“No amount of personal competency can compensate for personal insecurity.” —Wayne Smith

_"If we desire to grow and reach our potential, we must pay more attention to our character than our success."

—John C. Maxwell_

_"Exceptional leaders distinguish themselves because of superior self-leadership."

—Daniel Goleman_

When it comes to what’s going on in the organization, leaders are either making it happen (good or bad), allowing it to happen (good or bad), or preventing it from happening (good or bad). Ultimately, the top leader is responsible, whether they accept responsibility or not.

High-impact, transformational leaders know this and take responsibility for everything that is happening. Meanwhile, low-impact leaders avoid taking responsibility for what’s happening as they search for others to blame. They create a tremendous amount of distrust throughout the organization as they try to maintain power and control.

It takes a very high degree of character to make the transition to become a high-impact leader, because you must move beyond only accepting responsibility for growing yourself. When you truly—and sincerely—choose to begin to grow and develop others, you must become responsible to others. Low-impact leaders are unwilling to do this and change their type of leadership style. They have the ability, but they do not have the desire.

Bottom line: If you invest abundantly in other leaders, your influence will exponentially increase through them. Let’s take a closer look at the five types of leaders. 

Type 1: Managerial Leader 

A managerial leader is the least effective of the five types of leaders. They have the least influence. People only follow them because they have to. They are not in the position to serve others. Their desire is to be served by others because they are in the position. They see others as tools to use to complete the objective for the day. They prefer to make decisions. Their weakness is character development.

Here’s a brief review of characteristics:

• Character is weak.  

• Desire is “to be served” rather than “to serve.” 

• They have a scarcity mindset. 

• Competency can range from undeveloped to highly developed. 

• Focus is on managing (directing/controlling) people and processes. 

• Values the position more than the people. 

• Strength comes from power, control, formal authority, and personal results. 

Type 2: Relational Leader 

A relational leader builds relationships in order to influence others. People want to follow them because of who they are, not what they know. They develop mutual respect with others and work well with them. Although people want to follow them, they have not developed specialized knowledge. Their weakness is not making the necessary sacrifices to develop their competency.

Here’s a brief review of characteristics:

• Character is strong. 

• Desire is to serve.  

• They have an abundance mindset. 

• Competency is undeveloped and generalized. 

• Focus is on leading (influencing/releasing) people. 

• Values people more than the position. 

• Strength comes from relationships and moral authority. 

Type 3: Motivational Leader 

A motivational leader seeks mutual benefit for themselves, others, and the organization. People want to follow them because of who they are and what they know. They influence others from the outside. They are process focused. They are trusted and deliver results for themselves, their families, their team, their organization, their customers, their suppliers, and their community. Their weakness is not making the necessary sacrifices to reproduce other motivational leaders.

Here’s a brief review of characteristics:

• Character is strong. 

• Desire is to serve.  

• They have an abundance mindset. 

• Competency is developed and specialized. 

• Focus is on leading (influencing/releasing) people, managing the processes, and getting results. 

• Values people more than the position. 

• Strength comes from relationships, moral authority, and team results. 

Type 4: Inspirational Leader 

An inspirational leader inspires managerial and relational leaders to become motivational leaders. Their focus is on growing themselves in order to inspire others to grow. They influence others on the inside. They are people-focused not process-focused. They focus heavily on character development. True inspirational leaders are followed because of how much they care and who they are on the inside. They are inspired by the growth of those following them.

Here’s a brief review of characteristics:

• Character is stronger. 

• Desire is to serve and develop others. 

• They have an abundance mindset. 

• Competency is highly developed and specialized. 

• Focus is on leading (influencing/releasing) people and developing motivational leaders. 

• Values people more than the position. 

• Strength comes from relationships, moral authority, and the growth of others. 

Type 5: Transformational Leader 

A transformational leader’s passion and purpose is to transform others. They are the most influential of the five types of leaders and are highly respected. Their reputation precedes them. They are well known for developing leaders. Their influence touches people in all industries and across multiple generations. They have influenced many leaders for many years. Their influence is continuously being transferred through many other leaders at many different times in multiple locations.

Here’s a brief review of characteristics:

• Character is strongest. 

• Desire is to serve and to develop others. 

• They have an abundance mindset. 

• Competency is highly developed and specialized. 

• Focus is on leading (influencing/releasing) people and developing motivational and inspirational leaders. 

• Values people more than the position. 

• Strength comes from relationships, moral authority, growth of others, and the respect they have earned.

Want to learn more? Join us for our ATD-Yale Management Excellence Certificate, September 7-16 (online).

For more leadership tips, visit our Career and Development topic page.

Editor's Note: This post was originally published in 2017 and was updated with new research and resources.