Have you ever wondered what the difference is from those who are wildly successful and those who are not?

In one of our recent blogs, The Truth About Being An Entrepreneur, we discussed misconceptions about being successful.  The strategies to be successful are simple, but the difficulty is putting them into practice consistently.

It amazing how many ways we are able to educate ourselves these days.  While listening to a Podcast 3 weeks ago, there was a highly successful entrepreneur that said successful entrepreneur’s read at least 30 books a year.  What book are you reading right now?  When and what was the last book you read?

A big part of your success will be consistent reading, listening, and learning.  Recently I read an article, What Sets Successful CEO’s Apart, from the Harvard Business Review.  Bothello, Powell, Kincaid, and Wang describe four essential behaviors that chief executives officers possess and that helps them thrive in their role.

Whether you are an executive or not, these four behaviors are important to anyone’s success.  See if you have these four behaviors.  If not, try to consistently practice these four crucial but simple behaviors.

1.    Deciding with Speed and Conviction.

One of the primary reasons why CEOs are successful is because of their decisiveness.  This article discovered the following about decisiveness, “High-performing CEOs understand that a wrong decision is often better than no decision at all.”  It also stated, “They make decisions earlier, faster, and with greater conviction.”

Sometimes our desire for perfection holds us back from having any action that can bring about success.  How fast and convicted are you about making decisions with your professional career?

2.    Engaging for Impact.

Another brilliant way this article describes how successful CEOs set themselves apart from others is by getting others on board with their mission and vision.

The article explains, “CEOs who excel at bringing others along plan and execute disciplined communications and influencing strategies.”  They referenced a statement of the CEO of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Madeline Bell, “With any big decision, I create a stakeholder map of the key people who need to be on board.”

 Successful people and organizations never do it alone.  They are smart about aligning their mission and vision with the right people.  Who and how are you surrounding yourself with to bring about the successful results you and your organization needs? 

3.    Adaptability Proactively.

Adaptability is a trait all successful leaders and organizations possess.

One of favorite quotes when it comes to adaptability comes from businesswoman Chanda Kochhar when she said, “Adaptability is a great asset to have because life is so unpredictable, and things can change overnight for any of us.”

Bothello, Powell, Kincaid, and Wang explain, “Our analysis shows that CEOs who excel at adapting are 6.7 times more likely to succeed.”  How adaptable are you as a leader?

4.    Delivering Reliably.

Of all the four essential traits of successful leaders, reliability was the most powerful indicator of a successful leader.

Bothello, Powell, Kincaid, and Wang stated, “Leaders ignore the importance of reliability at their peril.”  The article also explained, “In our sample, CE candidates who scored on reliability were twice as likely to be picked for the role and 15 times more likely to succeed in it.”

In any profession especially business, people love reliability from board members to investors to partners to employees to other leaders.  How reliable are you?  

There aren’t any perfect leaders, but these traits will place you in a class of receive successful results.  There is no reason for you to settle for less when it comes to success.  Make these traits part of your leadership and watch your success skyrocket to another level.

Of the four essential characteristics, which do you personally need to work on adding to your leadership?  Please leave a comment below.

Bryant 

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