MODERN LEADERSHIP
Five virtues of
effective leadership
By Anthony Howard
O
utstanding leadership is
founded and grounded in
human virtue. That may seem
like a bold statement, since it would
be easy to assume that the keys to
leadership lie perhaps in strategic
agility, or commercial acumen, or
superior people skills.
Humility
You are probably familiar with Jim
Collins’ groundbreaking research
in Good to Great where he noted
that humility was one of the keys to
great leadership.
In a recent conversation a leader
I have known for some time was
attributed his success to humility.
“The humble person,” he told me,
“doesn’t exist for themselves. They
realise they don’t know all the
answers and they are prepared to
learn.”
I observed the same thing in Major
General Andy Salmon, former head
of the British Royal Marines, who
surprised me when he mentioned
that humility is an important
aspect of ‘commando culture’. If
you are anything like me you may
be surprised to hear humility and
military used in the same sentence.
But as the General pointed out,
‘Commandos need humility so they
can learn from their mistakes. Ego
and prima donnas don’t belong. As
a part of our culture we practise
“Team first, buddy second and self
last”. In order to be humble and lose
your ego, you have to lose yourself.’
five key leadership virtues.
Humility is perhaps the key
leadership virtue. It enables you to
listen to others, listen to feedback,
and appreciate that you do not have
all the answers. It works in harmony
with what the ancient Greeks called
the ‘cardinal’ virtues: practical
wisdom, justice, temperance (we
could call this self-control), and
courage. Together these make the
You can learn, for example, to be
generous, to be patient, to be caring
— by being generous, patient and
caring in little moments when the
opportunity arises. Over time you
become a generous, patient and
caring person.
What is a virtue?
A virtue is a good habit you acquire
through repeated practice. In
addition to the cardinal virtues
there are long lists of what are
called ‘moral’ virtu