6 Personality Traits Found in Leaders Around the World [Infographic]

Being the CEO doesn't mean jack if you aren't an efficient leader. Printing the word “founder” on your business card doesn't make you a good boss; leading people in a meaningful way does. And while a lot of entrepreneurial skills are easy to figure out, being a leader takes a special kind of person to do it right. And, according to one study, it takes a whole lot of intellect.

Online career management company, Paysa, recently utilized the massive computing power of IBM's Watson to establish the top six personality traits in successful leaders in eight different industries. And the common thread across all of them is that intellect plays the largest role in facilitating success. Well, all of them except politics, in which altruism was the most important personality trait.

“Intellect in business shows a leader has the capacity not just to understand their business but to successfully navigate the ambiguity of industry innovation within their given sector,” wrote the Paysa team in the report.

Other than intellect, however, the kinds of personality traits varies significantly from industry to industry. Whereas creative industries like entertainment and fashion have “authority-challenging” very high on their lists, industries like finance, marketing, and medicine understandably don't have it on their lists at all. “Assertiveness,” “imagination,” and “cautiousness” are also found in a number of industries.

While this data is helpful for budding entrepreneurs and impressive to anyone that even remotely understands information, you know that IBM Watson can do more. Fortunately, Paysa knows that, which is why they had the supercomputer analyze a number of major leaders and score them based on these traits.

Notable minds like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Ginni Rommetty, and many more were analyzed so that you can fully understand what makes a successful leader. Take a look at some of their scores below and take note; it could be the difference between success and failure.

Read more about successful leaders on Tech.Co

Did you find this article helpful? Click on one of the following buttons
We're so happy you liked! Get more delivered to your inbox just like it.

We're sorry this article didn't help you today – we welcome feedback, so if there's any way you feel we could improve our content, please email us at contact@tech.co

Written by:
Conor is the Lead Writer for Tech.co. For the last six years, he’s covered everything from tech news and product reviews to digital marketing trends and business tech innovations. He's written guest posts for the likes of Forbes, Chase, WeWork, and many others, covering tech trends, business resources, and everything in between. He's also participated in events for SXSW, Tech in Motion, and General Assembly, to name a few. He also cannot pronounce the word "colloquially" correctly. You can email Conor at conor@tech.co.
Back to top