write an informative essay in which you explain the qualities of a great leader

• Published April 1, 2024
• 9 Minute Read

The Characteristics of a Good Leader

Leaders shape our teams, organizations, communities, and world.

We need good leaders to help guide us and make the essential decisions, big and small, that keep things moving forward.

Our society is usually quick to identify a bad leader, but how can you identify a good one? What would most people say are the qualities of a good leader?

What Good Leadership Looks Like

Based upon our decades of research and experience working with leaders at thousands of organizations around the world, we’ve found that the best leaders consistently possess certain fundamental qualities and skills. Here are 12 essential leadership traits.

12 Essential Leadership Qualities

• Self-Awareness
• Communication
• Learning Agility
• Collaboration

1. Self-Awareness

While this is a more inwardly focused trait, self-awareness and humility are paramount qualities of leadership. The better you understand yourself and recognize your own strengths and weaknesses, the more effective you can be as a leader. Do you know how other people view you and understand how you show up at work and at home? Take the time to learn about the 4 aspects of self-awareness and how to strengthen each component.

Treating people with respect on a daily basis is one of the most important things a leader can do. It helps ease tensions and conflict, fosters trust, and improves your effectiveness.  Creating a culture of respect  is about more than just the absence of disrespect. Respectfulness can be shown in many different ways, but it often starts with showing you truly value others’ perspectives and making an effort to build belonging in the workplace — both critical components of supporting equity, diversity, and inclusion.

3. Compassion

Compassion is one of the most powerful and important acts of leadership. It’s more than simply showing empathy or even listening and seeking to understand — as compassion requires leaders to act on what they learn. After someone shares a concern or speaks up about something, they won’t feel truly heard if their leader doesn’t then take some type of meaningful action on the information, our researchers have found. This is the core of compassionate leadership , and it helps to build trust, increase collaboration, and decrease turnover across organizations.

Motivating others and garnering commitment are essential parts of leadership. Purpose-driven leaders ensure they connect their team’s daily tasks and the values of individual team members to the overall direction of the organization. This can help employees find meaning in their work — which increases engagement, inspires trust, and drives priorities forward. You’ll want to communicate the vision in ways that help others understand it, remember it, and go on to share it themselves.

5. Communication

Effective leadership and effective communication are intertwined . The best leaders are skilled communicators who can communicate in a variety of ways, from transmitting information and storytelling to soliciting input and using active listening techniques . They can communicate well both orally and in writing, and with a wide range of people from different backgrounds, roles, levels, geographies, and more. The quality and effectiveness of communication among leaders at your organization will directly affect the success of your business strategy, too.

6. Learning Agility

Learning agility is the ability to know what to do when you don’t know what to do. If you’re a “quick study” or are able to excel in unfamiliar circumstances, you might already be learning agile. But anybody can foster and increase learning agility through intentional practice and effort. After all, great leaders are really great learners.

7. Collaboration

The most effective leaders can work with a variety of colleagues of different social identities , locations, roles, and experiences. As the world has become more complex and interconnected, good leaders find themselves spanning boundaries and learning to work across various types of divides and organizational silos. When leaders value and embrace collaboration, whether within their teams or cross-functionally, several benefits arise — including increased innovation, higher-performing teams, and a more engaged and empowered workforce.

8. Influence

For some people, “influence” may sound unseemly. But as a leader, you must be able to influence others to get the work done — you cannot do it all alone. Being able to persuade people through thoughtful use of appropriate influencing tactics is an important trait of inspiring, effective leaders. Influence is quite different from manipulation, and it needs to be done authentically and transparently. It requires high levels of emotional intelligence and trust.

9. Integrity

Integrity is an essential leadership trait for the individual and the organization. It’s especially important for top-level executives who are charting the organization’s course and making countless other significant decisions. Our research has found that leader integrity is a potential blind spot for organizations , so make sure you reinforce the importance of honesty and integrity to managers at all levels.

10. Courage

It can be hard to speak up at work, whether you want to voice a new idea, provide feedback to a direct report, or flag a concern for someone above you. That’s part of the reason courage is a key leadership trait — it takes courage to do what’s right! Leaders who promote high levels of psychological safety in the workplace enable their people to speak up freely and share candid concerns without fear of repercussions. This fosters a  coaching culture that supports courage and truth-telling . Courage enables both team members and leaders to take bold actions that move things in the right direction.

11. Gratitude

Being thankful can lead to higher self-esteem, reduced depression and anxiety, and better sleep. Sincere gratitude can even make you a better leader. Yet few people regularly say “thank you” in work settings, even though most people say they’d be willing to work harder for an appreciative boss. The best leaders know how to show frequent gratitude in the workplace .

12. Resilience

Resilience is more than the ability to bounce back from obstacles and setbacks — it’s the ability to respond adaptively to challenges. Practicing resilient leadership means you’ll project a positive outlook that will help others maintain the emotional strength they need to commit to a shared vision, and the courage to move forward and overcome setbacks. A good leader focuses on resilience, both taking care of themselves and also prioritizing leading employee wellbeing , too — thereby enabling better performance for themselves and their teams.

Download a PDF action guide and summary of these characteristics of a good leader, so you always have a visual reminder available of these 12 qualities of good leadership.

Develop the Characteristics of a Good Leader in Yourself & Others

Our 3 core beliefs about leadership & leadership development.

At the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL)®, we’ve been researching the qualities of a good leader and the role of leadership for over 5 decades. Here are 3 of our core beliefs about good leaders and effective leadership.

Good leaders are made, not born.

First, we believe that leaders are made, not born. Put another way, leadership is a skill that can be developed . Good leaders are molded through experience, continued study, intentional effort, and adaptation. So you can strengthen any of these 12 characteristics of a good leader, if you’re open to growth, use your experiences to fuel development , and put in the time and effort toward self-improvement.

Similarly, organizations can help their people hone these top leadership qualities by providing ample opportunities for training, offering support for learning from challenges, and providing access to coaching and mentoring programs .

Leadership is a social process.

It’s also essential to recognize that  leadership is less about one strong or charismatic individual, and more about a group of people working collectively to achieve results together . If you demonstrate several of the characteristics of a good leader, but fail to grasp this key point, chances are you won’t get very far on your own. You may be well-liked and respected, but it will be challenging to accomplish team or organizational goals. At CCL, we like to say that the  outcomes of leadership are about creating direction, alignment, and commitment, or DAC , within a group.

Good leadership never stops.

Also, we believe that leadership isn’t a destination, it’s a journey   — it’s something that you’ll have to work at regularly throughout your career, regardless of what level you reach in your organization or what industry you work in. Different teams, projects, and situations will provide different challenges and require different leadership qualities and competencies to succeed. So you will need to be able to continue to apply these leadership characteristics in different ways throughout your career. Just continually keep learning and growing, and you’ll be an agile learner with a long career .

We Can Help You Develop the Qualities of a Good Leader

Organizations can strengthen leadership qualities and foster deeper levels of engagement at work through providing a variety of on-the-job learning experiences, mentoring, and formal development opportunities. At CCL, we have many award-winning leadership solutions with clients around the world, and we’d be honored to work with you and your organization as well.

But individuals don’t have to wait to begin strengthening these leadership characteristics within themselves. If you decide you want to work proactively on developing your leadership qualities and skills,  download our action guide & visual summary  of this content. And get our tips on how to  convince your boss to make an investment in you  and your future. We’re here to support you every step of the way on your journey to becoming a better leader!

Ready to Take the Next Step?

After you download the 12 Characteristics of a Good Leader , keep on learning and growing: never miss our exclusive leadership insights and tips — subscribe to our newsletters to get our research-based articles, webinars, resources, and guides delivered straight to your inbox. 

Keep these qualities of a good leader top of mind in the future: download a PDF summary of this article as an action guide and visual reminder of the leadership qualities to nurture in yourself, on your team, and at your organization in the future.

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Based on Research by

With over a decade of experience in education, Micela provides internal research and evaluation support to build our capacity as a provider of evidence-based leadership solutions in the field of education. She is particularly interested in youth leadership development, using research and evaluation to help improve program implementation, and the role of trust as a critical ingredient for organizational change. She has also co-authored 2 books on youth leadership development: Social-Emotional Leadership: A Guide for Youth Development and Building Bridges: Leadership for You and Me .

Stephanie is a researcher with a background in developmental and educational psychology. Her research at CCL focused primarily on promoting equitable and inclusive organizational cultures, exploring collective leadership through networks, and enhancing motivation and empowerment for leaders across their professional journeys.

Table of Contents

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What to explore next.

With over 30 pages of insights gleaned from our research, this collection of resources includes actionable tips and team discussion questions to help you become a (better) leader with a focus on compassion, wellbeing, and belonging.

This introduction to our leadership philosophy explains how direction, alignment, and commitment (the elements of our DAC framework) are key in how leadership works, connecting exponential potential with collective progress.

Want to set yourself apart as a leader? Arm yourself with these 6 essential skills. Our global research study found that organizations will need these 6 key qualities that their leaders presently lack.

Do you know how to effectively communicate at work? It's the core of everything we do, and yet many of us have significant room for improvement. Get our top tips for leaders.

Stepping into a management role requires a fundamental shift of identity. Learn how to be an effective boss and succeed in your new role with our leadership tips for first-time managers.

Related Solutions

Learn more about our flagship Leadership Development Program (LDP)®, the most widely known and longest-running leadership development training in the world.

Professional leadership coaching deepens and sustains leadership development. Learn more about our world-class leadership coaching services.

Learn more about our leadership training courses, which are targeted to develop the skills leaders need to succeed at all levels of your organization.

At the Center for Creative Leadership, our drive to create a ripple effect of positive change underpins everything we do. For 50+ years, we've pioneered leadership development solutions for everyone from frontline workers to global CEOs. Consistently ranked among the world's top providers of executive education, our research-based programs and solutions inspire individuals in organizations across the world — including 2/3 of the Fortune 1000 — to ignite remarkable transformations.

Essay on Qualities Of A Good Leader

Students are often asked to write an essay on Qualities Of A Good Leader in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Qualities Of A Good Leader

Introduction.

Leadership is a special quality that not everyone possesses. A good leader guides others towards success. There are certain qualities that set these leaders apart. This essay will talk about those qualities.

Good Communicator

Leaders need to express their thoughts clearly. They should be good listeners too. This helps them understand their team better. It also ensures that everyone knows their role and goals.

Honesty and Integrity

Honest leaders earn respect. They always tell the truth and keep their promises. This builds trust within the team. Also, they lead by example, showing the right path to their team.

Ability to Inspire

In conclusion, a good leader has many qualities. They are confident, good communicators, honest, and inspiring. These qualities help them guide their team towards success.

250 Words Essay on Qualities Of A Good Leader

What makes a good leader.

A good leader is like a captain of a ship. They guide their team towards their goals, just like a captain guides a ship to its destination. But what makes a good leader? Let’s find out.

A good leader is always confident. They believe in themselves and their team. This confidence helps the team feel secure and motivated. It’s like a football team captain who is sure they will win. This makes the team play better.

Honesty is another important quality. A good leader is always truthful. They do not hide things from their team. This makes the team trust the leader. Like a teacher who is honest about a student’s performance, it helps the student improve.

A good leader knows how to talk and listen well. They explain things clearly. They also listen to their team’s ideas. This makes the team feel valued. Like a good friend who listens to you, it makes you feel important.

Decision Making

Lastly, a good leader respects their team. They value everyone’s work. Like a parent who respects their child’s efforts, it makes the child feel proud.

In conclusion, a good leader is confident, honest, a good communicator, a good decision maker, and respectful. These are the qualities that make a leader someone others want to follow.

500 Words Essay on Qualities Of A Good Leader

Leadership is a vital role in any team, whether it’s a sports team, a class project, or a big company. A good leader can guide a group to achieve great things. But what makes a good leader? Let’s explore some key traits that every great leader should have.

Good Communication

Confidence is another important quality. A confident leader can make decisions quickly and stand by them. This doesn’t mean they are always right, but they are not afraid to make tough choices. They also inspire confidence in their team, helping them feel secure and motivated.

Responsibility

Respect is a two-way street. A good leader respects their team members and earns their respect in return. They value everyone’s ideas and contributions, no matter how big or small. This creates a positive environment where everyone feels important.

Inspiration

Lastly, a good leader inspires their team. They set a good example with their hard work and dedication. They also encourage their team to reach their full potential. This can be done through positive feedback, recognition, and supporting their team’s growth and learning.

In conclusion, a good leader has many qualities. They communicate well, are confident, take responsibility, respect others, and inspire their team. These qualities help them guide their team to success. So, if you want to be a good leader, start developing these qualities today. Remember, leadership is not about being in charge, it’s about taking care of those in your charge.

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Home — Essay Samples — Life — Leader — The Key Characteristics of a Good Leader

The Key Characteristics of a Good Leader

• Categories: Character Leader

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Published: Mar 6, 2024

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Traits of a Successful Leader Essay

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Introduction

Moral courage, sense of priority, focus and disposal, communication, lessons learned from the failure of king/drew medical center, works cited.

Leadership is one of the essential personal factors for succeeding in the business or any other occupation. Improving leadership skills enables a person to career advancements and recognition. There are several personal qualities, which have been identified that a successful leader possesses. Following is a brief discussion on some of these traits.

The courage to pursue those acts, which one believes to be correct even against severe criticisms, is the first quality that a leader should possess to be successful. This quality inspires the followers and makes the leader a great personality in the minds of the followers. Mahatma Gandhi is one of the great leaders who showed considerable moral courage to hold on to his policies and this made him a great person of the century. Consistency in showing courage is very important to garner success.

Successful leaders develop the quality of making precise judgments through their interaction with other people and use of intelligence. By asking questions to several other people and listening to their answers, a leader develops the trait of making better judgments.

There will arise a large number of issues while managing a business and lead people. The successful leader normally prioritize the issues, brushes the minor issues and focuses on the major issues which needs an immediate solution. Leader will first attend to such issues that have a huge impact on the development of the business (Johnson).

Staying focused is one of the important traits that a successful leader should develop. Efficient allocation of time and energy among various competing issues brings success to a leader. Conserving energy could help a leader to tackle serious issues with vigor and strength. Winston Churchill can be cited as an example, who possessed this exemplary trait of a successful leader.

Humor must have a place in the essential qualities of a successful leader. Lightness can always help to improve grim situations. Having a sense of humor does not indicate lack of professionalism on the part of the leader.

Ability to communicate effectively is an important attribute to create a successful leader. On all occasions, the leader should be able to convey his ideas and directions precisely to the followers so that he can expect them to act in the way he wants them to act (Donadio).

The lack of leadership at the King/Drew Medical Center led to the failure to maintain the prescribed standards for getting accreditation for the medical center. This has also affected the funding for the medical center. The Medical Center lacked in providing better treatment to the patients since its inception. There were problems identified by the Federal authorities during inspection in several areas including nursing, quality control and hospital’s governing body.

This clearly shows the lack of leadership to coordinate important issues connected with the running of the medical center (Leonard). There were several professionals and physicians left the services of the hospital on their own volition or on disciplinary proceedings. This implies that there was no leadership to direct the functions of the medical center towards success. The lack of leadership in the hospital led to the termination of the Federal funding to the extent of $ 200 million and this forced the closure of the hospital. The large facility created to cater to the needs primarily for the black neighborhood could not be run successfully due to lack of leadership.

Donadio, Patric. Traits Successful Leader Possesses. 2005. Web.

Johnson, Paul. Five Marks of a Great Leader. 2005. Web.

Leonard, Jack. “King-Harbor Inspection Report Released.” News Paper Article. 2007.

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IvyPanda. (2022, March 4). Traits of a Successful Leader. https://ivypanda.com/essays/traits-of-a-successful-leader/

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1. IvyPanda . "Traits of a Successful Leader." March 4, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/traits-of-a-successful-leader/.

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IvyPanda . "Traits of a Successful Leader." March 4, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/traits-of-a-successful-leader/.

What are the characteristics of a good leader – Infographic

• How to Create Your Leader Operating System
• Uncover Hidden Leadership Potential in These 4 Unexpected Places

(from leadingeffectively.com)—Leaders shape our nation, communities, and organizations. We are in need of good leaders to help guide us and make the essential large-scale decisions that keep the world moving. Our society is always quick to identify a bad leader, but can most people identify a good one?   What would most people say makes a good leader?

In our infographic below, I wanted to tackle (as best I could) a complex and often controversial question: What are the characteristics of a good leader? This question kept appearing in my initial investigation into a potential topic for the infographic. In this preliminary research, I wanted to cover up-to-date topics surrounding the field of leadership in the US that correlate with the subject matter of  Norwich University’s Master of Science in Leadership Program .

After examining the resources available across the web, I settled on a handful of informative articles from sites such as The Harvard Business Review and Forbes. With the help of these key publications, along with assistance from university staff, we determined that we should spearhead one of the hardest questions to answer: what makes an effective leader?  Not only that, but how do you become an effective leader?  Our goal with this infographic was provide a resource that compiles these questions into one place so that current and future leaders will find it both interesting and educational.

While there are many forms of leadership that each come with a slew of personality traits, we determined, through research and university feedback, a list of ten consistent traits that great leaders leverage. These include:

• ability to delegate
• communication
• sense of humor
• positive attitude
• ability to inspire

We must keep in mind that there are many powerful and successful leaders that have not exhibited all of these character traits and that the definition of a good leader is quite ambiguous.   It can be determined, however, that most good leaders do leverage most of these characteristics.  Take someone you view as a great leader – how many of these characteristics do they express? If the characteristics of a good leader above do not describe you, there are ways for you to improve upon your leadership capabilities.  Many say leaders are born not made, but we feel that is far from the truth.  They are molded through experience, continued study, and adaptation.   Andrew Graham, CEO of Forum Corp, notes “If you do not see these signs in yourself, fear not – It is all about getting yourself in a better frame of mind and looking at the bigger picture to get your over the neurological hurdles that hold you back from being a great leader.”

Like any craft, you must learn from your mistakes and continually work at strengthening areas in which you’re weak.  My advice: seek out a mentor that you admire as a leader.  Jot down the characteristics that you feel makes them a great leader – how do you compare?  Chances are they weren’t always a great leader, so it’s your job to determine what they did along the way to be the leader they are today.

The Association for Talent Development (ATD) is a professional membership organization supporting those who develop the knowledge and skills of employees in organizations around the world. The ATD Staff, along with a worldwide network of volunteers work to empower professionals to develop talent in the workplace.