In a classic study on motivation, Professor Frederick Herzberg found that the number one factor contributing to extreme job satisfaction was personal achievement (number two was recognition). People want to achieve. They want to set goals and reach them. Tap into this natural wellspring of motivation.

The key indicators of charisma included the following behaviors:

• Inspires employees, communicates, and implements the vision well

• Acts as a role model and walks the talk

• Is sensitive to the cultural norms of the organizations

• Recognizes employees for their accomplishments, giving credit where it is due

• Uses emotional communication effectively

• Is good at identifying and nurturing employees’ potential

• In addition, the leaders also completed assessments of their own social and emotional skills.

People desire and thrive on jobs that give them control over their own decisions. Since the 1980s, management literature has been filled with instructions for how to delegate more and “empower employees to empower themselves.” The thinking is exactly what we’ve heard from Paolo. The more people are given control over their own projects, the more ownership they feel, and the more motivated they are to do their best work. Telling employees what to do is so old-fashioned, it leads to screams of “micromanager!” “dictator!” and “autocrat!

Much to their surprise, Google discovered that the behavior of the leader does significantly matter in both the productivity of the team and the well-being of the team members. Google found that leaders from the most successful, highly rated teams all shared three common behaviors:

• COACHING: A good leader takes the time to meet with each person on the team and act as a coach, which involves both building trust with and also challenging each team member. A good leader demonstrates real care for each person and for their career development.

• EMPOWERMENT: A good leader empowers the team and avoids micromanaging — guiding and supporting the team, trusting the team to do what’s required, and providing the team with a good deal of freedom. A good leader seeks the balance of providing what the team needs to succeed while being careful to not frustrate or get in the way of the team’s functioning by managing too closely.

• LISTENING: A good leader creates an inclusive environment and shows concern for both success and well-being by listening to each team member. A good leader brings awareness to any inherent tensions between the team’s success, the company’s success, and the individual’s well-being and finds ways to resolve them and support success on all levels.

We conducted a study that corroborated the importance of leading through influence. We examined individual assessments of the leadership capabilities of 235 candidates in 75 CEO succession processes that were conducted over the course of a decade. We then focused on the 47 CEOs selected out of that pool to lead public companies, which meant good data was available on company performance. Next, we examined correlations between leadership skills and company performance, as measured by shareholder return, operating margins, and revenue growth. This data was complemented by in-depth interviews with CEOs and candidates about their approach to leadership. Analysis of how different leadership styles matched with performance showed that the highest performers were the most accomplished in influencing through empowerment. This is not to say that the directive style of leadership is never appropriate. Some situations call for it, for example, crisis management. But, generally, the best results come from leading through empowering others.