“How he handles his failure will demonstrate whether he really has the qualities,” Said Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad the former prime minister of Malaysia. Dr Mahathir also gave several attributes of a good leader, one of which is that the person should not seek to blame others for failures, but to admit his own culpability. He also added that a leader should be modest and not seek praise and glory.

Dr Mahathir said a leader must have ideas on the direction he wanted to lead, ideas on the things that he and his followers must do or achieve, and ideas on the improvements of their well-being and their surroundings. Equally important, he must know how to turn his ideas into reality. He said the rise and fall of great nations was due to good leadership. Dr Mahathir said no matter how people tried to show the qualities and characters of a good leader, it would still not guarantee that they would not make mistakes.

“When the leaders are incompetent, the countries would fall. The people may be the same, the background and the wealth and resources may be the same, but when leaders are incompetent or just plain bad, then great nations, even great empires, can fall. And, similarly, no matter how much we learn about the qualities which make a good leader, it is still possible for us to choose the wrong one.” said Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

How can you attract employees? What can you do to retain employees? What can you do to increase employee performance? The common element among these three questions is people and how you attract, retain and motivate them, no matter what area they worked in.

It is the people an their attitudes that make the difference. And you, the business owner and your management team, have to first make the difference. You cannot have something on the outside if you do not have it on the inside. In the other words, you cannot attract good employees if you do not have the right attitude towards your existing employees and provide a good working atmosphere and growth opportunities.

Here is a summary of a team’s top answers on what helps to retain employees and increase employee performances;

Retaining employees

Keep your promises
Build employees self-esteem
Good access to management
Training and cross-training
Staff events/team -building
Incentives - recognition and rewards
Full-time employment for key people
Added responsibility, empowerment
Good working environment
Advancement opportunities
Hire the right people
Communication
React on employee suggestions
Regular staff meetings, parties
Flexible hours, rotating shifts
Clear policies and expectations
Everyone is equal
Partner with other businesses for off-season employment

Increasing employee performance

Ongoing staff training
Keep employees informed of status
Frequent/consistent rewards and recognition for performance
Set goals, review, evaluate, feedback
Integrity, ethics, conduct, praise
Empowerment, creative input
Proper systems, good equipment and safe working conditions
Good management
Include employees in problem-solving
Lead by example
Bonus - by hour
Discounts, family and friends
Mentoring programmes
Be sensitives to personal issues

The character Captain John Miller in the movie Saving Private Ryan played by Tom Hanks represents the ideal soldier in a time of great despair. He shows courage and bravery throughout every scene. His troops will not disagree with him because of the respect he has for his authority; thus they have the utmost respect for him. Captain Miller shows many attributes of being the right person for the job in the search for Private Ryan. This mission has his men in complete turmoil and he handles everything so calmly and respectively. Not any regular person could have accomplished what he did. Captain Miller’s leadership qualities bind his characteristics together and make him strong in every way that a war hero should be.

Carrying out a mission like the one in Saving Private Ryan requires a leader of the highest mental capacity. Not only does this mission require a leader with a strong will but one that is going to do everything in his power to complete the mission. Captain John Miller proves himself to be courageous and brave.

Captain Miller’s ability to keep his troops together throughout all these problems and not center out anyone shows that not only is he a great leader and soldier but he is a great man also. He also had the idea of creating the “sticky bombs” to destroy the German tanks. This side of Miller showed every aspect of him and allowed the audience to know that he was a respectable man. This has a lot to say about Miller and his ability to bring his entire troop together and make them one.

The mission that Captain Miller led was a success because of his leadership abilities.

Jack Sparrow is a fictional character in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, The Pirate Lord of the Carribean Sea where some audiences confuse about his image, ‘bad’ or not as a leader. Do you want to follow this type of leader, here some facts about Captain Jack Sparrow

- Sparrow is a trickster who uses wit and deceit to achieve his goals.
- He walks in a slightly drunken swagger, accompanied by slurred speech and flailing hand gestures that make him appear unfocused.
- Sparrow usually prefers non-violent negotiations and turning his enemies against each other.
- He often uses a confusing vocabulary to confound his enemies.
- Enjoys the freedom of his occupation.
- Drinking rum and seducing women.
- Supreme confidence in his own ability to survive.
- There is no murder or rape on his criminal record.