Character Counts

A critical component of being an effective leader and gaining the trust of the people who you lead is directly related to a leader's character. People have to trust their leaders. They have to know that their leader is completely committed to the business, goal or task at hand and is going to do everything that he or she is required to do to guide the team to excellence. They also need to know that their leader is not willing to achieve this goal at all costs if the costs will sacrifice the credibility of the organization. A leader's character denotes that a workplace is professional and treats employees with fairness and respect. Yes, a leader's character does count. It is a necessary trait in order to successfully lead a group of people over a sustained period of time at high levels of effectiveness.

Waste no time arguing what a good man should be. Be one. - Marcus Aurelius

The aforementioned quote is a time-tested message that can be applied to many reference points and fits well into this discussion. As a way of using this subject as a self-test, review the level of trust and buy-in into your leadership among your direct reports. Try to walk a mile in the shoes of the individuals you are leading to gain a better understanding of how your character, recent decisions and actions are impacting the types of behavior from those who are tasked to contribute to your success. Do you like what you see? If not, take a closer look in the mirror to identify if there is a cause-and-effect impact on the perception of your character among those that make up the team or staff that you lead. This can be a tough question to ask yourself, but the net result could be a new direction that will increase your personal effectiveness and the overall ability of your team to exceed your own or the organization's goals.
How would those that you lead define the character of your leadership?

Leadership is understanding people and involving them to help you do a job. That takes all of the good characteristics, like integrity, dedication of purpose, selflessness, knowledge, skill, implacability, as well as determination not to accept failure. - Admiral Arleigh A. Burke