The 4 C’s and Leadership

According to Oprah Winfrey, “Doing the best at this moment, puts you in a better place for the next moment.” I believe leadership is just that!!

Having to navigate a pandemic in recent times has contributed to economic turbulence, social unrest, and other unprecedented challenges. Leadership on all levels, including political leaders, had to make changes in how they needed to lead.

This article will focus on the 4C’s of Leadership. Although there are other “C” attributes of leadership, confidence, character, etc.., I believe that Courage, Commitment, Consistency and Compassion are critical for leadership to be successful for the road ahead.

Courage:

I think courage really sets the stage for the other three virtues that make leadership possible. Courage demands unique skills from a leader from being out on the front line, confronting the truth and reality of the team to saying what needs to be said. It allows a leader to have honest conversations, which helps the team and the organization to work through important and sometimes difficult issues.

Commitment:

Placing our heart and soul into an organization and most importantly its people are significant in leadership. Having the ability to complete difficult undertakings even when it is not popular such as performance issues, requires leadership. Leaders must be committed to the mission of their organization, which begins with team commitments. Leadership is not about you! Its about the people you lead.

Consistency:

Employees need an environment where expectations are known, shared and not ambiguous. Leaders who are not consistent create environments of fear and anxiety, which can lead to a team’s dysfunction. Being consistent can go a long way in building a functional team.

Compassion:

Compassion forms the basic ingredient of a healthy work environment of stability and psychological safety. A safe environment allows employees more willingness to take risks which can result in more innovation. Compassionate leaders, genuinely love what they do, they believe in themselves, their organizations, and their people.

As leaders, we are a product of our own experiences, education, and self-development. I believe that Courage, Commitment, Consistency and Compassion are the right basic leadership values across all levels of leadership for any organization, for the road ahead.