Capacity to Win and Hold Trust: Some leaders have an extraordinary capacity to win trust. General George C. Marshall had the capacity and, as in the case of George Washington, it was a virtually invisible gift. The leader who can win a battle, dazzle an audience, or smash electoral opposition has something the journalists and historians can write about. How many have ever written about the bonds of trust that Washington and Marshall forged so quietly?

Capacity to Manage, Decide, Set Priorities: As British educator Eric Ashby has pointed out, "Indecisiveness is contagious." Leaders must decide. And they must perform from time to time one or another of the traditional tasks of management, formulating goals, setting priorities, framing a course of action, selecting aides, and delegating. Though many leaders are not managers in the conventional sense of the word, they all benefit by having some of the skills of managers. General William J. Donovan, first head of the Office of Strategic Services in World War II, had about as little interest in managing as any leader, but he had the wisdom to surround himself with men who were very gifted managers themselves.


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