Brian Tracy believes that to be an effective leader, there are seven principles — the 7 Cs of Leadership — that must be incorporated into one’s leadership behaviour and activities.
1. Clarity:
This is perhaps your most important responsibility. You must be absolutely clear about who you are and what you stand for. You must be absolutely clear about your vision and where you want to lead your people. You must be absolutely clear about the goals and objectives of the organisation and how they are to be obtained.
Especially, you must be absolutely clear about the values, mission, and purpose of the organisation and what it stands for. Everyone around you and below you must know exactly why they are doing what they do and what their company has been formed to accomplish.
2. Competence:
As the leader, you must set a standard of excellent performance for the organisation as well as for every person and function in the company. Your goal must be for your company to be as good as, or better than, your very best competitor. You must continually seek ways to improve the quality of your products and services to your customers.
3. Commitment:
The leader is absolutely committed to the success of the organisation and believes completely that this organisation is the best in the business or will be the best in the future. This passionate commitment to the organisation—and to success and achievement—motivates and inspires people to do their best work and put their whole hearts into their jobs.
4. Constraints:
The job of the leader is to identify the constraints or limiting factors that set the speed at which the company achieves its most important goals of revenue and profitability. The leader then allocates people and resources to alleviate those constraints and remove the obstacles so it can perform as one of the best in the industry.
5. Creativity:
The leader is open to new ideas of all kinds and from all sources. The leader continually encourages people to find faster, better, cheaper, and easier ways to produce excellent products and services and to take better care of customers.
6. Continuous Learning:
The leader is personally committed to reading, listening, and upgrading his or her personal knowledge and skills as an executive. The leader should attend additional seminars and courses to improve his or her skills and abilities.
At the same time, the leader encourages everyone in the organisation to learn and grow as a normal and natural part of business life. The leader provides time and resources for training and development, knowing that the best companies have the best-trained people.
7. Consistency:
The leader has the self-discipline to be consistent, dependable, reliable, calm, and predictable in all situations. One of the great comforts of business life is for an employee to know that the leader is completely consistent and reliable. An effective leader does not change from day to day. Instead, the leader is calm, positive, and confident—especially under pressure.
The Inevitable Crisis
The only thing that is inevitable in the life of the leader is the crisis. When you rise to a position of leadership, you will experience crises repeatedly—crises that are unpredictable, unbidden, and often capable of seriously damaging the organisation.
It is in the crisis that leaders demonstrate their competence. In times of crisis, the leader becomes calm, cool, objective, and completely in control. The leader asks questions and gathers information, assesses the situation accurately, and makes whatever decisions are necessary to minimise damage or cut losses.
Great leaders discipline themselves to keep their fears and misgivings private. They do not share their concerns with their staffs, knowing that this can cause confusion and loss of morale. As far as the members of the organisation are concerned, the leader is always calm, positive, relaxed, and in complete control—no matter what is happening.
Self-Control and Leadership
There is a direct relationship between your ability to discipline yourself and your readiness to lead. It is only when you prove to others that you are in complete control of yourself that they develop confidence to put you in a leadership position—and keep you there.
The leader realises that everything they say to or about another person is magnified. They therefore praise and encourage people, both in their presence and when they are not around. They never say anything negative that could demotivate or offend another person.
Leadership Qualities
Leaders discipline themselves to plan, prepare, organise, and check every detail. They take nothing for granted and ask questions to ensure they have a complete understanding of a situation or problem.
Great leaders act as if they own the entire company. They accept personal responsibility, never complain, make excuses, or blame others. They are action-oriented—gathering information carefully and making necessary decisions.
Leaders rise to the top as cream rises in milk. When you accept complete responsibility for getting results, focus on your most important tasks, continually upgrade your skills, and treat people with kindness and consideration, you will emerge as a natural leader.
Time Management
There is perhaps no area of your life where self-discipline is more important than in the way you manage your time. Time management is life management—management of yourself rather than time or circumstances.
Time is perishable; it cannot be saved. Time is irreplaceable; nothing else will do. Time is irretrievable; once it is gone or wasted, you can never get it back. Finally, time is indispensable for any accomplishment.
The fact is that you cannot save time; you can only spend it differently. You can only reallocate your time usage from areas of low value to areas of high value. Herein lies the key to success—and the requirement for self-discipline.
Seven Principles of Leadership
Brian Tracy believes that to be an effective leader, there are seven principles — the 7 Cs of Leadership — that must be incorporated into one’s leadership behaviour and activities.
1. Clarity:
This is perhaps your most important responsibility. You must be absolutely clear about who you are and what you stand for. You must be absolutely clear about your vision and where you want to lead your people. You must be absolutely clear about the goals and objectives of the organisation and how they are to be obtained.
Especially, you must be absolutely clear about the values, mission, and purpose of the organisation and what it stands for. Everyone around you and below you must know exactly why they are doing what they do and what their company has been formed to accomplish.
2. Competence:
As the leader, you must set a standard of excellent performance for the organisation as well as for every person and function in the company. Your goal must be for your company to be as good as, or better than, your very best competitor. You must continually seek ways to improve the quality of your products and services to your customers.
3. Commitment:
The leader is absolutely committed to the success of the organisation and believes completely that this organisation is the best in the business or will be the best in the future. This passionate commitment to the organisation—and to success and achievement—motivates and inspires people to do their best work and put their whole hearts into their jobs.
4. Constraints:
The job of the leader is to identify the constraints or limiting factors that set the speed at which the company achieves its most important goals of revenue and profitability. The leader then allocates people and resources to alleviate those constraints and remove the obstacles so it can perform as one of the best in the industry.
5. Creativity:
The leader is open to new ideas of all kinds and from all sources. The leader continually encourages people to find faster, better, cheaper, and easier ways to produce excellent products and services and to take better care of customers.
6. Continuous Learning:
The leader is personally committed to reading, listening, and upgrading his or her personal knowledge and skills as an executive. The leader should attend additional seminars and courses to improve his or her skills and abilities.
At the same time, the leader encourages everyone in the organisation to learn and grow as a normal and natural part of business life. The leader provides time and resources for training and development, knowing that the best companies have the best-trained people.
7. Consistency:
The leader has the self-discipline to be consistent, dependable, reliable, calm, and predictable in all situations. One of the great comforts of business life is for an employee to know that the leader is completely consistent and reliable. An effective leader does not change from day to day. Instead, the leader is calm, positive, and confident—especially under pressure
The Inevitable Crisis
The only thing that is inevitable in the life of the leader is the crisis. When you rise to a position of leadership, you will experience crises repeatedly—crises that are unpredictable, unbidden, and often capable of seriously damaging the organisation.
It is in the crisis that leaders demonstrate their competence. In times of crisis, the leader becomes calm, cool, objective, and completely in control. The leader asks questions and gathers information, assesses the situation accurately, and makes whatever decisions are necessary to minimise damage or cut losses.
Great leaders discipline themselves to keep their fears and misgivings private. They do not share their concerns with their staffs, knowing that this can cause confusion and loss of morale. As far as the members of the organisation are concerned, the leader is always calm, positive, relaxed, and in complete control—no matter what is happening.
Self-Control and Leadership
There is a direct relationship between your ability to discipline yourself and your readiness to lead. It is only when you prove to others that you are in complete control of yourself that they develop confidence to put you in a leadership position—and keep you there.
The leader realises that everything they say to or about another person is magnified. They therefore praise and encourage people, both in their presence and when they are not around. They never say anything negative that could demotivate or offend another person.
Leadership Qualities
Leaders discipline themselves to plan, prepare, organise, and check every detail. They take nothing for granted and ask questions to ensure they have a complete understanding of a situation or problem.
Great leaders act as if they own the entire company. They accept personal responsibility, never complain, make excuses, or blame others. They are action-oriented—gathering information carefully and making necessary decisions.
Leaders rise to the top as cream rises in milk. When you accept complete responsibility for getting results, focus on your most important tasks, continually upgrade your skills, and treat people with kindness and consideration, you will emerge as a natural leader.
Time Management
There is perhaps no area of your life where self-discipline is more important than in the way you manage your time. Time management is life management—management of yourself rather than time or circumstances.
Time is perishable; it cannot be saved. Time is irreplaceable; nothing else will do. Time is irretrievable; once it is gone or wasted, you can never get it back. Finally, time is indispensable for any accomplishment.
The fact is that you cannot save time; you can only spend it differently. You can only reallocate your time usage from areas of low value to areas of high value. Herein lies the key to success—and the requirement for self-discipline.
