Tell us about the leaders you most admire

Write to us about the leaders you admire

Gene Mage

Since January of 2001, I have published close to two hundred “Making It Work” columns, which have reached millions of readers across the country. Hundreds of you have taken the time to send me e-mails with your thoughts and comments on the topics I have covered. I count it a privilege to personally read and respond to every single message that you send.

Now the time has come for you to step into the spotlight. I want to give you, my readers, an opportunity to get your ideas out through this column. In an upcoming series, which I am calling “Leaders Worth Following”, my editorial staff and I will select letters from my readers about the “leaders you admire the most.” If I select and publish your letter, you will receive a stipend of $50 from Making It Work upon publication.

Here are your instructions. Please send an e-mail to gmage@makingitwork.com with the words “Leaders worth Following” in the subject line. Letters that adhere to the following editorial guidelines have the highest probability of selection for inclusion in the series:

Nominate a leader. Tell us about a leader you particularly admire. This leader can be living or dead, contemporary or historical, real or from fictional literature. Your suggested subject does not need to be famous! However, give us some context. Tell us the leader’s name, when he or she lived, significant accomplishments, title, nationality, and anything else about their organization that helps us understand who this individual is or was.

Tell us why. Tell us what qualities of character this leader embodied, which led you to make the suggestion. What traits did he or she possess in the way he or she approached life and worked with people?
Give examples. Tell us about some specific instances or examples from this leader’s life that, in your opinion, demonstrated those qualities of character. What did they do and say? How did their character affect their choices in life?
Make your case. Tell us why you feel this leader is someone worth following, and why your suggested subject would be interested to other readers. What about your subject is compelling, interesting, unique, and applicable to others?
Share a story. If you had any personal interaction with the leader you nominate, please share an incident or example if possible. What was the relationship like? How did you feel around that person?
Keep it concise. Please limit your submission to five hundred words maximum. You may submit as many suggestions as you like, but we will select no more than two letters from any one household.
Let us publish your letter. By sending in a submission, you grant me the exclusive right to publish, re-publish, edit, copy, reformat your submission to adapt it to our editorial guidelines, and re-publish the submission in any form or derivative work in the future that would be of interest to the reading public including columns, articles, books, and other derivative works. You will receive credit for your writing if we use it.
Keep it original. By sending us a submission, you warrant that the letter is your own original work, and does not violate any copyrights. If you use the web or published resources to write your submission, please cite your sources appropriately. Research is encouraged.
Keep the tone and style appropriate to business readers. Keep your sentences short. Use the active voice where possible. Employ bullet points rather than long paragraphs.

I hope you will take the time to send us your suggestions for this upcoming series.

For more ideas on becoming “Free to Lead” from Leadership Development Author and Speaker Gene C. Mage, visit www.makingitwork.com.