I will admit that this blog post will be short, sweet and yes quite corny to most but sincere to me.

Today is Valentine’s Day…a day where most people think about love, falling in love, loving the ones in their inner circle…yes, that’s right…it’s all about love! No surprises there.

So within my circle, when I think about the people who I love dearly or perhaps even when ponder the subject of love in general, my mind immediately carries me to the character traits of those people who I admire, respect and adore. I compiled these traits into an acronym…L.O.V.E. (yes – a bit of a cliché ).

Normally, love is considered an action verb; therefore, it is appropriate that each letter of my L.O.V.E. acronym represents an action verb. Here is my short leadership lesson on L.O.V.E.

Learn. Leaders that I admire are life-long learners. They are people who seize every opportunity to learn something new about themselves and about others.

Open. Really great leaders open doors for other people. They put themselves on the line to help other people achieve their dreams.

Verify. Effective leaders always take time to verify information before sharing it, vet (e.g. carefully examine) people prior to endorsing them and earnestly evaluate viable options before making decisions.

Educate. Leadership teaches us that we must share what have learned, thereby educating those who follow us. Shepherds who educate their flocks are the best leaders on earth (in my opinion).

So there you have it – a short, sweet and sincere lesson on Leadership and L.O.V.E.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Karen Owens is the CEO of Karen Renae Owens Consulting LLC, which specializes in Leadership Development Workshops and Seminars.