“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” 

-John Maxwell

Up to this point, we’ve discussed the 11 Leadership principles that the Marine Corps teaches to its new leaders, so now we’re going to discuss the individual traits that leaders should hold near and dear to their hearts. Adapting these traits into your leadership style should help you stand above the crowd as a leader. In the next few episodes, I'm going to briefly discuss three traits at a time and how they can help elevate your leadership game, starting with the traits Bearing, Courage, and Decisiveness.

Bearing

• • What is bearing? 
    • Bearing is the way you conduct and carry yourself as a professional. Your mannerisms should reflect alertness to your surroundings, competence in your field, confidence in your decisions, and control of your reactions to different influences affecting you. Basically, don’t let outside influences dictate how you carry yourself as a leader. Make sound decisions based on the variables in your surroundings and execute with confidence.
    • Bearing begins with confidence. How do I build confidence? Simple, DO things that require confidence. Try something new, ask that boy or girl out on a date that you’ve had your eye on, don’t second guess your decisions. Only by doing things that require confidence in yourself can you truly build confidence. Confidence is really just trying something, seeing how it works out, and eliminating your fear of it. Work on building your confidence and you will ultimately project that confidence to the people around you. Confidence builds command presence which in turn builds professional bearing. Don’t act with haste or be irrational. 
• Courage
  • What is courage?
    • There are those that would say that courage is the absence of fear. I’ve heard that several times before, as I’ve also heard the following: courage is NOT the absence of fear, it is the mastery of it. Courage is encountering something that you’re afraid of, but tackling it anyway because of the deep rooted sense of duty that you hold in your heart. 
    • As a leader, we must all, at times, act with courage. In the book, The Heart of Leadership by Mark Miller, the A in HEART means to Act with Courage. Leaders are faced with situations every single day that require hard decisions.
  • How do I build courage?
    • Courage and confidence can go hand-in-hand. Build one and you will ultimately build the other. However, not having confidence in yourself doesn’t mean you can’t have courage. Building confidence in yourself and your abilities as a leader starts by acting with courage. 
• Decisiveness
  • What is decisiveness?
    • In the episode, Making Sound and Timely Decisions, I harp on this very trait quite a bit. Decisiveness is the ability to make decisions in a timely and efficient manner. As I’ve stated before, however, making NO decision is still making a decision…you’re choosing not to make a decision.
    • Leaders are faced with decisions every single day. 
    • A great tool for aiding in decision making is the OODA loop. Created by Air Force fighter pilot, John Boyd. It stands for Observe, Orient, Decide, Act.
      • Observe your surroundings
      • Orient yourself so that you’re in the best position possible
      • Decide on what you’re going to do
      • Act on your decision with courage and confidence. Don’t second guess yourself! 

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