An employee, for example, can improve the work of an organization by having a positive influence on her manager as well as on her peers.
The workplace isn't a democracy. Someone must hold authority, settle disputes and make decisions. But that isn't the only kind of leadership. And increasingly, leadership is becoming less and less authoritarian and more relational and collaborative, Horine said.
Team-building is important.
"You can't just have one person in a position of leadership," Horine said. "The best leaders are the ones who know how to put people on the team who know more than they know."
A good leader must be able to delegate leadership, to empower others, if he is to be effective in managing.
He must also learn to lead with his heart and soul, as well as his mind, Horine said.
Maxwell, a well-known speaker and author of several books on leadership, is a Christian proponent of what is called "servant leadership."
Horine, cited Maxwell and other teachers of servant-leadership as her role models, and explained that serving one's team is the ultimate role of the leader.
Always put the customer first? No. The experience of successful companies like Southwest Airlines and Chick-fil-A, she noted, is that when you value your employees first and take care of them, they'll take care of the customers.
A good leader, Horine said, should be a good communicator, coach, counselor and encourager. He must be able to motivate his team to accomplish the goals of the organization. And he must model the values and character he wishes to instill in others.
In leadership, nothing matters more than character.
"You need to be accountable for yourself, and then you can make others accountable," Horine explained.
She used an acronym, SERVE, from a book by Ken Blanchard and Mark Miller to describe servant leadership:
S See the future.
E Engage the hearts and minds of people.
R Reinvent continuously.
V Value results and relationships.
E Embody the values of the organization.
A handout Horine gave the class quoted the legendary Green Bay Packers football coach Vince Lombardi on the importance of love in leadership:
"I don't necessarily have to like my players and associates, but as the leader, I must love them," he said. "Love is loyalty; love is teamwork. Love respects the dignity of the individual. This is the strength of any organization."
After Horine's speech, two of the class members said they found the lesson informative and inspiring.
"The most important thing she said was that you have to have a heart, mind and soul perspective," said Carolyn Burtner, an educator for the Clark County Health Department.
Michael Ball of Bluegrass Community and Technical College said he was impressed by the simple truth that if a person wants to be a leader, he must have the ability to motivate others to follow.
