Talk focuses on leadership |10 April 2012

It was led by lecturer Jasper Van Der Westhuizen – a leadership and management consultant.

The talk was attended by Ambassador Bernard Shamlaye, students who are on the Seychelles Young Leaders Programme and individual members of the society who have leadership roles.

In his presentation Mr Van Der Westhuizen said leaders are not born.
He said if “you receive the right training you can get the possibility to become a great leader.”

He told the audience that a leader needs to inspire people and have a team.
Talking about the qualities of a good leader, he said the person should be humble, approachable, respectful and need to have influence. But a leader should be willing to keep learning.

“We all want to lead forever but learning new things is important lest you will become stagnant,” Mr Van Der Westhuizen said.

Most leaders fail because they are overconfident and think they know everything, he added.
He said some leaders fear that they might lose control. These individuals focus solely on their authority and forget to serve.

“A servant leader needs to have a sound vision and be a role model.”
The person must look at the vision and purpose of his firm, he needs to have a mission, the required tools to work with and a skilled team behind him, he added.

He said leaders should not let their position get to their head and should work on their morals and values.

Mr Van Der Westhuizen said a firm should have a leadership development plan and programme for its employees, adding this should be a continuous process.

After the presentation, the audience was able to ask questions and seek clarifications on the topic.