What specific traits do you desire from someone as a leader?

[OhFancy]

Hello everyone, I am here to pose to you all a question that was asked on another site that I forum on (thanks ian). The question I am here to ask if what specific traits do you desire from someone as a leader?

The traits that I would like to see from someone of authority are;

• Approachable,
• Responsible for their own actions.
• Don't make decisions that they wouldn't like personally.

Being 'approachable' is self-explanatory. Every leader should aim to be viewed as someone that can be contacted and can be expected to give a reply. For what they are represented as, foreshadows the community as a whole. If you do not interact with your community, then there is going to be a clear distinction between Staff and Community.

Being responsible for your own action is necessary. Everyone makes mistakes and if you are willing to man up to those mistakes and admit it instead of sweeping it under the carpet, then you are a leader, if you would rather sweep a problem that started off as something minuscule and expect it to blow over, it wont. It will get worse. Affecting not only yourself, but others around you.

When making decisions, you want those decisions to be made on the basis of if you were a member, how would you react to this decision? Doing this can prevent a lot of flame and bad ties within the community.

What is your answer?

Gosh, I haven't posted a thread in ages. Feels good.

 

[Axanite | Liam]

Honestly, in a leader, I look for the following:

• Honesty
• Approachability
• Responsibility
• Intuitiveness
• Maturity

I can live with a leader with maybe not all of those traits but if they've only got one or two, then I wouldn't feel right about them at all.

 

[Ceroria]

I'd reiterate my answer from Ian's thread, but that's too much typing for me on my phone in bed 10 minutes after waking up so I'll paraphrase a bit.

There are so many qualities that make a good leader that I consider it unrealistic to expect all of these traits out of just one person. This is why servers benefit from having multiple people leading the charge, if each leader shares many of these common traits (such as experience in both player & staff roles in the situations they lead, maturity in professional and casual situations, respect among their peers, strong will to keep their motives always in the right place, genuine care for the project they lead, and the maturity not to judge or act rudely toward others in any situations, are active within their network, and are always open to new ideas and opinions from their peers) and also brings a different trait than the others to the table.

The problem that has struck down so many great networks and staff teams and degraded them in the public opinion is mainly two things: corruption and poor public response. When a leader becomes caught up in their own affairs and personal gains, they are no longer able to effectively lead their team in the right way and things become disorderly and ineffective, which leads to confusion, leading to unresponsiveness from the staff to the players.

As long as a leader is someone who puts aside negative judgment of others, personal gain, and can control their stress with a strong will, their project will be great.

How does a leader put all these traits into action? By balancing themself. While managing, directing, and delegating should be the most common actions, they must also interact with all of their staff team and their playerbase too. A leader is a public figure as well as a project organizer and must use this influence wisely to keep their community happy. And to make sure they're making decisions that are the best for the direction of their network, they must be playing as well, and being a part of what they run, not just the person running it.

 

[Alyssa]

As you've said a leader needs to be approachable. They should be someone that everyone they lead feel comfortable approaching them for anything. Whether it be idea's or just for a talk.
A leader shouldn't really yell or make people feel bad for their mistakes. I think they shouldn't just tell the person what they did wrong, they should guide them in how to improve, how to prevent it from happening again in the future and always offering their services if that person ever needed any questions answered.
A leader should be responsive, not only to their peers and team but also to their followers (in this servers case, also to the community). They need to be aware of everything going on around them and managing that within the team and with their co-workers. Listening to every idea that comes in, even if it isn't something you act upon, at least look at it and question it.. not just leave it be.
A leader sometimes needs to put aside their own needs and/or opinions, and look at the needs of what they are leading. They shouldn't be a dictator, they should involve everyone with decisions or at least discussion of the decisions needing to be made.
A leader should make strong connections with their co-workers, because a staff team that isn't close, and that doesn't work together.. will never reach it's full potential.
Lastly, I think a leader should be able to take constructive criticism about themselves, and should improve in the areas that their team feel that they should improve in.

I think a lot of the time leader's can get all caught up in the role of leading and being above everyone else, that they don't take the time to think about what they're trying to achieve. So I think sometimes leader's need to sit back, relax and let other's take the role of making things happen once and a while. Different views and different ways of running the same thing, can really help people learn, and see the same thing from a different perspective.

 

[Ceroria]

I think a lot of the time leader's can get all caught up in the role of leading and being above everyone else, that they don't take the time to think about what they're trying to achieve.

Or they don't seem to realize the power they have in the first place and spend all their time with their clique of friends, excluding their other senior staff members and not doing anything to improve the dying server they're supposed to be maintaining.

oops did I say that out loud

 

[Edog]

Or they don't seem to realize the power they have in the first place and spend all their time with their clique of friends, excluding their other senior staff members and not doing anything to improve the dying server they're supposed to be maintaining.

oops did I say that out loud

sav

 

[Alyssa]

Or they don't seem to realize the power they have in the first place and spend all their time with their clique of friends, excluding their other senior staff members and not doing anything to improve the dying server they're supposed to be maintaining.

oops did I say that out loud

Exactly!

 

[Ceroria]

Exactly!

I wish there was something that could be done about it, but the only person of higher authority is literally impossible to contact and hasn't made a public appearance in three months

So the only active high ranking people don't have clearance to make progressive changes even if they wanted to (which it is blatantly clear that they don't)

If anyone wants an example of solid leadership, just don't do what is being done here!

 

[Joey]

I have my own personal opinions on what makes a good leader, and much of them seem more obscure than you may think. In all honesty, the most admirable feature I see in someone is humbleness.

My list is as follows:

• Humble - A good leader is someone that does not boast about their achievements, but they also do whatever they can for the benefit of others rather than themselves.
• Trustworthy - A trustworthy leader also makes them an approachable one. For example, you, as a staff member, likely go to speak to a specific member of the Sr. Staff when you have an issue. They're your preference, and they're approachable because they have this air about them telling you that you can trust them.
• Honest - with some overlap with the humble characteristic I mentioned, honesty is another one of the most important qualities someone can have. Good leaders put their name last, even if they did the most work. They will never take credit for what others did, and they will maintain a confidential conversation if it is asked of them.
• Maturity - A good leader is mature in how they handle a situation. They can get angry, but they know how to control it. They will talk to someone rather than argue.
• Constantly Learning - A good leader is always adapting to different situations and every time they deal with something they should get a lot better at it. If they are unsure of what approach to use, they are (once again) honest about that fact. They consult other leaders to find the best approach. They are pragmatic with their decisions and will do their best to make the right decision.
• Great Communicator - being a good communicator isn't enough to be a good leader. You have to always be transparent with your peers because people that are on the same level as you will always see through a lie or boast. Good leaders are always willing to speak their mind and offer their ideas. Contribution to a discussion is never frowned upon when you are among other leaders. Even when you aren't right, you may spark more ideas.
• Creativity - along with the constantly learning trait, good leaders are always coming up with quicker, more innovative ways to solve a problem or accomplish a task.
• Sacrifice - A good leader is willing to sacrifice their stubbornness to make sure that everything is solid and the best approach is made. Compromise is so crucial to a team of leaders that it seems to be a necessity to be able to strike a deal with other people.
• Inclusive and Friendly - a good leader should always be willing to talk to their subordinates, including them in their activities, and actively bonding with those around them. As a former Sr. Mod, I think the Sr. Staff on MCGamer could definitely do this a lot more.

I do think MCGamer has the potential to return to its glory that it once had, but they require a progressive, receptive, and effective leadership. I'm not pointing fingers, but MCGamer's leaders lack some of the qualities that I mentioned before (trust me, I was their boss at one point).

Anyway, that was my two cents on this thread, don't get Jodemoted now.

 

[demonsushi]

The things I look for in a leader:

1. Activity - A leader, especially in the sense of MCGamer, needs to be around, needs to be here, needs to have a voice. It is frustrating to never see Chad anymore, even if he is active on Slack. That's great, but I'm not on slack, so how is my voice supposed to be heard? Everyone answers that by saying talk to a mod and it will get passed up, but for regular players its hard to even get to a mod. On the flip, I think the Administrators, especially Yannick, are very active, and I appreciate what they do. It's just the very top that is annoying.
2. Inclusive (sort of stole this from Joey) - The staff team tends to sit with either other mods or ex-mods that they have met while they were mods together. regular players are often forgotten or just difficult to communicate with. Those players have lost faith within the staff team, and it's causing a huge rift. The solution would be the staff team to be more active meeting new players, as well as more community events.
3. Listen - I think listening to those below you is super important, especially when they play the game too. They understand the server just as you do. And maybe they know how to fix it better than you! So listen up to those people, because they definitely can help you. You have two ears and one mouth for a reason.
4. Levelheadedness (Not a word ) - just about being humble and understanding that just because you're at the top doesn't mean you are above it all. It also includes calmness, approachability and maturity.

I mean I am one of the few people on this thread so far who haven't been at the top, so maybe my perspective is tainted to listening to the bottom, but I hope it's still a little valuable.

-Demon

 

[Nick]

Daddy Dave

 

[ImTheNarwhal]

being present in their community