Management Hero Lee Iacocca Speaks On Leadership

Lee Iacocca is a very impressive man.

As many may recall, he was responsible for the 1965 Mustang, a bold, well thought out and phenomenal success, one that saved Ford Motors. Others will certainly recall his entertaining and successful TV ads pitching his personal beliefs and selling lots of cars, or will remember his incredible campaign to convince Congress to guaranty billions of dollars of loans, saving Chrysler Motors from failure. Lee Iacocca did get the loan guarantee from the government.

The man is a very creative and very successful visionary business thinker–and leader – and is known as a man who speaks his mind, no matter the risk. Recently, he wrote a book called, Where Have All The Leaders Gone? in which he outlines his nine C’s of leadership. It’s his guide to the traits a successful leader must have. No one has them all, says Iacocca.

Curiosity: Listen to people outside the “Yes, sir.” crowd. Read voraciously.

Creative: Go out on a limb, manage change.

Communication Skills: You should be talking to everyone, even your enemies.

Character: Having the guts to do the right thing. If you don’t have character, the rest won’t do it.

Courage:  A commitment to sit down at the negotiation table and talk. If you’re a politician, courage means taking a position even when it will cost you votes.

Conviction: Fire in your belly. You have got to really want to get something done.

Charisma: The ability to inspire. People follow a leader that they trust.

Competence: Surround yourself with people who know what they are doing. Be a problem solver.

Common Sense: Develop your ability to reason.

The biggest ‘C’ is Crisis. Leadership is forged in times of crisis.

The book is excellent. Read it and learn from a very successful man, a powerful and competent leader. There are great lessons to learn from this most exceptional business leader.