SELF-MANAGEMENT

•Self-control. Leaders with emotional self-control find ways to manage their disturbing emotions and impulses, and even to channel them in useful ways. A hallmark of self-control is the leader who stays calm and clear-headed under high stress or during a crisis-or who remains unflappable even when confronted by a trying situation.

•Transparency. Leaders who are transparent live their values. Transparency - an authentic openness to others about one’s feelings, beliefs, and actions - allows integrity. Such leaders openly admit mistakes or faults, and confront unethical behavior in others rather than turn a blind eye.

•Adaptability. Leaders who are adaptable can juggle multiple demands without losing their focus or energy, and are comfortable with the inevitable ambiguities of organizational life. Such leaders can be flexible in adapting to new challenges, nimble in adjusting to fluid change, and limber in their thinking in the face of new data or realities.

•Achievement. Leaders with strength in achievement have high personal standards that drive them to constantly seek performance improvements-both for themselves and those they lead. They are pragmatic, setting measurable but challenging goals, and are able to calculate risk so that their goals are worthy but attainable. A hallmark of achievement is in continually learning - and teaching ways to do better.

•Initiative. Leaders who have a sense of efficacy-that they have what it takes to control their own destiny-excel in initiative. They seize opportunities-or create them rather than simply waiting. Such a leader does not hesitate to cut through red tape, or even bend the rules, when necessary to create better possibilities for the future.

•Optimism. A leader who is optimistic can roll with the punches, seeing an opportunity rather than a threat in a setback. Such leaders see others positively, expecting the best of them. And their “glass half-full” outlook leads them to expect that changes in the future will be for the better.