Decoding The 4 C’s Of Leadership: What’s the biggest mistake in leadership? Arrogance? Self-interest? Acting too fast? Personally, I would say it’s being certain. Things change all the time. When we forget that, we become certain. And when we become certain, we forget to pay attention. Why bother? We’re certain. Being certain often gets leaders in serious trouble with their constituents whether their employees, shareholders, owners, or even voters.

My second choice is betraying trust. When you betray someone’s trust as a leader, the rest doesn’t matter.

As a leader you can’t afford to commit any of the mistakes mentioned above—not if you want to keep being effective.

How can you avoid making leadership mistakes? By keeping the 4 C’s of leadership in mind. They have the support of people like John Maxwell, Marshall Goldsmith, and Peter Drucker.

So what are the four C’s of leadership?

Competence

Competence as a leader is just demonstrating the right work ethic and intensity you’re looking for in your team. It’s walking the walk. Competence is:

Going the extra mile—just like you want your team to do. Competent leaders don’t just show up. They show up with fire in their bellies and their game faces on.

Showing up when you’re expected to and coming ready to play. It doesn’t matter what your circumstances are or how hard the challenge.

Demonstrating personal growth, showing continuous personal improvement, and following through on assignments.

Doing a lot more than is expected by your team, employers, and shareholders.

Having high intention, intense effort, a definite direction, and skillful execution. As Simon Sinek says: “Leadership is inspiration, nothing more, nothing less.”

Above all, competence is never an accident.