The 9 Cs of inspirational leaders
Are you an inspirational leader? Find out!
When I think of inspirational leaders, 9 traits or behaviors come to my mind immediately, and they all happen to start with a C. So, let’s dive into my 9 Cs of inspirational leaders (and yes, we sure could add more C words…).
1. Competence
You’d think that competence should be a requisite for any leader, but sadly, reality teaches us otherwise. Many people in leadership positions clearly lack competence or refuse to show it… not rarely because they are corrupt. We see this very clearly in politics.
2. Curiosity
Curiosity is necessary for open-mindedness. Curiosity is required to uncover new options and approaches. It generates a desire to figure out what else is possible, and it’s therefore also a prerequisite for being visionary.
Curious people question the status quo. They want to find out what’s behind so-called “facts.” They want to get to the core of things, they are truth-seekers.
And they are more likely to show authentic interest for the people they work with, their teams, their peers, their business partners. This is essential when it comes to true inclusiveness and to finding out about their team members’ unique brilliance so they can allow and encourage them to contribute their best selves.
Curiosity drives visions, innovation, and true inclusion
3. Co-creation
Some of the most relevant elements of a co-creational attitude are a high level of self-awareness, respect for others’ unique geniuses, a collaborative approach, and recognizing the significance of complementary talents, strengths, and skills in a team. Co-creation and competition are mutually exclusive.
4. Courage
Courage shines through its absence in far too many leaders. Sadly, most leaders just swim along with the mainstream. They haven’t learned to stand up for what matters. Their own careers are often more important than the leadership they signed up for. Instead of serving those they are supposed to lead, they serve systems or the people who decide over their paychecks.
This couldn’t be more obvious than in current times’ politics, but we also see it in corporations and other organizations… all too frequently.
Courageous leaders are usually also value-driven leaders. Their integrity outweighs the prospect of more dollars in the bank account.
They don’t avoid adversities; they face and address them, moving through any fear they may experience. This also applies to having those difficult conversations so many leaders dread.
5. Commitment
Inspirational leaders don’t just talk about achieving their goals. They commit to achieving them. This does not mean walking over dead bodies to get there. As a leader, you also have a commitment to your team.
6. Care
No one wants to be led by someone who doesn’t care about them. As human beings, we all want to be treated well, respected, and recognized. We want to interact with people who care in all areas of our lives, not just at home.
7. Compassion
In my opinion, it’s not more empathy that we need in leaders, but rather compassion. Compassion is closely tied to caring but what’s important to remember is that compassion is not suffering other people’s pains. That’s (a high level of) empathy. When we take on other people’s stuff, we are weakened, and we cannot effectively support them. Compassion means we bear witness to other people’s experiences; we try to understand where they are coming from so we can offer them guidance.
8. Candor
We want trustworthy, authentic leaders who practice transparent communication, who let us know when something in our performance needs to be addressed so we can be more successful. And we want them to admit when they made a mistake, too.
9. Coherence
Why do we need coherence in leaders? It helps us gauge and trust them. While it’s absolutely ok and at times also necessary for leaders to change directions, try new approaches and adjust strategies, it’s hard for teams to make sense of frequently inconsistent or even erratic behaviors and words, especially when there is insufficient communication around those modifications.
Heart/mind coherence is also desirable and highly beneficial in leadership. But that's a topic for an entire other article, and I have touched on this topic in previous publications about heartset... So if this topic intrigues you, I invite you to scroll back to those.
***
You will probably agree that the above 9 Cs are also characteristics of more human-centered work environments. When we see them implemented daily, this inspires employees to greater engagement and creativity, as they will feel well-represented, valued, and encouraged to show their best side.