Why Should Anyone Be Led by You?

What It Takes To Be An Authentic Leader

The authors, British OD consultants and academics, assert that leaders do not become great through aspiring to a list of characteristic leadership traits. If you are serious about leadership, they say, don't try to be someone else. Instead, be yourself, more, with skill.

So what does that mean in practice?

Four unexpected qualities

In the course of their prolonged research, the autors found that inspirational leaders share four unexpected qualities. And all four are required for genuine success.

1. They selectively show their weaknesses. By exposing some vulnerability, they reveal their approachability and humanity.
2. They rely heavily on intuition to gauge the appropriate timing and course of their actions.
3. They manage employees with "tough empathy".
4. They reveal their differences and capitalise on what's unique about themselves.

Core aspects of authentic leadership

You cannot be a leader without followers. The authors identify some core areas where compelling leaders create the space within which they attract, sustain and engage others, recognising that leadership is essentially relational.

• Knowing and showing yourself - self awareness of strengths and weaknesses allows you to get clear as to what aspects of yourself genuinely support your leadership vision
• Managing balance within the inherent tensions of leadership relationships - e.g. between showing emotion and withholding it; getting close to followers while also keeping appropriate distance; maintaining individuality while also "conforming enough"
• "Situational sensing" - tuning in and accurately assessing situations, then having the behavioural flexibility to respond appropriately

"I had no idea that being your authentic self could make me as rich as I've become.
If I had, I'd have done it a lot earlier."