23 Qualities of a Great Leader

I wish I could share the link to this article, but I have not been able to find it since the day I printed it out. I found this article on CNN.com (from CareerBuilder.com) and I completely agree with all 23 Qualities. This article is a compilation of just a handful of characteristics from five credible people. These five people include, Rachael Fisher-Layne, VP of media relations, JCPR, a public relations agency; Darcy Eikenberg, a leadership and workplace coach, Red Cape Revolution; Tom Armour, co-founder, High Return Selection, a recruitment firm; Mike Sprouse, CMO, Epic Media Group, and author of "The Greatness Gap"; and Nancy Clark, author of "18 Holes for Leadership".
I am not going to go through all 23 Qualities; however, I will touch on my, personal, top 10. In no particular order;

Honesty-This is such an important characteristic to me, you must always be honest with your team or group, no matter what. If you toss this Quality out of your priorities you will just encourage your team members to do the same thing, and it can be very difficult to lead a group of people that are not honest with you.

Passion-No matter what your vision, mission, or goal is you MUST be passionate about it. If you are not passionate about your mission how can you effectively lead a group of people to meet your goal? Passion is a driving force, a NEEDED driving force when you are trying to lead your team through the process of reaching your goal.

Respect-If you play favorites in your group your members will pick up on it. A group that does not feel respected will not show respect. Respect yourself, respect the members of your group, and respect the strengths and weaknesses of your team.

Confidence-A great leader has got to have confidence, because if you do not believe in yourself, no one will. Have the confidence to know that you are a great leader, and have the confidence in your team or group.

Clarity-You must be clear about your intentions as a leader. It will be very difficult for your team to reach goals if there is confusion about the process or the next step to take, or even of the goal itself.

Care-This Quality is not just about caring for yourself and your group, but you must also care about the business, the work you and your team members do, and the community your business operates in. If you do not care, your team will not grow or build lasting goals.

Integrity- A great leader is not just a person who is respected, but someone that is worth that respect. You must be honest and follow through with the things you say you will do for your team.

Compassion-For this one I must quote the article, “Talented people want to work for leaders and organizations that truly care about their employees and the communities in which they operate." Do not manage your business or your team at the expense of your team members and especially not at the expense of your customers.

Collaborative-A great leader is a great listener. Ask for and listen to feedback and ideas from your team or group. Sometimes you may have to really dig to get ideas from some of your team members, but you never know when a different point of view may breed a revolution for your group.

Supportive-This is close to the most important quality to me. You must be a supportive leader. Be supportive of your team members, goals, input, feedback, and new ideas. If you shut down or ignore your members and their contributions, then they will not be supportive of your leadership.