To some, quality leadership seems to be a thing of the past. For others, like Kevin Eikenberry, there is hope and potential for America’s leaders and potential leaders.

Eikenberry is president of Indian-apolis-based Kevin Eikenberry Group and author of "Remarkable Leadership: Unleashing Your Leadership Potential One Skill at a Time."

In his book, Eikenberry lists 13 qualities of a great leader. Foremost is a desire to continue learning. “Remarkable leaders are continual learners,” he says, and they want others to do the same. “What better way to do that than to model that yourself? I’ve never met a leader who didn’t want those that follow them to continue getting better.”

Leadership is a complex process, Eikenberry says, requiring constant effort. “For us to get better, we have to continually, consciously, intentionally, work on it,” he says. He suggests that business people constantly ask them-selves, “How can I get a little bit better here, a little bit better there?” and “What new information can I apply to be a better leader here?”

Another important trait, he says, is to have a positive effect on others, regardless of your title or stature in your firm. “Are you making a difference for your organization?” he asks. “Are you making a difference in the lives of those you lead?”

Although strong business skills are important in a leader, it’s the people skills that really make a difference. “When we think of great leaders, we think of people who have the ability to influence,” Eikenberry says, pointing to other important qualities, such as being trustworthy and empathetic. We care about others, and look for that in our leaders.

Many people wonder, in light of corporate scandals and political paralysis in Washington, whether genuine leaders still exist. Eikenberry, whose clients include Chevron Corp., John Deere, and Verizon, sees it another way. “As a general statement, there’s plenty of great leadership,” he says. But he also cautions that we may experience a void as baby boom managers retire with few to replace them.

Eikenberry notes that in the 1980s and early ‘90s many firms flattened their organizational structures, to the possible detriment of junior staff. “We haven’t had as many levels for people to train through to build their skills and gain the experience,” he says. He predicts an “explosive” need for leadership development in the next 10 years. Those organizations that take a proactive approach will have a better chance of being successful, he says.

Each of us is unique, which means that each person will lead in a different way. But we can learn the skills necessary to be an effective leader regardless of our position or area of responsi-bility. “We are all born with the ability to be an effective leader,” he says.

Eikenberry reminds us that outside responsibilities–-on the city council, school board or executive council of a church–-offer valuable experience as well. “We have opportunities to build our leadership skills in all parts of our lives, and to use our leadership skills regardless of where we fit in an organization,” he says. “The strongest and most vibrant organizations are those that value the leadership; that care less about the position and more about attributes and opportunity.”

Eikenberry, who has studied and admires scores of leaders, including Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Edison, is very optimistic about our future. “I don’t think there’s any reason to worry about there being a dearth of leadership in this country,” he says.

How often have you seen news reports of travelers stranded in airports for hours, even overnight? Think it can't happen to you? I did, until the unimaginable happened. And now I don't want to see the inside of an airport again, even though I could use a nice, long vacation.

The nightmare began innocently enough the afternoon of Sunday, July 29. I was traveling from Harrisburg, Pa. to Milwaukee, Wis. Have done it a bunch of times over the years with no problem.

I was scheduled to leave Harrisburg at 12:24 p.m. on the 29th. That was delayed, and we finally lifted off about 1:10. OK, not too bad. Figure on 20 minutes or so to Philadelphia; more than enough time to reach the connecting flight scheduled for 2:00.

We arrived in Philly shortly thereafter, but then the fun began. Storms moving up the east coast on Sunday played havoc with flights even as far west as eastern Pennsylvania. As one pilot explained, Philly is considered part of New York City’s zone of influence, so what happens in the Big Apple affects Philly as well. (I say, “Screw it!”, but no one asked for my opinion.) The weather in Philadelphia was fine: cloudy but dry with light winds. Jets could take off easily and get above the weather. No matter. Only those flights eastbound were allowed out.

My 2:00 flight was postponed to 3:30, then to 4:50. We finally boarded and pulled onto the tarmac at about 5:15, only to sit there for over three hours while the flight scheduling gods wherever (possibly in NYC) watched the weather patterns.

At 8:30 p.m. our pilot announced that the aircraft was running out of fuel and he was running out of time. Back to the terminal. Now the fun really began.

Approached a ticket agent and managed to get rebooked on a flight to O’Hare leaving at 10:55 that night. (The next flight to Milwaukee that had room was to leave at 6:00 p.m. Monday. Didn’t want to wait that long.) So I grabbed the Chicago ticket and headed to the new gate.

As you can imagine, that flight didn’t leave on time either. It got postponed to 12:26 a.m., then 1:49, then 2:30, and finally 3:30 a.m. Thankfully that one took off. (If you’re doing the math, you’ll see that I was in the Philly airport for over 13 hours.)

Some will chew out U.S. Airways, but in all honesty it wasn’t their fault. The blame lies with whoever is in charge of airspace. Philadelphia needs more flexibility in allowing its aircraft to leave. Every airline and every aircraft trying to depart on Sunday afternoon was affected.

The only flights that needed to be held up were those headed to airports shut down due to the weather. Mine, destined for sunny Milwaukee, should have been released. Someone in authority needs to step in and use common sense in these situations. Or we consumers will be demanding that heads roll in the appropriate government agencies.

Last time we reviewed some of the inane and irrelevant comments made by politicians on the floor of the House of Representatives. Today we'll take a peek at some of the comments not said but yet still found in the Congressional Record.

Yes, even though the CR was designed to be a record only of stated comments, congressmen decided a long time ago to give themselves the added privilege of inserting comments into the Record. The statements then take on an air of officiality that doesn't apply. And you'll see that these written comments are as self-serving as the spoken ones.

As before, all comments are found in the CR of March 15, 2007.

Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) took the pleasure of congratulating the Madison High School Bel Canto Choir in Rexburg, Idaho. What did the choir do that's noteworthy? Why, it was chosen to perform at Carnegie Hall on March 19.

Rep. Kendirck Meek (D-Fla.) saluted Dr. Karl S. Wright for being selected the new president of Florida Memorial University.

Rep. Ron Lewis (R-Ky.) decided to honor one Lisa Hussing. Who is she, and why does she merit attention in a federal register? According to the "honorable" Rep. Lewis, Hussing is "an exemplary citizen from my congressional district [nice of him to admit that] who was recently named Elementary Music Teacher of the Year by the Kentucky Educators Association." Great. But why is that of national importance?

Since we're into honoring women, how about this one?

Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D-Penn.) inserted some congratulatory remarks for one Kate Fanning for being selected Woman of the Year by the Lackawanna County Federation of Democratic Women. Now, there's a noteworthy accomplishment.

The Eye continues to watch.........

The average voter thinks that his federal lawmakers are hard at work every day trying to solve the great problems of the land. While that’s probably true most of the time, other times are wasted on self-fulfilling speeches and other comments. A quick scan through the Congressional Record provides a glimpse of what your elected officials are doing with your hard-earned money.

I happened upon copies of the Congressional Record from several days in March of this year. The following information is from the proceedings of the House of Representatives.

The proceedings began at 10:00 a.m. After a prayer offered by a rabbi from Nevada and the Pledge of Allegiance from Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.)—which, by the way, was quoted in the Record: doesn’t everyone know the Pledge??, the House got down to business. First up were a series of one-minute speeches on a variety of topics, some relevant, some not.

Included were comments by Rep. Gresham Barrett (R-S.C.) on the budget and Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) on immigration reform. Rep. Walberg returned to the lectern to call for fiscal responsibility, and in a pre-election stint put in a good word for working people back home. “Right now, taxpayers in south central Michigan [and nowhere else, Mr. Congressman???] are making tough choices every day to ensure their family budgets are balanced.” Three cheers for the honorable gentleman from Michigan.

The chamber also heard from Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) who wined about the budding issue regarding the seven U.S. attorneys that were fired by the Justice Department. As if that was relevant to the House of Representatives.

Later in the morning the chamber was treated to an even more remote topic: Belarus, to be precise. Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) relayed the poignant tale of one Vintsuk Vyachorak who was pulled from his home one night (unknown whether he was kicking and screaming) “only to be brought up on non-existent charges that will likely land him in jail for at least 25 days.” Oh, the horrors!

Every the patriot, Shimkus informs us that he and his kids are wearing wrist bracelets, because in Belarus, “you can get arrested for wearing [these].”

Why is any of this important for the House of Representatives? It isn’t, and that’s the point. Representatives (and senators as well), routinely use floor time to make comments they know will end up in the Congressional Record. The politicians can then reprint the comments in newsletters and other literature, as if to say, “See, folks, I care about your cause and I’m bringing it to the government’s attention.”

Give me a break. Everyone in Washington knows of this perk. And no one cares what anyone else says. The worst part is that a politician can have remarks inserted into the Record. So the blowhard can claim to have made some profound and impactful statements without even being in the chamber that day. More on that ruse later.

The begging continues in Milwaukee, Wis.

The city's daily newspaper reports today that a prime section of the city near downtown remains open because developers are waiting for handouts from the taxpayers. The headlines say it all:

"...[P]rojects are in the works, but developers say they need to know what help the city is willing to give."

And

"City money is sought for several projects in the area...."

One can expect any business to turn to the politicians for help with permitting and other matters commonly referred to as "red tape." That's understandable. Any governmental body worth its existence should do what it can to encourage growth by limiting the barriers to development.

To a certain extent that is the case with developers interested in what's called the Park East Corridor. The article mentions a demand for "flexibility" in the city's zoning ordinances.

But the wealthy builders are going a step further in their desire for undefined financial assistance from the city (read: taxpayers). Huh? When were business people given keys to the city's treasury? Answer: When cities (and states) began caving in years ago.

Automobile manufacturers may not have been the first to do this, but they have taken the concept to stratospheric levels. One recalls Saturn's "request", back when it was courting states for its first plant, for hundreds of millions of dollars in "investments."

True, much was in infrastructure improvements like roads and utility hook ups, but the car manufacturer still showed no shame. Executives just sat back and let the states prostitute themselves for the chance to land a major employer. Is Tennessee, the winner, better off today? What does it matter? The precedent has been set. Now business of any reasonable size can whine for tax dollars, only to see the politicians bow before them.

Manpower, Inc. got Milwaukee to toss in a $19-million parking ramp when the temp firm agreed to build its headquarters near downtown. Never mind that the net effect to the area was nil. (The firm consolidated two offices in the metro area.) Milwaukee can now brag that it houses the headquarters for Manpower, Inc. Pretty expensive bragging rights, if you ask me.

One can assume that the City of Milwaukee will cave to the latest demands and cough up tax dollars. Never mind that thousands of other businesses in the city need to go it alone. No, with some grease from city hall the welfare capitalists will finally start digging dirt. In years past, a businessman would've shunned city hall in favor of good ol' fashioned, free market ethics. Someone in city government needs to call up the wealthy whiners, and using his best Nike voice yell,

"Just do it!"