The Best CEOs I’ve Coached Have One Thing in Common
It’s not their ability to make decisions. It’s not strategy. Those are expected. Every CEO who reaches the corner office has already demonstrated both.
What has always interested me is something far less obvious.
Several years ago, I was having lunch with the CEO of a global company in Dallas. As we walked to the billing counter at the steakhouse, the cashier greeted us with little enthusiasm. His tone was curt. There was no smile, no eye contact, no attempt at courtesy.
The CEO smiled anyway.
He thanked him, wished him a good day and, as we turned to leave, quietly said, “God bless.”
As we walked towards the parking lot, I asked him why he was so kind to a rude behaviour.
He looked at me and said, “Payal, this cashier is always like this. Maybe he’s carrying something I know nothing about. Maybe this is simply who he is. Either way, I don’t know his story.”
The conversation lasted less than a minute, but I have remembered it for years.
Not because it was an act of kindness. Kindness, by itself, doesn’t explain exceptional leadership. What struck me was the absence of judgment.
Over the years, I have had the privilege of working with CEOs across industries and continents. They lead different businesses, manage different cultures, and make vastly different decisions. Yet I have noticed a quiet trait they seem to share.
They don’t rush to conclusions about people. Where others see a difficult employee, they see someone under pressure. Where others see resistance, they ask what might be causing it. Where others become irritated by behaviour, they become curious about it.
That curiosity is not weakness. It is judgment of the highest order.
Leadership is often described as the ability to influence people. I have come to believe that influence begins much earlier than that. It begins with the willingness to understand people before deciding who they are.
Many of the leaders I coach are exceptionally capable. Their technical expertise is unquestionable. They know their industries, understand their numbers, and solve complex business problems with ease. Yet when they find themselves leading larger teams, they often discover that success has become less about expertise and more about people.
The higher you rise, the problems you face are mostly human.
Misunderstandings.
Assumptions.
Trust.
Ego.
Fear.
Ambition.
These rarely appear on a balance sheet, yet they shape almost every important decision a leader makes.
Perhaps that is why the finest CEOs I know never seem in a hurry to label someone. They recognise something many leaders forget: behaviour is visible, but the reasons behind it seldom are.
In an age where technology can analyse data, draft presentations and even recommend strategy, this may become the one leadership capability that grows in value rather than declines.
Understanding another human being. It sounds simple. But, in reality , it is one of the rarest skills in leadership and most difficult to practice.
Your Good Friend and Coach
This article was written by Payal Nanjiani for CEOWorld Magazine.
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