There Are No 13-Shot Six Shooters

By actual count, John Wayne once got 13 shots out of his Colt-45 Six-Shooter. Clint Eastwood has topped that a few times. In the make believe world of movies, the good guys seldom run out of bullets. In the real world, leaders do; six shots and you have to reload—if it’s not too late. So leaders have to pick their bullets carefully.

Which bullets you choose may vary a bit with circumstances, but there are a few that effective leader have.

#1 God’s Favor: Psalm 90:17 (personalized) Let the favor of the Lord my God be upon me; confirm the work of my hands; yes, confirm the work of my hands. When it comes to being an effective leader, nothing trumps God’s favor.

#2 People: you can only lead people, so you better have the right ones “on the bus” to use a Jim Collins phrase. But it takes more than the “right people”—you have to lead them well. They won’t lead themselves.

#3 Vision/Strategy: know where you are going and how you are going to get there. Otherwise, as Yogi Berra once said, “You’ll end up somewhere else.”

#4 Truth: facts are your friends. Your followers know the truth, so you might as well ‘fess up and solve the real problem. The most important truth to accept is about yourself. Do you have someone who will tell you?

#5 Grit: check out Angela Duckworth’s TED talk at Leadership GRIT.

#6 _____________________: you get to choose the 6^th bullet. One left. What do you want in your leadership six-shooter? Let me know in the comment section.

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