A community leader is someone who has been entrusted by the community to help them. They’re seen as a self-starter who’s committed to helping the people around them. When picking a community leader, it’s important to keep in mind certain characteristics, as these are the ones to look out for. Here are a couple important characteristics, from an article in opengrowth.
Self Awareness
In order to be able to lead others, a good leader must know that they need to assess their abilities first. They have to be okay with asking for help and acknowledging that they might not be great at everything, but they have the ability to get by if they acquire help.
Empathy
When someone’s in charge of others, they’re going to run into emotional problems. People around them are going to be going through things, and a good leader should be able to help their people through it. Sometimes, community leaders are able to figure out a plan of action to fix the problem. A community leader with empathy also provides some sort of validation from all parties involved in a problem.
Dedication to a Cause
No one wants to follow someone who doesn’t care about what they’re doing. A community leader must be motivated to work for furthering the cause. Not only that, a community leader must figure out focused ways to keep volunteering opportunities available that are beneficial to the cause. If a community leader doesn’t believe in the cause, or is otherwise corrupt, the cause will remain stagnant.
Interpersonal Skills
It is vital that a good community leader has good skills such as active listening, negotiating, and being able to articulate the arguments in a way that reflects how essential the community feels the cause is. Their collaborative skills must be refined as well, as they will be working with other leaders to create productive spaces.
Forward Thinking
Community leaders must have an open mind and be progressive if they want to be a good leader. Their thoughts must not be rigid, as a good leader needs to be able to think outside of the box to be able to find ways to achieve a goal. They also tend to look to next generation’s supporters to help their cause, as they know that the next generation is going to be the future of the cause.