Top Leaders: Extensive Study Reveals Key Characteristics

Daniel Goleman and David Boyatzis (leaders in social and emotional intelligence), in collaboration with the Hay Group, have studied top leaders in hundreds of companies over two decades and determined seven (7) qualities of the best leaders:
1. Empathy
a. Do you understand what motivates other people, even those from different backgrounds?
b. Are you sensitive to others’ needs?
2. Attunement
a. Do you listen attentively and think about how others feel?
b. Are you attuned to others’ moods?
3. Organizational awareness
a. Do you appreciate the culture and values of the group or organization?
b. Do you understand social networks and their unspoken norms?
4.Influence
a.Do you persuade others by engaging them in discussion and appealing to their self-interests?
b.Do you get support from key people?
5.Developing others
a. Do you coach and mentor others with compassion and personally invest time and energy in mentoring?
b. Do you provide feedback that people find helpful for their professional development?
6.Inspiration
a.Do you lead by bringing out the best in people?
b.Do you lead by bringing out the best in people?
7. Teamwork
a. Do you solicit input from everyone on the team?
b. Do you support all team members and encourage cooperation?

*The above information from Social Intelligence and the Biology of Leadership by Daniel Goleman and Richard Boyatzis, Harvard Business Review, September 2008, pp. 74-81.