The 8 Principles of Exceptional Leadership™
Course Syllabus
Course material
Each lesson is comprised of the following lesson material:
- Online textbook
- short video
- quiz and assignment
- Students are also encouraged to participate in an online forum to discuss the topics covered in each lesson
Course mission
The 8 Principles of Exceptional Leadership™has been designed to give leaders the skills necessary to inspire employees to engage, collaborate, innovate and thrive.
Why study leadership?
Because knowing how to help others perform at their optimum capacity is a skill and, like all skills, it must be learned
Regrettably, many leaders do not understand this and instead use their intuition and best guesses to wing it. This is illustrated by the alarmingly high number of poorly trained and inadequate leaders
Exceptional leadership is not a divine gift, given on the day one is promoted, it is studied, practised and refined
Lesson one
Introduction to the course
This lesson
- defines the key terms
- provides leaders with the tools to incorporate the 8 principles of exceptional leadership into their lives
Lesson two
Examination of principle one: Kindness
In this lesson, leaders will consider the question does kindness pay?
- from a practical viewpoint
- from a financial viewpoint
Lesson three
Examination of principle two: Time
Acknowledging that the performance of their staff is the measure of their performance, time spent improving leadership skills and developing staff is the first and most fundamental function that a leader is required to perform
In this lesson, leaders will learn
- how to prioritise time so that more of it can spend time being an exceptional leader
Lesson four
Examination of principle three: Integrity
Leading with integrity means always making leadership decisions that align with your core values, regardless of the immediate consequences
In this lesson, leaders will learn
- the emotional and economic consequences of not acting with integrity
- how to lead with integrity
- leaders who do not already have a clear idea of their core values, will after they have completed this lesson
Lesson five
Examination of principle four: Inspire
In this lesson, leaders will learn
- why inspired staff view their work with more passion, optimism and enthusiasm
- why inspired staff are more ambitious, more creative and bolder in their attempts to find solutions to problems
- where inspiration comes from
- how to ignite inspiration in staff
Lesson six
Examination of principle five: Empower
In this lesson, leaders will learn
- why empowered staff are more creative, more efficient and more effective
- the most effective ways to empower staff
Lesson seven
Examination of principle six: Listen
In this lesson, leaders will learn
- the three components essential to becoming an exceptional listener
Lesson eight
Examination of principle seven: Communicate
Communication involves understanding what is being communicated to you and being understood when you are attempting to convey a message to others.
In this lesson, leaders will learn
- the three components essential to being understood
Lesson nine
Examination of principle eight: Address underperformance
In this lesson, leaders will learn
- that are no downsides to addressing underperformance
- why it is kind to address underperformance
- why it is easier and more effective to address poor performance promptly and compassionately
- a simple but effective two-step blueprint to address underperformance
Lesson ten
Conclusion
The final lesson sums up what leaders have learned and examines practical ways to incorporate the learnings into everyday life
