ARE you a people or systems driven person? Do you do the right thing or do you focus your energies on making sure things are done right? And do you originate your own ideas, or simply implement others?

Whether or not you are a leader, or simply a good manager, depends on your answers to those questions. Who says so? Well, Charles Helliwell, a behavioural analyst & mentor, and founder and publisher of Business Personality Audits (www.bpaudits.co.uk) believes there is a distinction between the two.

Like all good subjects there are differing viewpoints. Our very own David Taylor often says it makes no difference. Your definition is what counts, as long as you are taking taking action and going in the right direction to achieve your goals. So, what do you think? Please read Charles’ thoughts and respond via a comment on the website or by emailing me, Clive Barrett, at clivebarrett@nakedleader.com.

Here is what Charles has to say:

“Too many people still confuse strong leadership with good management and vice versa. So I thought I would provide some simple and straightforward examples of both to enable individuals to determine their own individual preferences.

“There are many and varied distinctions between leadership and management; too many to mention. The most successful executives are those who understand those distinctions and manage to blend them in such a way to suit their own characters and personalities. Rather than list and debate the numerous and varied definitions of each, I’ve taken four which I believe are the key ingredients to successful management.

1. Leaders focus on people, whilst managers focus on systems.
2. Leaders do the right thing, whilst managers do things right.
3. Leaders inspire trust, whilst managers rely on controls.
4. Leaders originate, whilst managers imitate.
“So, are you a good manager; an inspirational leader or a little bit of both? We can all cite examples of strong leaders, but how many of us can do the same for good managers?
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