Reagan or lately Obama who despite the dooms and glooms of the economy manage to provide hope, that the future will be better!

Has your leader been inspiring? Is he leading from the front?

4. Assuming the leader chose to lead, and he has a burning passion to achieve his vision, then he must be able to connect with and engage others!

Be it verbal oration in gathering or written journals of his thoughts, he communicates and he connects. He reaches out and invite opinions, criticism even! He is self assured without being cocky, confidence but not arrogance. He is approachable and friendly, at the same time he is respected for his single minded committment to bring his followers to greater height of success, whatever success means!

Has your leader been connecting with you? Can you hear his heartbeats, or does he yours?

The above is my version of what leadership means for an association, prompted by the recent announcement by the protem President of 'Friends of STAR'. I can hear his battle cry, and I can feel his heartbeats...A Better STAR! I can see his presence when and where it matters, and I can read his vision written across the clouds...A Better STAR! He leads from the front, his only concern is what he has left behind, and his wish is to re-intall the past glories....of A Better STAR! He does not blink in the face of adversaries, he finds solace in the images of victories....of A Better STAR!

I know what leadership means, and I am voting for ''Rostam of Friends of STAR'' to lead this quest for the twinkles of A Better STAR!!!

(.....No, brother Rostam did not pay for my recent vacation in Sabah for me to write this! I had a blast re-connecting with Bro Jamalul Kiram, and meeting for the first time with brother RahmanD. I will share some photos in future posting)