Please see Part One for background information.
In this video-conference presentation on August 5, 2025, for ACEYE Club 100’s pilot training program, I offered ideas on business leadership, followed by a discussion.
The following is based on the outline, with a list of references and other resources. Some of the material is adapted from my 2022 piece, “Presentation to South Asia Students for Liberty: Leadership and Liberty.”
The purpose of both pieces is to enable the attendees to review the points and learn more, and for others to be able to benefit from the information.
Introduction
Some of the principles covered in the prior session also apply to leadership. In this session, I covered eleven more.
1. To Be a Good Leader, Be a Good Person
Being a person of character is its own virtue and is a foundation for leadership.Being a good person, including acting ethically, will make you a better leader, and being a better leader will make you a better person.
- One of the qualities of character is courage
- Speak up for what is right, including freedom, even if others fail to do so
- Another is compassion, the desire to alleviate suffering
- Treat your employees with compassion
2. Develop a Good Personality
Traits of a good personality flow from good character. Be strong, resilient, friendly, polite, considerate, respectful, kind, empathetic, responsible, and authentic.
- Being polite is its own virtue — and it will make you stand out.
- Be likable, but not at the cost of effectiveness. The goal is to lead, not to be popular.
3. Be a Servant Leader
Leadership is service.
- Servant leaders serve employees, who then serve customers or clients.
- The concept of servant leadership is ancient, but Robert K. Greenleaf coined the term in 1970.
- He expresses the test of whether one is a servant leader:
“Do those served grow as persons? Do they, while being served, become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become servants?’”
- He expresses the test of whether one is a servant leader:
Ken Blanchard notes the benefits:
“[L]eaders develop great relationships, achieve great results, and delight their customers.”
4. Be a Good Communicator
To lead well, you need to communicate well.
- Become a good listener
- Listen well to employees and customers or clients. They have information you need to hear.
- Ask open-ended questions
- Create a culture of psychological safety
- Become a good writer.
- Take courses on writing and editing
- Use editing software, such as Grammarly Pro
- Proofread
- Become a skilled public speaker
- People become comfortable and skilled in public speaking through experience
- Consider joining a local Toastmasters club
5. Develop the Skills of Emotional Intelligence
- Daniel Goleman explains that there are four domains of emotional intelligence:
“self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management” - Emotional intelligence is essential for effective leadership and personal success and happiness
6. Lead from Within
- Explore your own purpose, strengths, mission, and vision
- Always strive to be the best person you can be
7. Play to your strengths
- Identify your strengths by thinking about your accomplishments
- Also, think about what comes easily to you but not others
- Use the strengths that you enjoy using
- Use your strengths to compensate for weaknesses
- Delegate to others the work that plays to their strengths, including what they can do better or enjoy more than you do
8. Apply Stoic Wisdom
- We can only control our own thoughts, judgments, and actions
- With mindfulness, we can thoughtfully respond to events rather than reacting emotionally
9. Learn About Psychology
- Positive Psychology
- Enables us to flourish, leading meaningful and satisfying lives
- Self-Determination Theory
- Three psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness
- Foster an environment that supports these needs
- Intentional Change Theory
- People change not because they are told they should, but rather because they have a dream — a vision of their ideal self
10. Lead by Example
- Be a role model, helping shape the business’s culture
- By acting in a manner consistent with what you ask of others, you earn trust
- Albert Schweitzer: “Example is not the main thing. It is the only thing.”
11. Be a Visionary Leader
- Help people understand how their work fits in with the big picture and why it matters
- David Burkus explains:
- Purpose is why the business exists
- Mission is what the business does
- Vision is an aspirational and inspiring view of what the business wants to achieve in the long run
Conclusion
Growing as a leader is a lifelong journey. Enjoy the adventure!
References
“What is Servant Leadership?”
[https://greenleaf.org/what-is-servant-leadership/]
“Let’s Clear Up Some Misunderstandings about Servant Leadership” (2-7-18).
[https://howwelead.org/2018/02/07/lets-clear-up-some-misunderstandings-about-servant-leadership/]
Grammarly Pro
https://www.grammarly.com/pro
Toastmasters International
https://www.toastmasters.org/
“Daniel Goleman”
https://www.kornferry.com/about-us/consultants/danielgoleman
“3 proven ways to win at work, says world-renowned talent expert” (1-14-19).
Marcus Buckingham.
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/01/14/marcus-buckingham-3-scientifically-proven-ways-to-win-at-work.html
“How to Use Your Strengths to Overcome Your Weaknesses”
(6-1-15). Alice Boyes.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/in-practice/201506/how-to-use-your-strengths-to-overcome-your-weaknesses
“A Simplified Modern Approach to Stoicism” (2-3-13).
Donald Robertson.
[https://donaldrobertson.name/2013/02/03/a-simplified-modern-approach-to-stoicism/]
“What Is Positive Psychology & Why Is It Important?” (4-20-18).
https://positivepsychology.com/what-is-positive-psychology-definition
“What Is Flourishing in Positive Psychology? (+8 Tips & PDF)”
(5-9-18). Courtney E. Ackerman.
https://positivepsychology.com/flourishing/
“Self Determination Theory and How It Explains Motivation”
(6-21-18). Courtney E. Ackerman.
https://positivepsychology.com/self-determination-theory/
“Albert Schweitzer”
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Albert_Schweitzer
“Difference Between Vision, Mission, and Purpose [With Infographic]”
(5-12- 20. Updated 2-23-24).
David Burkus.
[The infographic is in the video.]
[https://davidburkus.com/2020/05/whats-the-difference-between-vision-mission-and-purpose/]
Additional Resources
“Leadership Week in Review”
https://www.daveshellenberger.com/
“How Can You Tell If You Are a Good Person?” (10-14-16).
Ronald E. Riggio.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/201610/how-can-you-tell-if-you-are-good-person
Etiquette in the Business of Living, Day by Day (2025).
Candace Smith.
[https://ethicspress.com/products/etiquette-in-the-business-of-living-day-by-day]
Etiquette for the Business for Life (2025). Candace Smith.
https://www.candacesmithetiquette.com/
“How fearless organizations succeed:
Amy Edmondson describes three steps leaders can take to create psychological safety, the prerequisite for greater innovation and growth.” (11-4-18). Amy C. Edmondson.
https://www.strategy-business.com/article/How-Fearless-Organizations-Succeed
“Primal Leadership, With Daniel Goleman” (May/June 2002). Stephen Bernhut.
[https://iveybusinessjournal.com/publication/primal-leadership-with-daniel-goleman/’
“The ‘inside out’ leadership journey: How personal growth creates the path to success” (6-17-24).
Dana Maor et al.
https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/the-inside-out-leadership-journey-how-personal-growth-creates-the-path-to-success
“Identify — and Develop — Your Natural Strengths” (6-19-24). Sanyin Siang.
https://hbr.org/2024/06/identify-and-develop-your-natural-strengths
Think Like a Therapist (2022). Stephen Joseph.
[https://www.hachette.co.uk/titles/stephen-joseph/think-like-a-therapist/9780349431857/]
“Intentional Change Theory for Leaders with Richard Boyatzis”
(1-30-24).
Institute of Coaching
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RkM05e0hQw]
