HOW TO BE AN EFFECTIVE LEADER
On August 18, 2021, the ACHEST Executive Director, Prof. Francis Omaswa was invited by the Makerere University College of Health Sciences to virtually give a talk on effective leadership. This arrangement was under the Health Professions Education and Training for Strengthening the Health System and Services in Uganda (HEPI-SHSSU) programme at the College.
More than 100 staff members from the university attended the webinar. Prof. Omaswa inspired them on how to be good leaders, with basic principles such as taking care of themselves, discipline and working for the common good.
Below is the summary of his presentation:
What is leadership?
Leadership is about being an agent of change, a positive contributor to society and it is about common good. Already , all of you are leaders- you already got your university degrees as medical students and nurses. You left behind so many people that you started with in Primary One and all those people look at you as a success story. They look at you as someone to imitate and they look up to you as someone from whom they can learn. So, leadership is about being a role model that others can follow.
Take care of yourself
It starts with you being in the right state physically, mentally, and spiritually. Do you wat well, do you sleep enough, are you clean? Are you at peace? What are these other issues disturbing your mind. What is your moral status? Do you have a moral anchor, a beacon? It starts with you being at peace with yourself. I have seen young people ruin their careers by becoming an alcoholic or a social situation that stops them from achieving other things. For example, having extramarital affairs. With that, you can’t do what is expected of you as a leader