Anticipate summary

We now know that great vision necessitates both a logical and an emotional side. But there is one more principle that Aristotle describes: Ethos, the personal credibility of the leader. So what makes ethos vital in leadership?

People often don’t like the idea of change, which can make a leader’s task of gaining their trust quite tough. In fact, unless they display personal integrity, they’ll have a hard time gaining any trust at all.

Rationality, emotions and credibility are what make a great vision. But a great vision is of no use if leaders don’t have the skills to act upon it quickly.

Imagine your vision existing along a timeline between two points. The first is the point of surprise, which is when you discover a new and original idea. The second is the point of no return, when everyone has figured out that same idea and you lose your competitive advantage.  

Making your vision concrete will keep you on track as you work toward it. But this certainly doesn’t mean that you should stick to it uncompromisingly.

Consider the story of Alan Greenspan, one of the most vocal advocates for financial deregulation and free markets. As the chairman of the US Federal Reserve from 1987 to 2006, his desire to create a booming free-market economy led to a drop in interest rates in 2004.

As we learned in the second blink, a visionary leader must be credible, or, in other words, possess ethos. In this blink we’ll investigate this principle further, in order to find out what it really means to walk the talk as a leader.

Would you follow a leader who says one thing and does another? Of course not – you wouldn’t support someone’s strategy if it’s clear that they themselves don’t believe in it. As a leader, it’s vital that you reflect authenticity. You can achieve this by communicating a love for what you do in each of your actions.

Despite common perceptions, leadership isn’t just something that you’re born with. As we’ve seen, it comprises many different elements, and is based on skills that we can practice. Two of these skills are particularly important in developing leadership abilities.

Learning to listen is the first of these techniques, and it applies a skill that we often undervalue. Think about it: How often do you jump in to express your own opinion when listening to someone else’s? This is no way to build supportive relationships!

With a well-rounded vision and solid interpersonal skills, you’re well on your way to becoming an effective leader. But there’s still one more skill you’ll need to practice: communication.

Any leader should be able to communicate the core of his vision in two to three minutes, tops. And that’s without the help of a slide-based presentation! Being as succinct as possible will demonstrate your clarity of thought to your audience, and will impress them too.