VIEWPOINT

Learning to Be a Good Leader

SVETLANA PILYUGINA, MD
Chief Editor

WHEREVER YOU ARE IN YOUR PROFESSIONAL JOURNEY — private practice or academic medicine, solo practitioner or a member of a group, fellowship-bound or years into practice, employee or a partner — you can benefit from improving your leadership skills and instincts. The practice of medicine puts us in a unique position — from day 1, each of us is a leader. We possess the intellect, courage, discipline, determination and integrity to lead each patient to a better health. But in the ever-changing world of healthcare reform, we’re also immediately asked to become leaders and problem-solvers in every possible realm outside of our medical expertise, despite having little or no formal leadership training. Ultimately, whatever medical team you’re a part of, as a physician, the team will turn to you for leadership.

What then, are the essential qualities of an effective leader? Can they be learned and developed? Some qualities are innate: creativity, authenticity, candor and a sense of humor; but many can and should be developed with practice and training: confidence, exceptional communication skills, persistence, flexibility, ability to recognize individual strengths of members of your team and to organize a cohesive operation. No matter how talented individuals on a staff may be, unless they can function together efficiently and with excellence, the practice won’t achieve the level of performance required to be successful, or perhaps, survive. Commitment to the common cause of the organization and earning the trust of those who follow is among the most important qualities for any leader. Only in the context of a trusting relationship can people feel safe, empowered, and free to demonstrate their greatest strengths, propelling the team as a whole to its maximum performance.

Great leadership, however, is much more than a set of procedures and activities and it calls for far more than a list of traits. Leadership is an expression of the type of person the leader fundamentally is at heart. Great leaders have passion, vision and contagious energy. They inspire in others the desire to follow. In a search for the essence of great leadership, the words of Dr. Lance Secretan come to mind, “Leadership is not so much about technique and methods as it is about opening the heart. Leadership is about inspiration — of oneself and of others. Great leadership is about human experiences, not processes. Leadership is not a formula or a program; it is a human activity that comes from the heart and considers the hearts of others. It is an attitude, not a routine.”