10 things the greatest leaders all have in common

10 things the greatest leaders all have in common10 things the greatest leaders all have in commonIve posted a lot abouteffective leaders.Looking back, what patterns do we see?1. Know the power of feelingsLeaders who just focus on results dont do nearly as well as those that also pay attention to relationships.ViaSocial Why Our Brains Are Wired to ConnectZenger found that if employees rated a manager as very high on focus on results (that is, ones ability to get things done effectively), there was only a small (14 percent) chance that the manager would be rated among the top 10 percent of leaders overall. However, ifin addition to focus on results, employees also rated the managers ability to build relationships very highly, then the likelihood of that persons being rated as a great leader overall skyrocketed to 72 percent.Paying attention to employee feelings matters.Whats the difference between exemplary and good employees? They care.What strategies really improve organizations?Res earch involving 400 people across 130 companies came up with a simple answerYou must change individual behavior by addressing employee feelings.ViaSwitch How to Change Things When Change Is Hardthe core of the matter is always about changing the behavior of people, and behavior change happens in highly successful situations mostly by speaking to peoples feelings.(More on being a well-rounded leaderhere.)2. But be tough in a crisisThe one time people definitely want a take-charge, decisive dictator is during a crisis.ViaBold Endeavors Lessons from Polar and Space Explorationcrew members expected leaders to make decisions regarding emergency matters as quickly and autocratically as necessary under the circumstances.(More on balancing toughness with warmthhere.)3. Know what makes employees stay and leaveEmployees are made happy by achievement, recognition, the work itself, responsibility and advancement.They are most often made dissatisfied by policies, supervisors and work conditions. (More on building great teamshere.)4. Judge people by what theyre good atIf you want people who are competent at everything youll end up with a team of mediocrities.Better to get the best person in a discipline and support them with others who can compensate for their weak spots.ViaThe Effective Executive The Definitive Guide to Getting the Right Things DoneThe task is leid to breed generalists. It is to enable the specialist to make himself and his specialty effective.This means that he must think through who is to use his output and what the user needs to know and to understand to be able to make productive the fragment the specialist producesWe can so structure as to make the strength relevant.A good tax accountant in private practice might be greatly hampered by his inability to get along with people. But in an organization such a man can be platzset up in an office of his own and shielded from direct contact with other people.In an organization one can make his strength effecti ve and his weakness irrelevant.(More from the best management thinker everhere.)5. Hubris is your greatest weaknessDont get full of yourself. Thats the downfall of nearly all great leaders.In myinterviewwith Harvard Business School professor Gautam Mukunda, author ofIndispensable When Leaders Really Matter, I asked him about the biggest mistakeleadersmakeGautam Over time, its grandiosity.Eric Hubris?Gautam Yeah. You live in an environment where everybody constantly tells you how great you are, and you begin to believe it.Eric Yeah. Even Machiavelli said a leaderneeds people who are going to be honest with them, because everybodys going to kiss their ass.Gautam ExactlyThe CEO of a major corporation, how often does he or she hear the word no? How often does someone challenge their basic preconceptions about the world?(More on resisting common leadership errorshere.)6. Culture is what you do, not what you sayCultures are formed by the behavior that is rewarded in a company, not pret ty words.So if the top salesperson gets treated like a king - despite how abusively he treats people - congratulations,thatsyour culture, no matter whats on slide 47 of the PowerPoint deck.ViaHow Will You Measure Your Life?If you dont articulate a culture- or articulate one but dont enforce it- then a culture is still going to emerge. However, it is going to be based on the processes and priorities that have been repeated within the organization and have worked.You can tell the health of a companys culture by asking, When faced with a choice on how to do something, did employees make the decision that the culture wanted them to make? And was the feedback they received consistent with that?(More on building a rock solid company culturehere.)7. Know the difference between leaders and managersThe goal of management is consistency and order.The goal of leadership is to motivate and create necessary change.Management is about processes. Leadership is about peoples feelings.ViaJohn P. Kotter on What Leaders Really DoManagement controls people by pushing them in the right direction leadership motivates them by satisfying basic human needs.(More on moving from great manager to great leaderhere.)8. Know thyselfWhat can you learn from anArmy Ranger about leadership?Knowing your limitations is key to being a great leaderOne company leader, socially was a buffoon and tactically he was a buffoon. But, heknewhe was a buffoonWhen we got to our site, he said to me, Youve got the training to protect this site. I dont. Protect this site.Thats all he had to say.That taught me a very valuable lesson Its okay not to know something. There are people around you who do know something, and they can teach you. If its too grand a knowledge base to pick up right there, put them in charge. Have them report to you.Put the responsibility on them. If you do that, they will execute that to perfection, and I did.(More on how effective leaders spend their timehere.)9. Convey authority and w armthPeople expect leaders to carry themselves a certain way.Whats the secret?Convey authority and warmth.ViaThe Silent Language of Leaders How Body Language Can Helpor HurtHow You LeadWhen first introduced to a leader, we immediately and unconsciously assess him or her for warmth and authority.Obviously the most appealing leaders are seen to encompass both qualities, and the least effective leaders are those we regard as cold and inept.(More on how to appear like a leaderhere.)10. Inspire by showing people the importance of their jobsHow do you inspire people? Show them why their jobs are important.Noah Goldstein, co-author ofYes 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive, reviews a studyAdam Grant, a scholar in the field of organizational behavior, realized that workers often fail to live up to their potential because theyve lost track of the significance and meaningfulness of their own jobs. He figured that if he could remind employees of why their jobs are important, they mi ght become more highly motivated, and therefore, more productive individuals.What magic do both the speeches of Martin Luther King and the marketing of Apple have that move us to believe and act?Simon Sinek, author ofdeparture with Why How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action, has an interesting theoryPeople dont buy what you do. They buy why you do it Start with Why.(And when all else fails, yes,nagging works.)Sum upTen things you can do to be like the bestKnow The Power Of FeelingsBut Be Tough In A CrisisKnow What Makes Employees Stay And LeaveJudge People By What Theyre Good AtHubris Is Your Greatest WeaknessCulture Is What You Do, Not What You SayManagers Are About Processes, Leaders Are About PeopleKnow ThyselfConvey Authority And WarmthInspire By Showing People The Importance Of Their JobsJoin 45K+ readers.Get a free weekly update via emailhere.Related postsHow To Make Your Life Better By Sending Five Simple Emails6 Hostage Negotiation Techniques That Will Get You Wha t You WantWhich professions have the most psychopaths? The fewest?This article originally appeared at Barking Up the Wrong Tree.10 things the greatest leaders all have in commonIve posted a lot abouteffective leaders.Looking back, what patterns do we see?1. Know the power of feelingsLeaders who just focus on results dont do nearly as well as those that also pay attention to relationships.ViaSocial Why Our Brains Are Wired to ConnectZenger found that if employees rated a manager as very high on focus on results (that is, ones ability to get things done effectively), there was only a small (14 percent) chance that the manager would be rated among the top 10 percent of leaders overall. However, ifin addition to focus on results, employees also rated the managers ability to build relationships very highly, then the likelihood of that persons being rated as a great leader overall skyrocketed to 72 percent.Paying attention to employee feelings matters.Whats the difference between exemplar y and good employees? They care.What strategies really improve organizations?Research involving 400 people across 130 companies came up with a simple answerYou must change individual behavior by addressing employee feelings.ViaSwitch How to Change Things When Change Is Hardthe core of the matter is always about changing the behavior of people, and behavior change happens in highly successful situations mostly by speaking to peoples feelings.(More on being a well-rounded leaderhere.)2. But be tough in a crisisThe one time people definitely want a take-charge, decisive dictator is during a crisis.ViaBold Endeavors Lessons from Polar and Space Explorationcrew members expected leaders to make decisions regarding emergency matters as quickly and autocratically as necessary under the circumstances.(More on balancing toughness with warmthhere.)3. Know what makes employees stay and leaveEmployees are made happy by achievement, recognition, the work itself, responsibility and advancement.The y are most often made dissatisfied by policies, supervisors and work conditions.(More on building great teamshere.)4. Judge people by what theyre good atIf you want people who are competent at everything youll end up with a team of mediocrities.Better to get the best person in a discipline and support them with others who can compensate for their weak spots.ViaThe Effective Executive The Definitive Guide to Getting the Right Things DoneThe task is not to breed generalists. It is to enable the specialist to make himself and his specialty effective.This means that he must think through who is to use his output and what the user needs to know and to understand to be able to make productive the fragment the specialist producesWe can so structure as to make the strength relevant.A good tax accountant in private practice might be greatly hampered by his inability to get along with people. But in an organization such a man can be set up in an office of his own and shielded from direct cont act with other people.In an organization one can make his strength effective and his weakness irrelevant.(More from the best management thinker everhere.)5. Hubris is your greatest weaknessDont get full of yourself. Thats the downfall of nearly all great leaders.In myinterviewwith Harvard Business School professor Gautam Mukunda, author ofIndispensable When Leaders Really Matter, I asked him about the biggest mistakeleadersmakeGautam Over time, its grandiosity.Eric Hubris?Gautam Yeah. You live in an environment where everybody constantly tells you how great you are, and you begin to believe it.Eric Yeah. Even Machiavelli said a leaderneeds people who are going to be honest with them, because everybodys going to kiss their ass.Gautam ExactlyThe CEO of a major corporation, how often does he or she hear the word no? How often does someone challenge their basic preconceptions about the world?(More on resisting common leadership errorshere.)6. Culture is what you do, not what you sayC ultures are formed by the behavior that is rewarded in a company, not pretty words.So if the top salesperson gets treated like a king - despite how abusively he treats people - congratulations,thatsyour culture, no matter whats on slide 47 of the PowerPoint deck.ViaHow Will You Measure Your Life?If you dont articulate a culture- or articulate one but dont enforce it- then a culture is still going to emerge. However, it is going to be based on the processes and priorities that have been repeated within the organization and have worked.You can tell the health of a companys culture by asking, When faced with a choice on how to do something, did employees make the decision that the culture wanted them to make? And was the feedback they received consistent with that?(More on building a rock solid company culturehere.)7. Know the difference between leaders and managersThe goal of management is consistency and order.The goal of leadership is to motivate and create necessary change.Mana gement is about processes. Leadership is about peoples feelings.ViaJohn P. Kotter on What Leaders Really DoManagement controls people by pushing them in the right direction leadership motivates them by satisfying basic human needs.(More on moving from great manager to great leaderhere.)8. Know thyselfWhat can you learn from anArmy Ranger about leadership?Knowing your limitations is key to being a great leaderOne company leader, socially was a buffoon and tactically he was a buffoon. But, heknewhe was a buffoonWhen we got to our site, he said to me, Youve got the training to protect this site. I dont. Protect this site.Thats all he had to say.That taught me a very valuable lesson Its okay not to know something. There are people around you who do know something, and they can teach you. If its too grand a knowledge base to pick up right there, put them in charge. Have them report to you.Put the responsibility on them. If you do that, they will execute that to perfection, and I did.(Mor e on how effective leaders spend their timehere.)9. Convey authority and warmthPeople expect leaders to carry themselves a certain way.Whats the secret?Convey authority and warmth.ViaThe Silent Language of Leaders How Body Language Can Helpor HurtHow You LeadWhen first introduced to a leader, we immediately and unconsciously assess him or her for warmth and authority.Obviously the most appealing leaders are seen to encompass both qualities, and the least effective leaders are those we regard as cold and inept.(More on how to appear like a leaderhere.)10. Inspire by showing people the importance of their jobsHow do you inspire people? Show them why their jobs are important.Noah Goldstein, co-author ofYes 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive, reviews a studyAdam Grant, a scholar in the field of organizational behavior, realized that workers often fail to live up to their potential because theyve lost track of the significance and meaningfulness of their own jobs. He figured that if he could remind employees of why their jobs are important, they might become more highly motivated, and therefore, more productive individuals.What magic do both the speeches of Martin Luther King and the marketing of Apple have that move us to believe and act?Simon Sinek, author ofStart with Why How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action, has an interesting theoryPeople dont buy what you do. They buy why you do it Start with Why.(And when all else fails, yes,nagging works.)Sum upTen things you can do to be like the bestKnow The Power Of FeelingsBut Be Tough In A CrisisKnow What Makes Employees Stay And LeaveJudge People By What Theyre Good AtHubris Is Your Greatest WeaknessCulture Is What You Do, Not What You SayManagers Are About Processes, Leaders Are About PeopleKnow ThyselfConvey Authority And WarmthInspire By Showing People The Importance Of Their JobsJoin 45K+ readers.Get a free weekly update via emailhere.Related postsHow To Make Your Life Better By Sending Fi ve Simple Emails6 Hostage Negotiation Techniques That Will Get You What You WantWhich professions have the most psychopaths? The fewest?This article originally appeared at Barking Up the Wrong Tree.