Compass, a handbook on parents leadership by James Stenson. Quotes IX

-All leaders understand, and shun, the lamentable consequences of neglect.
-Leaders act. Real leaders never let indecision lead to inaction. When confronted with several tough choices of what to do, they do not shrink back.
-Neglect, to do nothing, is the worst mistake of all.
-Leaders are confident of their authority, which is as weighty as their responsibility.
-Authority means the right to make decisions and then impose them in order to carry out some responsibility.
-Rightful authority is both benevolent and beneficial. Leaders in any enterprise serve their people, often at great sacrifice, by constructing order out of chaos and by channeling people's best efforts toward some worthy goal. This is why service-oriented leaders are esteemed by their people, often with deep respect and even devotion.
-Authority means, among other things, the right to be obeyed.
-Leaders have joiners, not followers.
-To lead effectively means to get out in front and pull.
-All great leaders get out in front and strive forward some noble goal, and they motivate others to join them. They inspire others to reach that ideal with them, all together in a spirit of adventurous teamwork. In other words, leaders rely on the power of we. They make no demands of others that they fail to make of themselves. They lead mostly by example.
-Leaders have both the strategic vision and the tenacity to focus on the job at hand.
-The strategic thinking of effective parent leaders seems to go like this:
1. A parent, like a farmer, does the very best he or she knows how, and then leaves the rest in the hands of God.
2. Loving, self-sacrificing parents, do not fall into extremes.
3. Their number one job is to build inner strengths in their children.
4. They teach their children that responsible grown-up life is not self-centered play, but mostly service to others.
5. All respect in life, at any age, arises from some perception of strength.
6. The more highly kids admire Dad and Mom, the more deeply will they adopt their parents' attitudes, values, and character.
7. Kids do not come into the world with strong character.
8. Every decade of life passes twice as fast as the one before.
-What circumstances lead some people to be confident?
1. Surrounded by love.
2. Lifelong habit of attacking and solving problems, mostly with success.
3. Habit of turning concerns into corrective action.
4. The undertake a mission so important that brings out the best in them.
5. They know that someplace on this earth they have loved ones who are absolutely crazy about them.
-Definitions of a leader:
1. A leader is a dealer in hope.
2. A leader has the ability to asses priorities and know which problems to ignore.
3. A leader must things happen.
4. A leader is one who can get people to do what they don't want to do.
5. A leader establishes a personal identity with his cause.
6. A leader has profound respect and sympathy for those he leads.
7. A leaders knows when to listen, when to explain, and when to act.
8. A leader is willing to stand alone.
9. A leader has to have a great heart, a clear mind, and a thick skin.