The quality of a man’s work will be affected as much by his attitude as by his skill. Most good managers understand this. They realize, that a person’s job performance will be directly related to how he feels about it, about himself, and about his employer.
Because a worker’s attitude is so important, the modern leader must be able to give advice and counsel when it is needed. Improving people’s attitudes through counsel, in turn, requires certain attitudes on the part of the leader: He must believe in man’s capability for growth and change. Improvement can only come with change, and if he doesn’t believe that most people want to change for their improvement. He must have respect for the individual. He must respect human dignity. The good leader will try to provide, within the context of his organization’s objectives and within the limits imposed by the job, circumstances whereby subordinates can achieve freedom, self-fulfillment and self-direction. He must be open and honest with people. Excessive flattery or excessive criticism will, sooner or later, be taken by the subordinate for exactly what they are: phony gestures. People work best for a leader they know they can have trust and confidence in. He must understand others. People have defenses, ranging from excessively dependent to openly hostile. A good leader will see through these and understand them. Effective communication can only take place when a leader penetrates them to the real person underneath. He must understand himself. He must be aware that his own feelings can distort his perception. The degree to which he understands himself will determine whether or not his own feelings and conflicts lead him to press inaccurate or irrelevant advise upon his subordinates, when he should be engaged in developing insight.
For outstanding leadership, Team Policing and the community salutes:
- Major William H. Brown, Commander of Area three.
- Captain Gay Carraway, Commander of Seventh District.
- Lt. James Shea, Leader of Team One.
- Lt. Lawrence Hamilton, Leader of Team Two.
- Lt. Will Gooden, Leader of Team Three.
- Lt. Edward Longinette, Leader of Team Four.
REMEMBER MY FRIENDS:
YOU CAN ONLY GOVERN MEN BY SERVING THEM
THE RULE IS WITHOUT EXCEPTION.
Original photograph caption
Left to right: Lt. Hamilton, Lt. Gooden, Capt. Carraway, Maj. Brown. The Paper, May 1977, page 8. Photographer not credited.
Originally published in The Paper, May 1977.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Archival transcription note: Printed incomplete clause about belief in improvement retained; no connective sentence invented.
Original source: SD_Times1977_05.pdf, printed page(s) 8; PDF page(s) 8.
