When I ask what qualities are required for a CEO, the answer almost always comes in the same words: strategic vision, decision-making capacity, focus on execution, understanding of the markets. All of this is essential, but, curiously, two fundamental virtues rarely appear on this list: generosity and humility. Perhaps because both seem, at first glance, not very compatible with the traditional idea of power.
For a long time, leadership was imagined as individual affirmation, unchallenged authority and the ability to impose a vision. In this context, humility could be confused with insecurity and generosity, this impulse to give time, space and recognition to others, interpreted as a lack of firmness. The best leaders are not those who accumulate recognition, but those who have the generosity to distribute it.
Companies have become too complex to be led by leaders who believe they know everything or who always need to be the brightest in the room. The best leaders just need to make sure they surround themselves with people who shine. An effective CEO today is not one who concentrates all the merit, but one who creates the conditions for others to succeed, and this requires, among other things, generosity.
Generosity in recognizing the work of teams, in sharing information, in being open to ideas that were not born at the top of the organization. This is the attitude that builds confidence and allows talent to flourish.
But true generosity rarely exists without humility. A leader’s humility does not consist in diminishing himself, but in recognizing that no person, no matter how experienced, alone has all the answers. It is the awareness that listening can be as important as deciding and that learning is far from over when you reach the top.
Over many years of following executive selection and evaluation processes, I have had the privilege of closely observing different leadership styles and one of the most consistent conclusions is that the most effective leaders are rarely those who seek to assert themselves all the time. On the contrary, they are often those who know how to listen, recognize the merit of others and create space for the talent around them to manifest and grow.
In organizations where this attitude exists, teams feel safe to contribute, to disagree constructively, and to take responsibility. Where leadership is dominated by ego, a defensive silence quickly sets in: people stop risking ideas and just confirm what the leader already thinks.
Generosity and humility still have a less visible but profoundly relevant effect: they make leadership more solid and lasting. In a time of enormous pressure on executives, leaders who build trusting relationships around them are rarely left alone when making difficult decisions.
Perhaps this is why many of the best leaders share a common trait: a calm authority, which does not need to assert itself permanently.
Because, at the end of the day, leadership is not about proving that you have power, it’s about knowing what to do with it.
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