ARE THERE SET THINGS YOU LOOK FOR IN A LEADER?

The short answer to this question is actually no.

In any search for a leader in any role, the most important thing you are seeking is goodness of fit – fit with the institution or organisation, its culture, its particular needs, its future goals; as well as fit with the individuals they will work with or lead – their immediate superior; the members of the team they will head up; the members of the board or governing body. The old adage about square pegs and round holes still profoundly applies – in every situation.

Assessing that goodness of fit is always a challenge. Much of it is qualitative. You cannot quantify the fit, but somehow, you just know. Of course there are quantitative measures of a kind – the organisation lays down certain selection criteria against which applicants are to be measured. They sometimes append a list of particular kinds of experience they hope their new leader might have previously had. They sometimes specify certain contextual experience, or specific previous leadership experience. But even these more tangible measures are laced with subjective threads.

Sometimes, an organisation will specify the nature of their ideal person to take up the leadership role they are offering. Usually, this comprises a set of personal qualities, or of ways of behaving. Our friends across the Pacific are fond of calling these qualities personality traits, including life coach Lisa Petsinis, (in If You Have These 7 Specific Personality Traits, You're 100% Leadership Material, in Your Tango, 1 Jul 24).

I prefer to regard them as predispositions – an attitude of mind that expresses itself naturally through their behaviour as and when they are leading. These predispositions will be evident in your attitudes and in your behaviour if you are already a highly effective leader, and they need to be if you are an aspirational leader who seeks the opportunity to lead at the next level.

1. You're a visionary

Some people are able to visualise the future and paint such a compelling picture for those whom they lead that they want to go along for the ride. Your enthusiastic attitude and forthright commitment to your vision provides leadership that is inherently purpose-driven, focused, and inspiring, Petsinis affirms. This demonstrated capacity to think forward and share your concept of what the future might look like for the members of your team provides them all with hope and something to strive for.

2. You're authentic

People who have close dealings with you – the people whom you lead – come to know that what they see is what they get. You are true to yourself, and you do what you say you will do. Your words and your actions are congruent, your rhetoric matches your actions, and your integrity goes a long way in creating dependability and trust.

Moreover, being genuine makes you very likeable, and someone people want to follow, according to Petsinis. People do want to follow people who lead with sincerity and whom they feel they can trust.

3. You're curious

A wise leader has an open mind and collects facts before coming to conclusions, Petsinis attests, adding, they listen more than they speak and seek to understand. They take the time to learn and grow more knowledgeable. This allows leaders to respond, instead of merely reacting, netting the best solution while at the same time helping people feel heard, she avers.

What is most important is that you recognise how much you have to learn from those whom you lead. They have had experiences and have solved problems you have never faced; they have expertise that exceeds yours in many areas. To be the most effective leader you can be, you need to draw upon the gifts and talents of those whom you lead. Together you can achieve things no single one of you can even dream, about. Take then time and trouble to be curious about what they know, understand and can do. Value their experience and learn from it.

4. You show compassion

Heightened awareness of others is one of the most crucial dimensions of emotional intelligence, and truly effective leaders know that being connected with people on an emotional level is the only way to gain their commitment and engage them, Petsinis observes. To do that, you have to be able to put yourself metaphorically in someone else's shoes, and then walk a mile in them, as the old saying goes.

Petsinis argues, though, that empathy itself is not enough. Empathy is demonstrated when it drives your response, drives your actions in response to the circumstances another person finds themselves in. It's your willingness to act on their behalf to make their circumstances better that matters most. Simply put, Petsinis commends, kindness matters.

5. You're conscientious

Conscientiousness characterises the best leaders too. Your people look up to you; they see you working hard – harder, and for longer hours - than they do. ?But there is more to it than just setting an example by doing careful, thorough, good work. It's about your being conscientious as well about taking personal responsibility for your work, your words and your actions, and living out your personal values regarding what is right and wrong.

Great leaders do not succeed by cutting corners, blaming others when stuff happens, or discounting the importance of sound ethics in what they say and more importantly, in what they do. In fact, Petsinis reports, research shows that conscientiousness is an even bigger predictor of success in a leader than their intelligence.

6. You show courage

The great Roman orator and scholar Cicero regarded courage as the mother of all the virtues. Pause and reflect. When do you need to be your most courageous? When you admit you are wrong. When you call out unacceptable behaviour or conduct, particularly in one of your superiors. When you make a bold but risky decision. When you back a member of your team who appears to have done wrong.

Petsinis notes that when a leader demonstrates courage, they are showing that they are optimistic in the face of obstacles – in other words, they believe they can succeed against the odds. They want others to understand that facing challenges head-on will bring positive results.

Of course, Petsinis recognises that there is an element of risk-taking in being courageous, but courageous leaders know that it is not courageous when you are being reckless. Effective leaders don't stop when things get tough; rather, when things get tough, the tough get going.

7. You're humble

For Petsinis, of all of these leadership traits, humility is the most essential and rare.

Leaders who embody humility are able to make themselves vulnerable with their people, admitting their mistakes and learning from them, she continues, pointing out that humble leaders are able to contain their egos and think of the achievements of their team members as being ours, rather than mine. Because they are secure in themselves and recognise their own human fallibility, authentically humble leaders are able to be much more influential.

Leading is a highly personalised skill, and not every leader will be successful in every situation. Leaders you know will demonstrate the behaviours set out above in different ways and to a greater or lesser extent, depending upon their personality, their experience and their skills and capabilities.

And that is why identifying goodness of fit is such a vital assessment to carry out in seeking new leaders for organisations and institutions. The purpose of leadership is to inspire action to get things done. Even if you are a young emerging leader at the beginning of your career, working as part of a collaborative team or partnership, leadership is required to move the goals of your group forward. You may well have a part to play in that, and you can demonstrate appropriate leadership behaviour within that group. But if you are a round peg in a square hole, it will not work for you or for them.

If you emerge, however, as someone with the ability to lead, and you are the right fit for the role, people around you will happily go on the journey with you, and you yourself will grow as you all strive together to contribute towards achieving your shared goals. In time, you may emerge from a selection process as the person who best fits a leadership role.

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