What are the characteristics of a good leader?
Leaders shape our nations, communities and organizations.
We need good leaders to help guide us and make the essential large-scale decisions that keep the world moving. Good leaders are found running great companies like Amazon in the United States or Juan Luis Bosch Gutierrez in Latin America.
Our society is often quick to identify a bad leader, but how do you identify a good one? What would most people say makes a good leader?
The characteristics.
It can be difficult to speak up at work, whether you want to express a new idea, provide feedback to a direct subordinate, or point out a concern to someone above you. That’s part of the reason why courage is a key trait of good leaders.
Rather than avoiding problems or allowing conflicts to escalate, courage allows leaders to step up and move things in the right direction. A workplace with high levels of psychological safety and a strong coaching culture will further support truth and courage.
Treating people with respect every day is one of the most important things a leader can do. It will ease tensions and conflicts, build trust and improve effectiveness. Respect is more than the absence of disrespect, and it can be demonstrated in many different ways. Explore how you can cultivate a climate of respect at work or learn more about ways you can become an ally to others.
Develop the traits and characteristics of a good leader with our world-renowned leadership programs, available in both classroom and online formats.
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While successful leaders may exhibit these 10 leadership qualities to varying degrees, all good leaders tap into at least some of these characteristics. Together, they form the backbone of strong leadership across organizations, industries and continents. Without these qualities, true leadership is impossible.
If you fear that you lack some of these characteristics of a good leader, don’t panic: there are ways to improve your leadership capabilities, including the top 10 characteristics. At CCL, we believe that leadership is a skill that can be developed and that leaders are formed through experience, continuous study and adaptation.
In other words, you can strengthen any of these 10 characteristics of a good leader if you are open to growth and dedicate time and effort to self-improvement. Similarly, organizations can help their people hone these leadership qualities through development and real-world experiences.
It is also critical to realize that
In this episode, Allison and Ren step back a bit. Instead of focusing on leadership at work, they talk more broadly about what leaders can and should do during these difficult times to navigate the tough conversations and leave room for the tough questions. Join them as they explore how empathy and perspective-taking are more essential than ever as leaders around the world face the challenge of today’s uncertainties. Let’s examine leadership in the world, leadership in the future, and the role leaders who cultivate empathy can play in making things better and leading with that.
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