5 Tips for Managing with Confidence

Are You Cocky or Cool? 5 Tips for Managing with Confidence

If you’ve seen Clint Eastwood in any of his successful film roles, you can identify his most powerful trait: confidence. Eastwood’s low-key approach to bad-guy-busting overshadows the swagger and high heroics of other Hollywood he-men – his confidence prevails every time.

What does it take to be a truly confident leader in today’s business world?

5 Traits of Truly Confident Workplace Leaders:

1. Discovers answers. Confident managers don’t bump other opinions aside in the belief they’re always right. Good leaders take pride in discovering the right answer, not who was right or wrong. They also are the first to acknowledge they aren’t perfect!
   
2. Takes responsibility. One mark of a confident leader is that he or she doesn’t use someone’s mistakes to burnish their own reputation. Buck-passing and finger-pointing never solved any problems. This kind of bullying undermines authority and creates a toxic workplace. Dale Carnegie’s Principle 12: If you are wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically.
   
3. Re-directs the spotlight. The most-confident leaders actively shift the spotlight of success onto the team or another individual. Confident managers don’t need to be patted on the head. They know the superior performance of their people reflects brightly on them.
   
4. Seeks learning opportunities. Some leaders fear that asking for help makes them appear inadequate. Not so for confident leaders. They see it as an opportunity to learn something new -- and to admit they’re willing to learn, without lingering over the small stuff.
   
5. Listens more. Dale Carnegie encouraged people to be good listeners. Top managers know there’s more to be learned by listening to people and asking open-ended questions: What do you think we should do? Why do you think that? Is there a better idea or solution?