Magnificent Seven

Larry Bossidy, leadership guru, found seven core leadership traits.  The ‘magnificent seven’ are shared by the best CEO’s of top organizations.

Here are the ‘magnificent seven’:

Know your people and your business.  The big CEOs understand all facets of their business.  The ‘nitty-gritty’ is where it is at.

Insist on realism. These leaders benchmark their products and services against their toughest competition.  Top CEOs want to know how good their products are, and how they can be better.    Realism and truth are pivotal to success. Delusion is a waste of time.

Set clear goals. Clear targets get people moving forward.  Goals must specify quantities and quality. Goals are outside the company’s grasp, but within their reach.

Follow through.  The top leaders make follow through a daily commitment.  Nothing falls through the cracks, and nothing is left behind. That is 24/7 execution.

Reward doers. Give biggest paychecks to top performers (even if those people are difficult or prickly at times).

Expand people’s capacities. Leaders put their people and themselves on a continuous path of improvement. Training and learning never stop.

Know yourself.  Top CEOs know their strengths and weaknesses.  They maximize their strengths and make their weaknesses irrelevant (by either by hiring complementary staff, or by learning compensatory strategies against their weaknesses).

Technology, charisma, and intelligence are important, but they aren’t as critical to success as the ‘magnificent seven’.

Sure, these seven habits look obvious.  They make common sense. But, as humorist and philosopher Will Rogers said: “Common sense ain’t common”.

Master the ‘magnificent seven’ and watch your influence grow.

It is simple, but not easy.