In dealing with managers and leaders from various industries and companies, I have found there are a handful of qualities which can have a large impact on leadership, both positive and negative. The list might be surprising because these are not the classic heavyweight skills, these are the skills and qualities which often fly under the radar, eclipsed by such qualities as drive, passion, and vision, or are dismissed as being not necessary.

These qualities are, Dependability, Empathy, and Cool-headedness. Of course, there are successful leaders which do not exhibit these qualities. I have simply found that those leaders which do, are more effective with much less effort. And I have also found that as you notice these qualities in good leaders, the lack of these qualities in others becomes more apparent and less tolerable.

Dependability

Be where and when you say you will be. Do what you say you will do. Apologize when you can’t fulfill your promises. This quality is quite simple, and yet so very hard to achieve. Dependability touches everything you say and do in your business environment; every phone call, every email, every interaction with a colleague, no matter how short.

Too many leaders I have known try to wing it, attempting to manage the complexity of their business environments with their memory alone, often even priding themselves on that. I believe however, that we need to start considering Management not just as a profession, but as a craft. We are performers, and as such, the key to virtuosity is in hitting every tiny note to perfection, not just getting through a performance and receiving accolade. I believe a good manager should be able to manage his own schedule in such a way as to never be late to a meeting and to always be prepared. And I believe a good manager should be able to manage his own in/out flow in such a way as to never drop an issue and always know what is the current state of the issues he is juggling, no matter the number and complexity.

Empathy

This is the “don’t be a jerk” quality. The good managers try to care – or at least try to seem that they care – about their employees. The great leaders do care. A part of business literature is focused on the important decision of whether your company is customer-focused, employee-focused, or shareholder-focused. I believe this to be a false dichotomy. I think a great leader needs to be both customer-focused and employee-focused. This will inevitably cause conflict when an employee’s needs are at odds with the customers’ needs. This conflict is not to be avoided, but embraced. We do our employees a disservice by dismissing the issue with a curt “customer comes first”. By truly caring about the employee’s situation and investigating and understanding what would be the best outcome for the employee, we can much better understand the situation and potentially find a better solution. And even in the case where a solution is not to be found, simply the act of caring about the employee can significantly strengthen the employment relationship.

Additionally, even without a specific business context as the backdrop, there is merit in getting to know and deeply understand your employees’ motivation. Our role as leaders is to unite our forces and lead towards a vision. Everyone will have a different reason for being there and for joining in the journey towards the vision. The better we understand this, the easier it will be to create the right environment for each employee to find motivation.

There is an important but subtle point here. Many leaders have mastered the art of small talk and memorizing various key bits of information about their employees. This gives the impression that you care about each individual, and in many cases, can be beneficial. Until someone sees through you. One way around that is to just get better at the game. I prefer a different way. I prefer to truly care about each employee; to care about what they enjoy, how they think, who they are; to listen to what they want to share and discuss, and to become truly interested. In my experience this level of connection shines through. People can feel that you are being genuine, and it can profoundly strengthen you as their leader.

Additionally, this level of openness tends to breed trust and respect, which are the backbone of enduring success.

Cool-headedness

The “take a breath” quality. Have a sense of your own presence and how incredibly influential even the slightest involuntary response can be. An eye-roll, a sigh, dropping your composure for one second, all of this can in some cases seriously damage trust and respect. And of course, shouting, getting red in the face, pacing angrily, etc. are all emotional responses which we should be able to control. The point here is not to divorce emotion from business, but rather to not let it control you and burst through. Realize that an emotion is emerging, grab it, and then either park it, or choose to use it as a tool.

Being calm and collected, and taking a moment to gather your thoughts before responding to a difficult situation, can have an enormous impact on people around you.