13 Real Rules for Leaders (Part 2)

By | January 8, 2019

[January 8, 2019]  Why concern ourselves with real rules for leaders?  First, these are not suggestions but are things that leaders must do to be successful.  Certainly, you can be a leader and disobey any number of rules, but you cannot be effective in the long term if you do.  Today, my goal is to provide some additional ‘rules’; those that didn’t make my original list of 13 (see link here for that list).

Friends and readers provided some additional rules for me to add.  And for that, I thank you.  Leaders learn, quite quickly, that listening to what others say has a benefit beyond the obvious.  Leadership, while it means many things, it does mean that leaders act within a defined scope of people and their actions, perceptions, and desires.  The following list deserves attention and study.  I didn’t come up with them.  Thanks to all who did.

  1. Be courageous and tell the truth.
  2. Do not do things that you hate.
  3. Act so that you can tell the truth about how you act.
  4. If you have to choose, be the one who does things, instead of the one who is seen doing things.
  5. Pay attention; stay focused on the important.
  6. Assume that the person you are listening to might know something you need to know.
  7. Plan and work diligently to maintain intimacy in your relationships.
  8. Be careful with whom you share the good news.
  9. Be careful with whom you share the bad news.
  10. Make at least one thing better every single place you go.
  11. Do not allow yourself to become arrogant or resentful.
  12. Work as hard as you possibly can and see what happens.
  13. Maintain your connections with people.
  14. Do not carelessly denigrate social institutions or artistic achievement.
  15. Ask someone to do you a small favor, so that he can ask you to do one in the future.
  16. Make friends with people who want the best for you.
  17. Do not try to rescue someone who does not want to be rescued.
  18. Nothing well done is insignificant.
  19. Dress like the person you want to be.
  20. Stand up straight.
  21. Don’t avoid something frightening if it stands in your way.
  22. Do not hide unwanted things in the fog.
  23. Notice that opportunity lurks where responsibility is abandoned.
  24. Read something written by someone great.
  25. Don’t let bullies get away with it.
  26. If you see something that needs fixing, propose a solution.
  27. Remember that what you do not yet know is more important than what you already know.
  28. Be grateful in spite of your suffering.
  29. Learn as much as you can.
  30. Don’t say things you don’t mean.
  31. Don’t write nonsense.
  32. Do not pass yourself off as something you are not.
  33. Try to fix what you can fix and don’t interfere with what you do not understand.

Thrash these about in your mind.  Do these make sense?

Author: Douglas R. Satterfield

Hello. I provide one article every day. My writings are influenced by great thinkers such as Friedrich Nietzsche, Karl Jung, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Jean Piaget, Erich Neumann, and Jordan Peterson, whose insight and brilliance have gotten millions worldwide to think about improving ourselves. Thank you for reading my blog.

20 thoughts on “13 Real Rules for Leaders (Part 2)

  1. Lynn Pitts

    Loved you list from yesterday and, frankly, I like these just as much.

    Reply
  2. Andrew Dooley

    A good followup from yesterday’s article. Consider another followup soon that gives us some details into what you think each of these mean. Not all, of course, but some of the bigger ideas. This is why I keep coming back to https://www.theleadermaker.com.

    Reply
    1. Joe Omerrod

      Same here. I read this blog nearly everyday. For some reason I miss it when I’m out and don’t have the time.

      Reply
  3. Big Al

    A leader is willing to make mistakes. He’s willing to be wrong. He’d rather try and fail than do nothing.

    Reply
    1. Tony B. Custer

      The article begins this way, “What does it mean to be a man today? How can men consciously express their masculinity without becoming cold or closed-hearted on the one hand… or wimpy and emasculated on the other? What’s the most loving way for a conscious man to express himself?” I agree, overall it’s okay. I like Gen. Satterfield’s list much much better.

      Reply
  4. Shawn C. Stolarz

    Yusaf had a good one from yesterday’s comments. Simply, he wrote jsut “stand up straight.” I praised him for it and I see it made the list. When I speak with children, I’ve learned to not be so blunt but I always encourage them to stand up straight and be seen. Also, I tell them it is best to keep their mouth shut until spoken to. I know, I’m old fashioned.

    Reply
    1. Scotty Bush

      A man knows his tools and how to use them — just the ones he needs. Knows which saw is for what, how to find the stud, when to use galvanized nails.
      This is one of them from the article. I didn’t think much of it. Obviously written by a metrosexual (LOL).

      Reply
    2. Anita

      If I was like the man in this article, my wife would hit me on the head to try to knock some sense back into me. If that failed, she would go find a man to have a good long “talk” with me. THis article is a liberals view of what they imagine a man might be but really isn’t.

      Reply
    3. Georgie M.

      Pussy men is what the author wants men to be. I hated the article.

      Reply
  5. Willie Shrumburger

    I feel privilieged that you would take my suggestions. Another great list. Thank you. 🙂

    Reply
  6. Army Captain

    Thanks Gen. Satterfield for taking my suggestions. Great list you have here. Consider expanding from your original 13 to a much larger number.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.