EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP
Leadership is often defined as “the art of getting or inspiring people to do something.” It is not the same as
management, which is associated with accomplishing a task in an effective and efficient manner. A leader must
often use different leadership styles, depending on the situation and group.
People skills are a basic necessity in good leadership. A successful leader will involve everyone in the group in
any decision-making that will affect them.
CHARACTERISTICS OF A LEADER
A leader is one who can facilitate action and guide change. A leader takes people from where they are to where
they and the PTA want to go.
Some qualities of leadership are:
Organization and preparation of materials
- An optimistic, positive state of mind
- Enthusiasm for and belief in PTA
- Emotional stability, which includes the ability to work with a variety of people and problems
- Intellectual maturity, which allows the leader to define positions and deal with opposition
In addition, an effective PTA leader will have the following attributes:
- Knowledge of the job: A leader will know the duties, study the bylaws of the association, learn parliamentary procedure, and be committed to PTA purposes
- Willingness to establish goals and priorities with participation from the board and membership
- Responsiveness to group members: A leader will invite questions and be available to everyone
- Delegation of duties to others: Delegation not only lightens the leader’s load, it helps develop leadership skills in others
- Wise handling of conflicts: Big problems grow from small problems; handle problems before they grow out of proportion
- Dependability
Responsibilities of a Leader
- Listen
- Participate
- Allow others to participate
- Be enthusiastic
- Develop a team spirit
- Be positive
- Be a problem solver
- Treat all people fairly
- Reward efforts