Impactful leadership goes beyond performance metrics. Revenue growth, market share, and quarterly results matter, but they rarely tell the full story.
Our research at Leadership Worth Following shows that the executives people truly want to follow share one thing in common: character.
Great leaders understand that their influence extends beyond strategy and results. They shape culture, inspire loyalty, and set the tone for how people experience their work. Among many leadership traits, three stand out as essential for executives today: humility, gratitude, and forgiveness.
Character Over Capacity: A Shift in How Leaders Are Measured
For decades, organizations have measured leadership potential by two factors: capacity (intelligence, skills, abilities) and commitment (drive, energy, work ethic). However, our Worthy Leadership Model, grounded in decades of research, reveals a critical truth:
Capacity and commitment are necessary but not sufficient for a leader to be deemed worth following. Without character, leadership falls short. Intelligence and performance alone will not garner followership. Demonstrating character will.
The Worthy Leadership Model identifies three factors that must work together:
- Capacity – what a leader can do
- Commitment – what a leader cares about and wants to do
- Character – who a leader is and what a leader will do – especially when no one is watching
It is character that separates who people have to follow from who people want to follow. A leader with character, alongside capacity and commitment, not only achieves results but also inspires trust, respect, discretionary effort, and lasting impact.
This is why character is a foundational pillar of leadership worth following and why the qualities of humility, gratitude, and forgiveness are so vital for today’s executives.
1. Humility: The Courage to Be Real
Humility means acknowledging one’s own strengths as well as limitations and being open to feedback from peers and teams. It requires having a reasonable view of oneself and taking responsibility for mistakes without becoming defensive.
Research shows that leaders who own their mistakes build trust and psychological safety. Followers do not expect perfection; they want presence and honesty.
Why humility matters for executives:
- Builds credibility: Leaders who admit what they don’t know foster deeper trust.
- Drives collaboration: Humble leaders make space for others’ voices, sparking innovation.
- Increases resilience: Humble leaders adapt quickly, focus
edon solutions rather than protecting their image.
Practical ways to practice humility:
- Begin meetings by asking for input rather than sharing your own opinion first.
- Acknowledge when your team’s ideas led to a success, and do it publicly.
- Regularly seek out feedback from peers, direct reports, and even clients.
Humility is contagious. Executives who model it create organizations where trust runs deep and people feel valued.
2. Gratitude: A Catalyst for Engagement and Loyalty
Gratitude goes beyond a simple “thank you”, it is a daily practice. A grateful leader will inspire a positive future for the organization and its people. Gratitude is about leaders showing sincere appreciation to others for their contributions.
Leaders who create opportunities for others to receive credit for their work are more likely to inspire commitment within their team. Recognition is a strategic skill practiced by impactful leaders.
Why gratitude matters for executives:
- Boosts retention: Employees who feel recognized are far less likely to leave. Gratitude fosters loyalty.
- Increases performance: Neuroscience shows that gratitude activates reward pathways in the brain, boosting motivation and productivity.
- Improves leader wellbeing: Leaders who practice gratitude report less stress, better resilience, and stronger relationships.
Practical ways to practice gratitude:
- End each week by writing down three things your team accomplished and share them.
- Personalize recognition. A handwritten note or a specific acknowledgment carries more weight than a generic “good job.”
- Show gratitude upward and sideways, not just to direct reports. When executives thank peers, partners, and boards, they model appreciation across the organization.
Gratitude multiplies impact. For executives, it’s not just a personal quality, it’s a leadership strategy.
3. Forgiveness: Leadership Beyond the Ego
Forgiveness comes up in how leaders handle mistakes. Leaders with character seek to understand before judging motives or behaviors, and they resist taking personal offense, even in difficult or embarrassing situations.
Forgiveness also means apologizing when necessary and moving forward without resentment. Holding a grudge is easy; letting go requires courage. Leaders who practice forgiveness reduce fear-based culture and support healthy dynamics.
Why forgiveness matters for executives:
- Strengthens culture. Teams feel safe to take risks and admit mistakes when they see their leader practice forgiveness.
- Prevents toxicity. Resentment at the top spreads downward, but forgiveness clears it away.
- Encourages accountability. Paradoxically, forgiveness makes people more willing to own mistakes.
Practical ways to practice forgiveness:
- When mistakes happen, address them quickly, then shift the conversation to “What did we learn?”
- Resist the urge to label people by their failures. Separate performance issues from personal identity.
- Share stories of times when you made mistakes and were extended forgiveness, it models a growth mindset.
Forgiveness clears the path for progress. For executives, it turns setbacks into steppingstones for both people and the business.
The Path to Leadership Worth Following
In the end, true leadership is not measured by titles or quarterly results but by the trust and loyalty it inspires. Our research shows that while capacity and commitment matter, character has the greatest impact on followership.
Followership: Why People Choose to Follow Certain Leaders
The concept of “followership” is directly tied to perceptions of a leader’s character. Leaders will earn trust through consistent, value driven behavior. Leadership qualities like humility, gratitude, and forgiveness are key traits a leader must possess to create “worthy leadership”.
Followers grant leadership, it is not given.
A Call to Reflect and Recalibrate
Self-awareness is one of the greatest predictors of impactful leadership. The best leaders regularly pause to ask: How am I showing up? What impact am I having on my people? Am I building trust, or unintentionally eroding it?
Recalibrating as a leader means being willing to make real change:
- Acknowledging blind spots and seeking honest feedback.
- Practicing daily gratitude to remind yourself and your team of what is going right.
- Letting go of grudges and choosing to reset relationships.
By choosing to recalibrate with character, leaders create lasting impact that outlives results.
Invest in Leadership Solutions with LWF
At Leadership Worth Following, we partner with organizations to develop, and support leaders who are truly worth following.
If you are ready to strengthen your leadership team’s character, we are here to help.
Contact us today to build leadership worth following! Click here to schedule your free consultation, submit a contact form through our website, or send us an email at hello@worthyleadership.com.
Reference:
Grahek, Myranda & Thompson, A. & Toliver, Adria. (2010). The character to lead: A closer look at character in leadership. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research. 62. 270-290. 10.1037/a0022385.
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