Years of experience as an executive search consultant have brought me to the conclusion that multinational companies of all trades tend to seek the same qualities in their top managers. These qualities are seldom seen together in a single individual. Thus, the more of them you possess, the better your chances of gaining recognition as an outstanding leader worthy of the greatest of responsibilities. This article gives a description of each essential quality, and hints at ways to cultivate these keys to success.

As you read, take note of those qualities that you identify as one of your personal strengths. When you finish, you will have gained a clearer picture of where to focus your efforts to remain or become an outstanding leader. This exercise can serve as a useful reference the next time you are asked to list your personal strengths and weaknesses.

Then too, this guideline may serve as a useful tool in drawing up year-end evaluations of your staff members, or for identifying hiring criteria for various positions.

1. Drive
Outstanding managers have a profound desire to work hard and to work long hours. They are committed to producing excellent results on every project or assignment. Develop your drive by firmly believing in your future success. Adopt a philosophy in which making breakthroughs is a normal way of life.

2. Courage
Outstanding managers have the courage to accomplish things that others think impossible. Stop worrying about what others will think if you step off the beaten track.

3. Desire to excel
Outstanding managers are not satisfied with an average performance; they insist on using their full potential on every project. Do not be too easily satisfied with your own performance. Strive to improve each time.

4. Autonomy
Outstanding managers operate from their own initiative. They are able to find and secure the resources they need from within their company or from the market. Occasionally, they volunteer to perform tasks that are outside their job perimeters because they recognize this as the quickest way to advance their projects without burdening their colleagues. Envision your department as an independent company serving the whole organization. Act as if you were the owner of this small, independent company and treat the whole organization as your most important customer.

5. Commitment to the goals of the company
Outstanding managers know the goals of their company and what it takes to reach them. Take control of your life and your schedule. Set specific targets to achieve every day.

6. Knowledge
Outstanding managers constantly monitor and learn new information. Do not let a single day go by without learning something new. Read a lot. Never miss an opportunity to ask questions whenever you meet an expert in a particular field.

7. Creativity
Outstanding managers try to look at problems, people, and events from fresh and different perspectives. Break out of the confusion of your busy day-to-day environment. Set aside a few moments every day to truly relax and to daydream. Let yourself be carried by the flow of creative ideas, as you did as a child. Exciting new ideas will naturally pop to mind when you are in this relaxed state.

8. Honesty
Outstanding managers are frank, direct, and earnest. Be responsible. Recognize your mistakes and learn from them.

9. Integrity
Outstanding managers follow high standards of business ethics. They promote a code of conduct in the company. Always recognize the difference between your personal interest and the company's interest. Give the highest priority to the company's interest.

10. Optimism
Outstanding managers do not doubt that they will succeed. Focus on the good things that happen in your life.

11. Fair judgment
Outstanding managers make a fair, objective assessments of the causes that led to an event. They gather the facts before formulating an opinion. Keep an open mind, and do not let yourself become biased. Be prepared to reconsider your initial opinion.

12. Enthusiasm
Outstanding managers have a passion for what they do. They communicate this passion to their team mates and business contacts. Firmly believe that you are doing something good for the world and that you will be rewarded for it.

13. Willingness to take calculated risks
Outstanding managers are not afraid of failure, so long as the survival of the organization is not threatened. Since the survival of the organization is rarely at stake, feel free to take risks in most situations. Remember that failures are one of the most effective ways to acquire valuable knowledge and experience. See a potential failure as an opportunity to learn. Be daring.

14. Energy
Outstanding managers do not wait passively for events to turn favorable; they make things happen. Be a driving force that improves the company's business and the company's business methods. Consider pressure as a normal element of your professional life.

15. Boldness
Outstanding managers continually seek opportunities to demonstrate their capabilities. Do not hesitate to accept challenges that others avoid. Be the pioneer who takes the company to its next phase of development.

16. Ability to face difficulties with a positive attitude
Outstanding managers react to negative surprises with optimism. They believe every problem has a solution. Do not be easily defeated by adversity. Keep the faith. Believe you can reach your goals, even if it means taking a different course of action than the one you had originally planned. Enjoy the many flavors of life.

17. Persuasive power
Outstanding managers know how to convince others to give them the support they need to complete their projects. Believe in what you do and instill that belief in others.

18. Friendliness
Outstanding managers are pleasant people. They make friends easily. Build a network of friends who support your success. Support theirs, too.

19. Communication skills
Outstanding managers convey their ideas clearly to others. They also listen carefully, and work to understand people who are not being direct. Make yourself clear; be to the point. Ask yourself why people say what they say.

20. Patience
Outstanding managers are patient with others most of the time, but are impatient with themselves. Expect more from yourself than you do from others.

21. Sensitivity
Outstanding managers quickly identify changes and developments in the work environment. Pay attention to what staff and colleagues need as much as you pay attention to what customers need in the market. This awareness shifts your focus from yourself and toward your entire team, and allows you to understand the internal dynamics of the team. Use this knowledge to lead the team in the same way that you would use market intelligence to lead the market.

22. Sense of humor
Outstanding managers defuse tension by injecting a dose of laughter at appropriate times. Do not take yourself too seriously. Be ready to laugh at yourself and your blunders. Allow others to have a laugh at your expense. Share in their fun and learn from the experience.

23. Flexibility
Outstanding managers adapt quickly to changing situations. They do not remain entrenched in ineffective methods or attitudes. When facing a particular frustration, reconsider your mind set. Help others see the changing requirements of the organization. Be the lubricant that makes gears turn. You will soon become indispensable.

24. Curiosity
Outstanding managers like to probe every possibility. They enjoy making discoveries that will make the company more efficient and more successful. Never stop learning. Do not hesitate to ask questions.

25. Vision
Outstanding managers foresee the next phase in the development of the company. They can set goals for the organization, and adjust the company's structure and policies to maximize their chances of reaching those goals. Think ahead. Envision your company's position in the market after two or three years. Predict what new know-how it must acquire, what systems it must implement, what cost structure it can afford, and what changes this will trigger inside the organization.

In theory, each of us knows the way to build a successful career. Our failures to do so do not stem from our ignorance; they come from our reluctance to take action.

Eric Dieny is President of EMS Consulting executive search firm, Chairman of the Consulting Services Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei, and a former co-Chairman of the China Business Committee and the Labor Affairs Committee of the same Chamber.

A shorter version of this article was published in the December 1998 issue of Topics, the magazine of the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei.