It is a sad reflection, but true leadership is generally in short supply in this age. In fact the entire globe is facing a significant crisis of leadership, LEADERSHIP-A-FINAL-WORD and our networking partne r, Futuristic Training has addressed this dilemma by offering some highly effective training solutions. Central to this perspective is that the philosophical traditions of Africa offer an important contribution to the theory and practice of leadership in the world today. African humanism, or Ubuntu, evokes both reason and empathy as the basis for ethical leadership. Ubuntu – articulated in the Zulu proverb umuntungumuntungabantu – means that a person is a person because of other people. Futuristic Training contends that the reciprocal relationship between the individual and the social collective stimulates caring and progressive thought and action. Nowhere are leadership qualities more apt than in the attuned relationship between leader and followers. Humanity is a way to describe these qualities, because this reflects the leader’s vital relationship with people.  A leader who is not attuned to his or her followers invariably fails. Connectedness, compassion, empathy, integrity, humility, reasonableness and a determination to be effective are the keys to attuned leadership. An attuned leader can step boldly into an uncertain future with the certainty that his or her followers will lend their support. The ability to inspire in the hardest times, to guide through the toughest passages, and to be a sounding board when people are struggling — these are the ultimate tests of a successful leader. Explaining and understanding the nature of good leadership is probably easier than practising it. Good leadership requires deep human qualities, beyond outdated and traditional notions of authority.  In this new millenium good leaders are an enabling force, helping people and organizations to perform and develop, which implies that a sophisticated balance be achieved – between your people’s needs, and the aims of your organization. Effective leadership does not necessarily require great technical or intellectual capacity. These attributes might help, but they are not pivotal. Good leadership in this modern age requires attitudes and behaviours which characterise and relate to humanity The concept of serving is fundamental to the leadership role. Good leadership involves serving the organization or group and the people within it. Ineffective leaders tend to invert this principle and consider merely that the leader must be served by the people. This faulty idea fosters the notion that leadership as an opportunity to take: to acquire personal status, advantage, gain, etc., at the expense of others, which is grossly wrong. Leadership is instead an opportunity to give; to serve the organization, and crucially the people too. Many capabilities in life are a matter of acquiring skills and knowledge and then applying them in a reliable way. Leadership is quite different. Good leadership demands emotional strengths and behavioural characteristics which can draw deeply on a leader’s mental and spiritual reserves. The leadership role is an inevitable reflection of people’s requirements and challenges in modern life. Leadership is therefore a profound concept, with increasingly complex implications, driven by an increasingly complex and fast-changing world. Leadership and management are commonly seen as the same thing, which they are not. Leadership is also misunderstood to mean directing and instructing people and making important decisions on behalf of an organization. Effective leadership is much more than these. Good leaders are followed chiefly because people trust and respect them, rather than the skills they possess. Leadershi p is about behaviour first, skills second. This is a simple way to see how leadership is different to management:  • Management is mostly about processes. • Leadership is mostly about behaviour. Good leadership therefore depends on attitudinal qualities and values, not management processes. Qualities critical for a leader’s relationship with his/her people are quite different to conventional skills and processes: These are examples of highly significant leadership qualities: • integrity • honesty • humility • courage • commitment • sincerity • passion • confidence • positivity • wisdom • determination • compassion • sensitivity People with these sorts of behaviours, values and attitudes tend to attract followers. Followers are naturally drawn to people who exhibit strength and can inspire belief in others. These qualities tend to produce a charismatic effect. Charisma tends to result from effective leadership and the qualities which enable effective leadership. However charisma alone is no guarantee of effective leadership. Some people are born more naturally to lead than others. Most people don’t seek to be a leader, but many more people are able to lead, than they realize. People who want to be a leader can develop leadership ability through modern training methodologies. Leadership is not the exclusive preserve of the wealthy and educated. Futuristic Training has researched and drawn various leadership training methodologies from the best in the world. This has a positive and direct bearing on staff turn-over, productivity and company profitability. Organisations today can scarcely afford NOT to train in this vital area of business survival and growth.