Those who know and enjoy golf get a tremendous pleasure from watching Tiger Woods swing the club. Louis Armstrong had a riveting and unique style of playing the trumpet, even as a young man, and no one could have mistaken his playing for that of Miles Davis. Listen to almost any composition by Mozart and you can tell who wrote it.

Painters, musicians, composers, carpenters, architects, cooks, barbers — in any endeavor, accomplished people have some degree of personal style.

Leading with Style

Those who are good at what they do, who lead in whatever form it takes, adapt the techniques they've learned and available materials to perform the tasks at hand in a way that is distinctly their own. Heredities, upbringings, backgrounds, inclinations, personalities, and tastes all influence how they do what they do. They all have personal styles.

Style has a number of meanings, and one is a conscious approach to life choices. Eavesdrop on teenagers, and you'll often find them expressing such a style in their speech, dress, and behavior. Though often arbitrary and an imitation of patterns set by large corporations trying to sell their wares, this style is an early attempt to find a personal way to interact with the world. The expression may be off, but the impulse is vital.

You're Always There

As the old saying notes, no matter where you go, you always bring yourself along. No matter what the situation, the goal, or the other people involved, the one constant when you are a leader is you. Your heritage, psychology, strengths, and weaknesses will meet any challenges or demands. As you grasp the essence of leadership, your self will always come though. You will have a personal style because, given human nature, there is absolutely no way that you can't have one.

It is sometimes, though not always, helpful to follow company guidelines and stay within the corporate structure. Chances are good that you've seen or known people who have tried to forgo their own style and adopt one imposed from the powers that be. These clones become the cookie-cutter managers, the manufactured citizens who talk and act in given ways because they are looking for acceptance and a minimum of personal responsibility. But in suppressing themselves, they reduce or eliminate their true ability to contribute.

If you want to be a good leader, you must find how your personal idiosyncrasies will affect your efforts. The only place to start is with some self-knowledge of a practical sort. Evaluate how your achievements are affected by what you do and who you are.

Taking a Personal Inventory

Now is the time to go through the leadership assessment chart in Appendix A and answer the questions as accurately as you can. Although there are points and an overall result, the total at the end won't give you “the answer.”

The whole point of completing the chart is to give yourself the time and even the excuse to take stock in an honest manner. No one else cares about how you do, and you are the only one who will have any real stake in changing how you act. So relentlessly look for the truth. It is the only way to gain from the exercise and start moving in the right direction.

Use this as a tool for active reflection. You will get a score at the end, but it won't be an easy answer. The same score can mean different things for different people. Two people might need to do similar amounts of work but in different areas. Or they might have similar needs but require different approaches because of their varying circumstances. The more you know about how you approach leadership, the more you'll know about what tools and approaches will best fit your strengths and where you need to improve your efforts.