Comfort's 3 C's of Leadership
Paul Comfort
SVP & Chief Customer Officer Modaxo| Exec. Dir. North American Transit Alliance| Transit Evangelist| Adjunct Faculty| Best-Selling Author| Keynote Speaker| YouTube & Podcast Creator, Producer & Host| Influencer
I look for three C's in leaders -
Character, Competence and Communication
What is Character?? In a word "integrity" - doing what's right when no one else is looking.? Staying on the job until the job gets done, right.? This separates the leaders from the followers and shows you are committed to the company/agency and your responsibilities.
Next I look for Competence of two types:
???? Technical ?- The ability to actually do the job you are supervising.? This allows your subordinates to follow you not just for your title and position?but also?because they respect your?ability.? If you can't do the job technically, you at least need to know what the outcome should be and the right questions to ask and metrics to measure the activity's success. ?
???? Leadership - The ability to get others to follow you and accomplish tasks.? Too often people get promoted because of their technical prowess but never are taught to lead.? They might be surprised that now not only are they accountable for their own work but also for the work outcomes?of those they supervise.? Good companies ensure new leaders are trained in the art of leadership.
Finally I look for the ability to Communicate effectively.? This is the #1 skill set of the 21st century leader.
"Without a progressive vision, we dwell carelessly" - wisdom
Leaders should be able to communicate their vision effectively in both verbal and written form.? You must be able to inspire and motivate your team to action.? Without the ability to "win their hearts and minds"?your team?will only follow while you are looking and thus will not effectively implement your goals for the long term.
Three C's that we must each continue to focus on in order to be outstanding leaders in our field.
(c) Copyright, 2017 by Paul Comfort, All Rights Reserved
Managing Director, Corporate Development at Republic Capital Group | Mayor at City of Palm Beach Gardens | Business Leader | Transportation Advocate | Board Chair | Speaker | Mentor | Connector
2 年Completely concur!!!
President - Kiefer Professional Services, LLC
7 年It's too bad Communication is misspelled - one of the three C's of Leadership. Oh well, it's copyrighted.
Director at Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA)
7 年Mr. Comfort, you're an excellent representation of the 3 Cs. I thank you for your leadership .
VP of Engineering, 35yrs of Civil Engineering: from concept to construction; a passion for watershed & athletic projects; a commitment to helping players grow on the field; & 4 daughters, just to keep things interesting.
7 年Excellent summary. I think the following 3 Cs , which are covered in his 3 Cs, are also worth noting: Compassion, Creativity, and Compassion. Yes, "compassion" is listed twice. ??
Dedicated Professional Government Employee
7 年A few leaders are born—they naturally possess the social intelligence and charisma that motivates others to work together. Their ability to inspire exudes excellence in the workplace.