What Does it Take to Succeed?

Probably the best, and most accurate, answer is, It depends. There may be common traits, competencies or behaviors among successful leaders. But what may actually work for you, in particular, will depend on who you are, what you prefer, and what aims and challenges you face.

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Jack and Suzy Welch offer three qualities, in their LinkedIn article What it Really Takes to Succeed:

We’re not saying that authenticity is the only quality you need for professional advancement. Everyone knows that to succeed in today’s competitive global marketplace, you also have to be smart, curious, and highly collaborative. You have to be able to work with diverse teams and ignite them as a manager to excel together. You need heaps of positive energy, the guts to make tough yes-or-no decisions, and the endurance to execute—get the job done. And, indeed, you do have to possess self-confidence and humility at the same time. That combination is called maturity. 

We would also add two other qualities to the must-have list. One is heavy-duty resilience, a requirement because anyone who is really in the game messes up at some point. You’re not playing hard enough if you don’t! But when your turn comes, don’t make the all-too-human mistake of thinking getting ahead is about minimizing what happened. The most successful people in any new job always own their failures, learn from them, regroup, and then start again with renewed speed, vigor, and conviction. 

The other quality we’d mention is really special but quite rare: the ability to see around corners, to anticipate the radically unexpected. Now, practically no one starts their career with a sixth sense for market changes. It takes time to get a feel for what competitors are thinking and what product or service customers will eventually want - once they know it exists. But the bottom line is, the sooner you develop this acumen, and the more you hone it, the farther you will go.  [emphasis added]

I'd argue that each of us cannot help but be ourselves, that is, to be authentic.  Some of us may feign a certain personality with others, for example, caring and patient, when we may be more self-absorbed and irritable in general.  If we can actually come across as caring and patient, then these are a part of our genuine personality.  But if we still lend an air of self-absorption and irritation, then that very effort to feign may in fact be a part of personality as well.

So to the Welchs' points, once we can take honest stock of our personality, the good and the bad both, then we can gain self-insight, clarify our purpose or aims, and decide what it is we want to do about our leadership.