October
2008
Leadership Confidence
Competence, or what a leader
knows (the subject of the August column) and competence, or who the leader
is (the subject of the September column) are key leadership traits. But
without confidence, or the belief in oneself and one’s abilities, leaders
will fail. Not only will they lack faith in themselves to lead, their call
to others will be like a bugler sounding an indistinct sound; no one will
want to follow. See: 1 Corinthians 14:8
Here are three things you
can do to be a confident leader:
Learn
from experience.
A well-known CEO claimed the secret of his success came from making right
decisions. When asked how he was able to make right decisions, the CEO
said it came from experience. One of the people listening to him asked how
he got that experience. The CEO answered with two words, “wrong
decisions.” This is true only if people are willing to learn from their
own experience and from the experience of others.
Demonstrate confidence.
Be confident on the outside, even if you don’t feel it on the inside. All
of us, at times, lack confidence. But acting confident will increase your
own feelings of sureness and confidence as well as assure others and
enhance the confidence they place in your leadership.
Be
humble.
Pride destroys rather than builds confidence; for prideful leaders are
afraid to fail or make a mistake because they are too wrapped up in their
own egos. As the old adage says, “pride goes before the fall.” The
greatest leaders possess both confidence and humility. People want to
follow that kind of leader.
