Each nurse as leader

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Leadership and management are not the same. That probably comes as no surprise to many of you; however, practicing leadership is a mandate for any group claiming to be a profession. Leadership skills are required as an essential part of carrying out the mission of serving society. It stands to reason, then, that regardless of the career path chosen, all nurses must seek those leadership skills applicable to their professional environment and responsibilities. The nurse who chooses direct patient care must develop and demonstrate leadership skills such as organization, delegation, communication, and coaching with patients and families. They must also be a role model to other staff. In spite of this, many nurses are not familiar with the skills and abilities required to be leaders.

Nurse Leader has concentrated its focus on the skills and abilities to enhance leadership within the management realm, but our mission is to also assist those who choose directions other than management to develop their leadership skills. A major way of accomplishing this is through sharing the expertise and skills of our gifted colleagues, many of whom have selected the management route as their career of choice. Whether one reads the columns or articles, the many leadership and management skills discussed are a constant source of information and personal development. The bottom line is that the skills required for a manager to become a leader are as meaningful to each professional nurse as they are to those who seek the corporate route as a career imperative.

The management realm is different. Although it is ideal for managers to develop leadership skills during the process of institutional promotion, the skills required are often applied differently. Current wisdom states that leaders do the right things while managers do the thing right. We cannot negate the importance of doing the thing right. I am sure you can imagine a world with lots of supervisors but no one to do the tasks required. Followers are as important to achieve the desired outcome as are leaders.

It is important to recognize that all leaders are not managers, nor should they necessarily be. It is management that must carry out the processes necessary to achieve the desired outcome. Managers need an environment and the skills to ensure that the structure and strategy set in place by leadership are congruent with the processes to be implemented. With superb leadership, the vision—that far off entity that describes what we wish to be—can be achieved, but only with doing the right thing in an environment that encourages managers' input.

The scope of management is limited only by the vision, skill development, and time constraints of the nurse who chooses to make a positive difference in this arena. Through wisdom, input, and dialogue, many of the best outcomes are achieved. No single person, including the identified leader, has the capability of being an expert at everything, particularly in the management field, which combines art, science, quantitative and qualitative data, intuition, and tenacity with a strong will to succeed.

Managers who are competent need to not only implement plans; they also need to question and ensure that the direction can solve the problem to achieve the desired outcome. You can be sure that if managers question the why and how of processes, understand and embrace them, the outcome is likely to be far more favorable. When this occurs in an impersonal, nonthreatening manner, the qualities and attributes of a leader emerge in a manager. It is a great thing to behold! In fact, in today's world, where information systems are critical to patient safety, communication, and clarity, the most efficient and effective processes—doing things right as well as doing the right thing—are more important than ever before.

What I am advocating is that all managers become leaders through rigorous education, skill development, self awareness, mentoring, and role modeling. All nurses should and must be leaders, but they certainly do not need to choose management to make a critical, positive difference in our world.