The Character of A Winner
by John Hersey and Beverly Belury

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"A single victory, 1 hit record, a few good years in a relationship, a couple of quarters of solid earnings growth does not a WINNER make." -- John Hersey

The winner we are talking about wins consistently, day-in-and-day-out, month-in, month-out, year-in, year-out. Not the big victories necessarily but in the little things that make a difference to our department and companies over time. Our winner has CHARACTER.

Ask any business person and they’ll tell you that the "CHARACTER" of their employees is important. Ask them to then define "CHARACTER" or better yet, to measure an employee`s relative degree of "CHARACTER" and they will either shrug their shoulders or look at you in utter bewilderment.

Make no mistake about it; "Character" counts. It always has and always will. In fact, there is very strong evidence that the importance of character is growing. Our corporate clients are in complete agreement that the biggest challenge facing businesses of all shapes, sizes and configurations over the next decade is attracting, developing and retaining great people. To overcome this challenge these and other companies are searching for leaders rather than managers. This search, like the search for "CHARACTER", takes place in the soft skills. Not the routine background/education/experience stuff we see in resumes but the stuff behind the resume, the stuff inside the person.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said:

"EVERY GREAT INSTITUTION IS THE LENGTHENED SHADOW OF A SINGLE MAN. HIS CHARACTER DETERMINES THE CHARACTER OF HIS ORGANIZATION."

He knew then what we know today. CHARACTER counts. This is so important that it is worth repeating. The people at the top in most companies, that is the people who ultimately make all the hiring, firing and promotion decisions, believe that "CHARACTER" is vital to the future success of their company. These executives may not be able to define "character" but they instinctively know that employees with character make better employees, better managers, better communicators and better future executives. Moreover, they know that employees with "character" remain with the company longer, thereby reducing turnover, which is an enormous drain on earnings. Rather than debating the relative importance of "CHARACTER" we suggest that every executive, manager, supervisor, employee use their valuable time and resources to learn four things about character; 1) how to define it, 2) how to measure it, 3) how to integrate it and 4) how to monitor the development of it.

Defining Character

What is "CHARACTER", anyways? As we stated earlier, most of us do not have a clue. James Michener, one of the worlds most respected writers and someone who should know the meaning of words, offered one definition. He said:

"Character is what we do on the third and fourth tries."

For the most part we think he was correct. We do not believe that "character" is relegated to the third or fourth try, however. As a matter of fact, our experience tells us that consistency in displaying "character" often distinguishes just how much of it we really have.

Another aspect of Michener’s definition needs clarification. The word "do" may be open to some misinterpretation. Having "Selective Character" or character only when it serves our purpose is tantamount to not having any character at all. Are we displaying character because doing so is consistent with our belief system (who we are) or is it consistent with some strategy for personal gain? We do not think Mr. Michener had the latter in mind.

Our extensive research into defining, measuring and monitoring character has lead us to concluded that it is not one thing but rather the sum of twelve separate elements. It is rather like defining a wonderful meal. Is it the wine that defines the meal? How about the entrée or the desert or the service? You cannot define the meal without considering the whole. Together, the twelve elements define "character." Now, there may be more elements but every time we try to add one it is usually embodied by one of the original twelve. So, until convinced otherwise, we’ll call them "The Character of a WINNER." We do not present them in any particular order of importance. In fact, it is our experience that individuals tend to rank the importance of the individual elements differently. Keeping this in mind, the twelve elements of The Character of a WINNER are:

WINNERS are Authentic – Being Authentic is about knowing and being true to who we are, not who we pretend to be. Many individuals have been acting the part of the successful executive for so long that we forget whom we really are. Did you know that 40% of corporate executives would change careers if they could maintain their current income level? Many have just gotten tired of not being true to themselves, of being in jobs and cultures that require them to be other than who they are. If you expect to be a consistent winner over the long haul being authentic is the place to start.

WINNERS Embrace Change – WINNERS embrace change, they participate in change, some even revel in change, looking for it and, more often than not, causing the change that usually disturbs most non –winners. It has been said that we can only count on two things in our lives—death and taxes. Recent experience suggests that we can comfortably add "Change" to the list. We can count on it like the sun rising in Arizona. Fighting change wastes valuable energy. Using that energy to make our jobs, departments and companies more productive and successful is the WINNERS Way.

WINNERS are Committed – WINNERS make deep commitments. They are never committed just "when it suits them to be so." WINNNERS are either in or they are out. When they are in, they are in for the duration. Even when their business is not going as well as they would like they ask "what can I do to make it better" not "where can I go to find a better deal?" WINNERS are careful about their commitments. The WINNERS Way is to take their commitments seriously.

WINNERS Contribute – WINNERS are about making things better. They make a difference in their companies, communities, families and churches. WINNERS know there is a world outside those hallowed halls of our corporations, a world that needs leadership so that it can be a better place for all of us. WINNERS fill that need, provide the leadership and make a difference.

WINNERS are Determined – When he delivered the graduation address to his alma mater Winston Churchill stood slowly, walked across the platform, faced the stone silent crowd and said "never, never, never, never, never give up." Determination is a Characteristic of a WINNER. While not blind to potential setback, in the face of adversity winners become even more determined. They dig in, consider alternatives, become more creative and look outside the box for solutions.

WINNERS are Disciplined – Aristotle said, "what it lies in our power to do, it lies in our power not to do." The good news is that each of us has awesome power. That is also the bad news. Sometimes, the discipline to use that power, to develop and execute plans is the difference of winning or not. Consistently Winning at any game takes great discipline, if for no other reason than to avoid becoming lethargic and uninspired. Discipline is the WINNERS Way.

WINNERS know their Drive – "Everyone wants to make more money, right?" WRONG! People want what they want and it is up to each person, every executive, every manager and every supervisor to know their drive and the drive of those they manage.

WINNERS Exude Integrity – Integrity isn’t just about telling the truth. Integrity is about being our word, always being our word, everyday and in everything we do; not just when it serves us but particularly when it does not serve us.

WINNERS stay Focused -- Beverly once said that "Idea people are valuable but implementers are priceless." Implementers have a well- developed ability to stay focused. We all experience so many distractions that it is difficult to stay focused, stay on plan, stay on track. The WINNER doesn’t allow distractions. Focus is The WINNERS Way.

WINNERS are Motivated – There are three types of motivation; fear, incentive and causal. Fear and incentive motivation never work, at least not for very long, because the stimuli (either fear or incentive) need to be constantly present. Take away the fear (you are fired if you don’t measure-up) or the incentive (the winner of this months sales contest and the trip to Bali is Harry!) and nothing happens.

Causal motivation is about working to be the best we can be without any outside stimuli. WINNERS don’t wait for any external motivation. They make things happen. WINNERS operate by that old adage "if it’s to be it’s up to me."

WINNERS Create Possibility – For any circumstance, challenge or effort there are three possible sand boxes in which we can play; the "what has been box", the "what is box" and the "what could be box."

In the "what has been box" is everything we have ever learned. We visit this box to resolve familiar challenges. In the "what is box" is the way things are. This is where we go when we settle. The "what could be box" is where WINNERS reside. This is where possibility lives.

WINNERS take Risks – Wayne Gretsky, the greatest hockey player of all time once said, "You miss 100% of the shots you never take." Everything worth doing involves risk. The willingness to take risk, not to be reckless, but to risk separates WINNERS from all others.

Measuring Character

Now that we can define "CHARACTER" the big question is how do we measure it? How much of each element do we have? Relatively speaking, in which elements are we under-performing, which are we in acceptable ranges and in which are we over-performing? The answers requires us to set-up some guidelines.

To some people, performance on each element "should be" a black or white situation. We often say that integrity is either black (not good) or white (good), for example. You either have it or you don’t. Unfortunately, it isn’t always that simple. The world isn’t black or white. The world, and the Character of a WINNER, is shades of gray. We have to be careful here because sometimes when we operate in the shades of gray it is easy to relax our definition of the elements. Relax the definition too often or for too long and we forget it altogether. That is not our intention. We realize that perfection, although a noble concept, is just not possible at least not in every element, every hour of every day. Furthermore, even if it were possible, some of us would not choose perfection in each and every element.

Keeping in mind that we are focused on our jobs, departments and companies, if we were to use a scale of 1-10 with 10 being perfection an individual may, for example, learn that they scored 4 on the Risk element. Then they might decide that this is an acceptable score for their particular job, company and culture. Move that person to another position in another department or company and we may find that a score of 4 is woefully inadequate. Similarly, dedication in one culture may have to fall between 7-10 to be acceptable while a 5 is just fine in another situation. Measurement for each element will depend on the individual, their job, their supervisor, the culture they operate in, their own behavioral style and many other factors. What we have done is create a system whereby individuals can conduct a self-assessment on each element. Although the results are qualitative, they give us a benchmark as to where we stand with each element, helping us identify areas that we would like to improve upon, those that we feel good about and perhaps even the ones that we are over-delivering on.

The following character self-assessment is the short version. We also developed one with multiple questions for each element. As you assess yourself for each of the following elements please be brutally honest and avoid any inclination to fall victim to the "should be’s". You know, "I am a 4 when it comes to risk but I should be a 9 so I’ll give myself a 7." That accomplishes nothing at all.

On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being perfect rate your performance on each element. Total your scores and enter it on the Total line following each element.

Being Authentic:

On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being "you are always yourself and NEVER compromise who you are" and 1 is "you are miserable because you have totally compromised yourself in your job", rate yourself in terms of being authentic.

SCORE: ________________

Embracing Change: 10 means you create change and 1 is you fight it every step of the way.

SCORE: ________________

Commitment: 10 means you always keep commitments and 1 is you rarely keep them and only when it serves your personal gain.

SCORE: ________________

Contribution: 10 means that in the past 6 months you have done something outside the scope of your job description to improve your department or company and 1 is you never do more than your job description.

SCORE: ________________

Determination: 10 means you never give-up before successfully completing a task and 1 is you always do.

SCORE: ________________

Discipline: 10 means you never put-off or delay commitments you have made to yourself and 1 is you always delay commitments.

SCORE: ________________

Drive: 10 means you know with certainty that which drives your behavior and 1 is you really don’t have a clue.

SCORE: ________________

Integrity: 10 means you always arrive to meetings on time and 1 is you are always late.

SCORE: ________________

Focus: 10 means you never get distracted from your priorities and 1 is you don’t know your priorities.

SCORE: ________________

Motivation: 10 means you always motivate yourself and 1 is you always wait for some other person or some other thing or event to put you into action.

SCORE: ________________

Possibility: 10 means you always look for new ways of doing things and 1 is you always do things the way they have always been done.

SCORE: ________________

Risk: 10 means you believe that taking risk is important for personal and professional growth and 1 is you believe in always playing it safe.

SCORE: ________________

Integrating and Monitoring Character

This is the easy part. If you agree with everything (or at least most) that we have said thus far then you will want everyone in your company to complete either this brief self-assessment or, better yet, the more comprehensive multi-question model. If you want to have some real fun you could have everyone in your department do the self-assessment and then average the scores. It will give you a good indication as to the character of your department and how each person in the department compares. Furthermore, you could implement the multi-question model as a 360o Feedback and then do quarterly updates as part of your performance review system. If, on the other hand, it is just you then you might choose to pick one element and practice living into that for one month. At the end of a year you notice an enormous difference in every aspect of your performance and the performance of those around you.

"The Character of a WINNER" can be a great help to any individual or company that strives for success and is dedicated to being an "A" player and fielding teams of "A" players for their company. Integrating this as part of an existing performance appraisal system may appear to be a bit difficult. I assure you that it would indeed be a challenge. After all, it would require commitment, discipline, focus, drive, motivation, believing in possibility, determination, integrity, and risk. You would have to be totally authentic and willing to firmly embrace change to accomplish this awesome task. But just think of the contribution you would make.

Here is to making Character and Leadership Contagious in your company!