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De Pree, Max. Leadership Is an Art. New York: Currency, 2004.
One of the particular skills that leaders are required to exemplify in practice is the indispensable knack for building and nurturing relationships.
Authentic leaders see it as part of their calling to guide a group or organization in designing the kind of community they intend to become.
…the art of leadership: liberating people to do what is required of them in the most effective and humane way possible.
The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between the two, the leader must become a servant and a debtor. That sums up the progress of an artful leader.
The signs of outstanding leadership appear primarily among the followers. Are the followers reaching their potential? Are they learning? Serving? Do they achieve the required results? Do they change with grace? Manage conflict?
Leadership is much more an art, a belief, a condition of the heart, than a set of things to do.