The Most Important Behaviors of a Leader

Call them virtues, attributes, or behaviors, they're about how you show up

A Golden Thread by John Strudwick, 1885 (public domain - Wikipedia)

“What you are stands over you the while, and thunders so that I cannot hear what you say to the contrary.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1875

People pay attention to what leaders say. It’s why we established communication as the most important job of a leader in the last newsletter.

But more than your words, people will be paying attention to how you behave as a leader. They’ll look at the attributes that define you as a person, both on the job and off.

Whether you call them attributes, virtues, or behaviors, the notion is the same: you are more starkly defined by your character than your statements. Your reputation can be built based on what you say, but your actions reveal your true inner self.

“Perhaps a man’s character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The…