Ten Characteristics of Authentic Leaders

Ten Characteristics of Authentic Leadership

All of us have dealt with leaders, both effective and ineffective. Sadly, many of the people in charge are the latter. What are the skills and qualities that separate a good leader from a bad one?

First of all, it is important to create a working definition for leadership. Leadership is a set of skills and qualities that helps to motivate individuals and groups toward a common goal. Leadership can come from the assigned leader of the group, or from within the group itself, and it is important to recognize and support leadership wherever it may come from.

Authentic leaders have many of the following characteristics:

1. Act with integrity
2. Encourage creativity and innovation
3. Listen actively
4. Manage time and resources (things and people)
5. Have patience and compassion
6. Value the members of the group
7. Achieve consensus
8. Forego the ego
9. Trustworthy
10. Communicate effectively

Of course, there are many other characteristics of authentic leaders, and if you asked someone else for their ‘top 10′ list it might look very different (I recently read a list of 50 qualities of leadership…), but these ten characteristics are undeniable, and the lack of these characteristics is what separates good leaders from ineffective ones.