Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It: Why People Demand it

Sum It Up as Character

Credo, competence, and confidence are the content of character. They are the substance of self, the subject matter that gives meaning to people. This is exactly what one young project manager related about his manager: “Had she found her voice and communicated her values she would have been better equipped to manage and lead others. More importantly, if she knew herself better she would have had more confidence to manage her team.” His takeaway lesson from this experience was that “when we find our voice, I think we find our confidence—the confidence to express ideas, to choose a direction, and to authentically be ourselves.”

Those who are clear about their values and beliefs have laid the cornerstones for a firm moral ...