You know a good leader when you see one.

They’re easy to spot – they communicate well, they’re trustworthy, people respond to them, and they get good results. There is more than one type of good leader and they may have many different styles, but most have some basic traits in common.

You also know a bad leader when you see one.

They lack self-awareness, are typically poor communicators, are inconsistent, and drive people crazy while failing to accomplish their goals. There are plenty of types of bad leaders. Their ineffectiveness is likely the result of leadership deficiencies in one or more critical areas.  

So, spotting a good or bad leader is easy. However, how do we learn to look a little deeper to understand why someone is or isn’t a good leader?

Being able to diagnose a leader’s type, strengths, and weaknesses is an important skill for several reasons. First, it gives perspective on how to identify, encourage, and develop good leaders. Second, it can help us avoid the damage from a bad leader and understand how to coach them to improve. And finally, if we know the basic components of effective leadership, we can assess ourselves to see where we have strengths to leverage and opportunities to grow.

With that in mind, and to give ourselves a simple model we can work with to assess leadership styles and characteristics, let’s take a look at three primary leadership profiles. We’ll call them Absent Leaders, Fake Leaders, and Real Leaders.

Absent Leaders

These are people who occupy leadership positions but are mostly lacking any real leadership skill, behavior, or ambition. They may have attained their leadership role through technical competence or tenure but do a poor job of transitioning to actual leadership responsibilities. They will avoid and retreat from challenging situations that involve conflict or interpersonal skills. They may be friendly and seek harmony but do so at the cost of results. Their inaction eventually exhausts and frustrates employees because they fail to provide guidance and don't achieve results. An absent leader would often be described as weak and ineffective.

Fake Leaders

Fake leaders superficially look like strong leaders. They actively seek leadership positions and won't hesitate to take charge. However, they have selfish motivations. They rely on titles and positional authority to validate their leadership. Their number one priority is self-advancement and they will shamelessly self-promote. They will often be viewed as arrogant and are not interested in feedback from others. These people will judge others and use force and intimidation to push their perspective. Fake leaders may initially have success in certain situations but they eventually alienate others and leave a trail of destruction in their wake. As you can see by this description, fake leaders are essentially self-serving bullies.

Real leaders

Real leaders are those who truly embrace the role of leadership and see leadership as a form of service to others. They are authentic, honest, and empathetic. They have a good degree of self-awareness and are constantly looking to learn. They avoid "or" choices in their leadership style and approach. They are fair and steady. They balance candor and respectfulness. They are positive and yet grounded. They value others but they also hold them accountable to commitments. They are motivated to succeed but also believe in investing in others. These leaders may be described as visionary or inspirational. While some people may naturally exhibit aspects of this style, achieving this type of leadership typically requires intentional planning and development.

Most people don’t fit 100% into any one of these categories. Even excellent leaders may exhibit some characteristics of absent and fake leaders while weak leaders may have some traits of a real leader. However, all leaders should strive to adopt the characteristics of a real leader for one key reason – real leaders will ultimately get the best results for themselves, their people, and their organizations.

Here is a handy chart you can use to take a closer look at how an Absent, Fake, and Real leader typically behave across 20 different leadership competencies.

Now that you’ve spent some time considering these three basic leadership profiles and behaviors, ask yourself the following questions and let us know your answers in the comments below:

• Consider examples of leaders you’ve known that have been ineffective. Which absent or fake leadership qualities did they exhibit? How did their leadership style affect others around them?
• Consider examples of leaders you know that have been very successful. What are some situations where you saw them demonstrate the skills and behaviors of a real leader? How did others react?
• How do you assess yourself against each of these behaviors? Do you mostly fit one of these profiles? If you catch yourself acting as absent or fake leader in one more areas, how might those behaviors be holding you back? What real leadership skills do you have that you can build on?

Remember – learning to become a world-class leader is a journey. There is no shame in admitting you have room to improve. In fact, a willingness to learn it is a sign of being a real leader. Look for opportunities to gather feedback, set a plan to work on your weaknesses, invest in your personal development, and seek the help of others who are willing to help you grow and thrive.

In future posts we’ll dive deeper into each of these areas to discuss specific strategies you can use to achieve your leadership goals. Receive our weekly posts by becoming a free Modern da Vinci Member today.