Why It's Important to be a Leader with a Decided Heart

The concept of a decided heart comes from speaker and author Andy Andrews in his book “The Traveler’s Gift", published twenty years ago.

A leader with a decided heart is one who is not just thinking about themselves but focused on the greater good.

Four qualities are consistent with leaders who have a decided heart: consistency, articulate, passionate, and hopeful.

A decided heart leader is CONSISTENT.

Those who follow feel stable.

By being consistent, you are grounded and have clarity as a firm foundation.

When you have the ability to look outside of yourself, because you’ve already looked deep within yourself, you demonstrate a pattern of behavioral consistency. That consistency helps you avoid a struggle to find solid footing in situations others may waver in.

A decided heart leader is ARTICULATE.

Those who follow trust them.

An articulate leader will choose to share words that express higher thoughts, deeper ideas, and wider perspectives.

You may have heard this well-known quote attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt, “small minds discuss people, average minds discuss events, great minds discuss ideas.”

Please don’t misunderstand, there's no fault found in discussing the details of people in events. To improve your articulation, your choice must be to move from people in events and towards ideas.

Leaders gain a higher level of solutions and increased creativity through words that are more positive. Choose to probe ideas with questions that advance your critical thinking. This depth of conversation is not just for your own elevation, but for elevating the thinking of others.

Have you seen that when you, as a decided leader are invited into a discussion, there is a positive shift? Those who follow you feel inspired to trust you! This isn’t just because you are articulate, it’s because the words you share matter.

A decided heart leader is PASSIONATE.

Those who follow feel compassion.

A focused passion results in experiencing a level of energy like you've never had before. This energy helps you gain traction, not only as a leader but for those you influence.

Being clear about focused passion does not come easily to many leaders. In fact, you may find yourself changing passions based on the leader of the moment or the cause of the hour. This distraction has a tremendous impact on a leader’s ability to achieve their goals.

A decided heart leader is HOPEFUL.

Those who follow find hope in the future.

Being hopeful does not mean you’re being naïve. It is being honest about where you are at the moment, but hopeful that by diligently moving forward, things will be better in the future.

Do you lead with a decided heart? There’s nothing soft about developing the important soft skills needed for leaders in today’s market. I help individuals and organizations in their growth and development. Healthy leaders make all the difference for an organization’s growth. Schedule a brief 15-minute conversation today to see if gaining a leadership coach is right for you.

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