25 Tips for Effective Leaders

This is written by former president of CBS Sports, Neal Pilson.

1. Be on Time. Woody Allen should have said, "90 percent of life is showing up...on time." In fact, it doesn't hurt to be early.
2. Return calls, emails and letters as promptly as possible. If you don't have an answer or a response at the time, acknowledge receipt and say you will get back soon or by a certain date.
3. Send thank you, congratulatory and condolence notes. Be solicitous, caring and thoughtful with your staff. Remember birthdays.
4. Be sure every meeting ends with a "next steps" discussion. Far too often, meeting participants will exit without a clear understanding of what was decided, what is expected of them and what is the timetable for further action.
5. Avoid personal criticisms, sarcasm, snide remarks and put-down humor. In fact, never make comments or jokes about race, gender, sexual preference, religious affiliation, physical attributes, etc. It makes you look small, but even worse, it can get you sued and fired. But, genuine humor is a great gift and a very important personal attribute. Most leaders have a good sense of humor and can laugh at themselves.
6. Try not to choose sides in office politics, and avoid gossiping about other employees. Every email, letter or written document you send out has potential legal (and very damaging) consequences for you and your company. Don't hit that "send" key without a sober and thorough review of what you have just written. Take particular care with BlackBerry transmissions, which often get less thought and study than e-mails you send from your laptop.
7. Be honest and truthful at all times but know when to be circumspect or silent. Candor is not always appreciated nor the right response in every situation. You don't tell a mother her baby is ugly.
8. Respect confidences and don't share office information outside the workplace.
9. Do not criticize staff in front of their peers but do discuss mistakes and errors directly with the individual, in private.
10. Picture phones, e-mail and BalckBerrys have eliminated privacy even if you are 5,000 miles from home or office. Need proof? Ask Michael Phelps.
11. Keep the door to you office open when you are alone and not on a confidential call. Don't wall yourself off. Encourage your staff to come in and talk.
12. Circulate around the office floor. visit and talk to your employees on their turf. Take your staff members to lunch from time to time or buy the pizza for staff lunch meetings.
13. Control your own schedule. Don't allow your secretary, assistant or staff to book or commit you to meetings, travel or lunch dates without your prior knowledge and approval. Your time is your most valuable asset and you have the decide where you are going to be and when you are going to be there.
14. A good leader has a totally correct, accurate and responsible resume.
15. Dress the part. Not necessarily suit and tie, but smart casual if that's the office standard.
16. Practice using the term "we" when discussing your company's prior successes or future plans. Too many leaders talk about their business in the first person, such as "I made a great deal," when it sounds much better (and is usually more accurate) to say, "We made a great deal."
17. Welcome and be respectful of staff suggestions, comments and criticisms. Solicit and embrace new, over-the-top, out-of-the-box thinking from your staff even if most novel ideas do not survive the light of day. The few that do could advance their (and your) career.
18. If you make a mistake, admit it, apologize and move on. Expect the same from your staff. But, discuss and evaluate mistakes (yours and theirs) to learn from them and not repeat them.
19. E-mails contain paper trails; never forward an e-mail until you check to see what is attached. Bear in mind that negative or off-color comments you make in an e-mail live forever and can inadvertently be sent along to third parties. Also, never, ever, leave a nasty or hostile phone message.
20. Don't party hard. Leaders don't do that. Stay out of the strip clubs at 3 a.m. (or at any time) and far away from any potentially compromising situations. Always, always, be in full control of yourself, and be wary of fellow staff members ho get out of control.
21. Be available at all times. 24/7, for important matters. Leaders do not take weekends, holidays or vacations like normal people. Almost all leaders are on the job all the time. If you are really going to inaccessible, be sure to designate and authorize you senior staff to handle emergencies.
22. When you delegate responsibility, it's not unfair to expect your staff will make the right decision. Nor is it unfair to expect that if a staff member brings you a problem, he/she will also bring you a suggested solution.
23. Saying, "Let me think about this. I will get back to you shortly" is a perfectly appropriate response in almost all situations including (especially) very important negotiations.
24. Lead, follow or get out of the way. this may surprise you, but good leaders are good followers as well. In every sports organization, there is the supreme leader (the CEO, commissioner, owner, etc.) and there are subordinate leaders who run divisions and units within the larger entity. Those leaders must support and implement the decisions of the supreme leader or else the entity becomes dysfunctional. There are some remarkable similarities between the military and large sports entities.
25. Be yourself at all times. Don't have one personality with your superiors and another with your subordinates.