Sometimes leaders ask me how to develop pizzazz.

I find that humorous because, at no point, have I ever been described as “pizzazzy.” One of my mentors likes to remind me that I’m “low energy.” He’d like me to work on my pizzazz.

I understand the pizzazz attraction. (I’m referring to charisma – if my word of the day threw you.) We’ve all been in rooms where someone walks in and immediately grabs and holds everyone’s attention. They’ve got “it” as they say in Hollywood.

So, I work on my pizzazz skills. It’s easier to be “it” than “not it.” Also, I think it’s good to keep working on things and improving. But here’s the thing: I built success without stacks of pizzazz. Being steady, objective, and unflappable are valuable traits.

So, while a magnetic charisma is handy – it isn’t necessary.

You don’t need charisma to be a fantastically effective leader

If you naturally burst with charisma, good for you. I mean that. Use it. It will definitely make some things much easier. If you don’t have it, it won’t hurt to spice things up a bit.

But you don’t have to be charismatic. Charismatic leaders have their unique challenges.

Because I have more nerd in me than charisma – I like to wander through the research on topics. Here are the facts about charisma:

Charisma doesn’t guarantee effectiveness:

It’s a good ingredient to have. However organizational success requires more. And you can be successful without it. So, it’s like icing on the cake. Charisma is a ‘nice to have’ – not necessary. Numerous studies have found that charisma is not a reliable predictor of a leader’s performance or a company’s profitability.[1][4]

Other qualities matter much more:

Jim Collins highlighted this in his book Good to Great. Leaders of companies that sustainably outperform both their competition and the market were not described as charismatic. They largely escaped being recognized as ‘celebrity leaders. Attitudes like humility and a passion to help the whole organization win were what rose to the top. Competencies like strategic thinking, decision-making, and motivating others have, elsewhere, been found to be more important than charisma.[4][5][6]

People confuse charisma with impact:

Followers tend to attribute extraordinary qualities to leaders they perceive as charismatic, even when the leader’s actual impact is negligible. This ‘rose-colored glasses’ / infatuated view of some leaders leads to an overemphasis on charisma. Leaders with high charisma, who are otherwise ineffective, can still be perceived to be effective. This is important to keep in mind when considering advancement or succession. Don’t get blinded by a charismatic leader’s beauty – so to speak.[2]

Charismatic leaders struggle to build commitment:

What is easily won is easily lost. Charismatic leaders can wow an audience with their visionary abilities. Often they easily inspire a superficial level of commitment. But that commitment tends to be unstable over time. I used the word ‘infatuation’ earlier. The result is a tendency for these leaders to keep the infatuation going – by doing ‘charismatic’ things to attempt to renew their admirer’s commitment. Another word for this can be drama. Nothing like a white knight swooping in to save everyone from a disaster (that, too often, they allowed or created.) [3]

Charismatic leaders can lean on toxic behaviors:

Charismatic leaders who haven’t built a robust set of leadership skills and emotional maturity can tend to just lean in on their charisma. This can cause them to surround themselves with people who enable toxic behaviors like narcissism, authoritarianism, and unethical conduct. This is especially true if these leaders face minimal accountability.[1][5]

Research indicates that effective leadership stems from competencies rather than charisma alone.

But I am a charismatic leader. What do I do?

1. Develop genuine character and integrity. Cultivate strong moral principles, cultivate authenticity, and practice humility.
2. Place yourself in a position of accountability. Specifically with people who aren’t ‘wowed’ by you. If this isn’t at work, find a mentor, a coach, or a peer group of caring but unimpressed people whom you respect.
3. Build wisdom, knowledge, and competence. Develop actual expertise, strategic thinking abilities, and decision-making skills.
4. Deliver meaningful results and impact. Follow through and produce positive outcomes that benefit the organization and its stakeholders.
5. Build trust through compassion and consideration of others. Balance your confidence with humility, empathy, and concern for the interests of others.
6. Engage in continual self-improvement and learning from mistakes. Build the self-awareness to identify areas for growth, learn from failures, and evolve your leadership.

Conclusion

Effective leadership doesn’t require charisma. It required character and competency. Dependence on charisma can create real problems for leaders. But charisma, if combined with character and competency is a killer combo. (Check out that alliteration!)

Citations:

[1]https://repository.lsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4321&context=gradschool_dissertations

[2]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10656777/

[3]https://theloop.ecpr.eu/myth-all-populist-leaders-are-charismatic/

[4]https://www.corporatelearningnetwork.com/leadership/columns/charismatic-leadership-much-ado-about-nothing

[5]https://hbr.org/2022/11/the-myth-of-the-brilliant-charismatic-leader

[6]https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/76865