1. 10 Habits of Ultra-Likeable Leaders
If you wantto be a leaderwhompeople followwithabsolute conviction,youhave tobe a likable leader.Tyrantsand
curmudgeonswithbrilliantvisioncancommanda reluctantfollowingfora time,butitneverlasts. Theyburnpeople out
before theyevergettosee whatanyone istrulycapable of.
WhenI speakto smalleraudiences,Ioftenaskthemtodescribe the bestandworstleaderstheyhave everworkedfor.
People inevitablyignore innatecharacteristics(intelligence,extraversion,attractiveness,andsoon) and insteadfocuson
qualitiesthatare completelyunderthe leader'scontrol,suchasapproachability,humility,andpositivity.
These words,andotherslike them,describeleaderswhoare skilledinemotional intelligence.TalentSmartresearchdata
frommore thana millionpeople showsthatleaderswhopossessthese qualitiesaren'tjusthighlylikable,they
outperformthose whodon'tpossessthembyalarge margin.
Becominga more likable leaderiscompletelyunderyourcontrol,andit'sa matterof emotional intelligence (EQ).Unlike
innate,fixedcharacteristics,suchasyour intelligence (IQ),EQisa flexible skill thatyoucanimprove witheffort.
What followsare 10 keybehaviorsthatemotionallyintelligentleadersengage inthatmake themsolikable.
1. TheyForm Personal Connections
Evenin a crowdedroom,likable leadersmake peoplefeel like they're havingaone-on-one conversation,asif they're the
onlypersoninthe room that matters.And,forthat moment,theyare.Likable leaderscommunicate onaverypersonal,
emotional level.Theyneverforgetthatthere'saflesh-and-bloodhumanbeingstandinginfrontof them.
2. They're Approachable
You knowthose people whoonlyhave time foryouif youcan dosomethingforthem?Likable leaderstrulybelievethat
everyone,regardlessof rankor ability,isworththeirtime andattention.Theymake everyone feel valuablebecausethey
believethateveryoneisvaluable.
3. They're Humble
Fewthingskill likabilityasquicklyasarrogance.Likable leadersdon'tactas thoughthey're betterthanyoubecause they
don't thinkthatthey're betterthanyou.Ratherthan beinga source of prestige,theysee theirleadershippositionas
bringingthemadditionalaccountabilityforservingthose whofollow them.
4. They're Positive
Likable leadersalwaysmaintainapositive outlook,andthisshowsinhow theydescribe things.Theydon'thave togive a
presentationtothe boardof directors;theygetto share theirvision andideaswiththe board.Theydon'thave to go on
a planttour; theygetto meetand visitwiththe people whomake theircompany'sproducts.Theydon'tevenhave to
diet;theygetto experience the benefitsof eatinghealthfully.Eveninundeniablynegativesituations,likableleaders
emanate anenthusiastichope forthe future,aconfidence thattheycanhelpmake tomorrow betterthantoday.
5. They're Even-Keeled
Whenit comesto theirownaccomplishmentsandfailures,likableleaderstake thingsinstride.Theydon'ttoottheir
ownhorns,nor do theygetrattledwhentheyblow it.Theysavorsuccesswithoutlettingitgototheirheads,andthey
readilyacknowledge failurewithoutgettingmiredinit.Theylearnfrombothand move on.

2. 6. They're Generous
We've all workedforsomeone whoconstantlyholdssomethingback,whetherit'sknowledge orresources.Theyactasif
they're afraidyou'll outshinethemif theygive youaccesstoeverythingyouneedtodoyourjob.Likable leadersare
unfailinglygenerouswithwhomtheyknow,whattheyknow,andthe resourcestheyhave accessto.Theywantyouto
do well more thananythingelse becausetheyunderstandthatthisistheirjobasa leaderandbecause they're confident
enoughtoneverworrythat your successmightmake themlookbad.Infact, theybelievethatyoursuccessistheir
success.
7. TheyDemonstrate Integrity
Likable leadersinspiretrustandadmirationthroughtheiractions,notjusttheirwords.Manyleaderssaythat integrityis
importantto them,butlikable leaderswalktheirtalkbydemonstratingintegrityeveryday.Evenaleaderwhooozes
charm won't be likable if thatcharmisn'tbackedby a solidfoundationof integrity.
8. TheyRead People Like A Book
Likable leadersknow howtoreadpeople asunspokencommunicationisoftenmore importantthanthe wordspeople
say.They note facial expressions,bodylanguage,andtone of voice inorderto getwhat's reallygoingonwiththeir
people.Inotherwords,theyhave highsocial awareness,acritical EQskill.
9. TheyAppreciate Potential
RobertBrault said,"Charismaisnotso much gettingpeopletolike youasgettingpeople tolike themselveswhenyou're
around."Likable leadersnotonlysee the bestintheirpeople,buttheyalsomake sure thateveryone elseseesittoo.
Theydraw outpeople'stalentssothateveryone isbetteringthemselvesandthe workat hand.
10. They Have Substance
Daniel Quinnsaid,"Charismaonlywinspeople'sattention.Once youhave theirattention,youhave tohave something
to tell them."Likable leadersunderstandthattheirknowledge andexpertise are critical tothe successof everyone who
followsthem.Therefore,theyregularlyconnectwithpeopletoshare theirsubstance (asopposedtosuperficial small
talk). Likable leadersdon'tpuff themselvesuporpretendtobe somethingthey're not,because theydon'thave to.They
have substance,andtheyshare itwiththeirpeople.
BringingItAll Together
Likabilityisn'tabirthright;itresultsfromacquirable skillsthatare crucial to your professional success.Andjustlike any
otherprofessionalskills,youcanstudythe people whohave them, copywhatworks,andadaptthemto your ownstyle.
Try these tenstrategiesandwatchyourlikabilitysoar