Page 168 - The extraordinary leader

Great Leaders Possess Multiple Strengths • 145

Powerful combinations do not require that people back off one
competency in order to do another well. The secret to building success as
a leader is to be excellent at powerful combinations of skills. We have found
that there are many such powerful combinations. The more differentiated the
combination, the more potentially powerful is the combination.
The effect of powerful combinations is to erect and lengthen the tent
poles that lift the overall leadership tent to new heights. Powerful combina-
tions also demonstrate the interconnections between all of the different
competencies.

The Halo Effect

As we noted in Chapter 4, a halo effect occurs when our perceptions of
others are distorted either positively or negatively. After studying results from
thousands of leaders, it became evident that strong positive and negative halo
effects occur. Results for the best leaders showed that the perceptions of oth-
ers rated almost all competencies at the 90th percentile (they can do no
wrong). Results for the worst performers showed that the perceptions of oth-
ers rated almost all competencies at the 10th percentile (they can do no right).
We have come to believe that both are a distortion. When leaders perform
extraordinarily well on a few behaviors, they begin to be viewed in a very pos-
itive light, and others’ impressions of them on other competencies tend to be
distorted in a positive direction. The opposite effect seems to occur for those
with a few profound weaknesses. Consider our day-to-day experience with
people who have achieved some measure of fame. How many times have you
been disappointed to hear a speech by a star athlete? Why did you believe that
he would have something insightful or even interesting to say? Just because a
person performs an athletic feat well does not mean that he has the ability to
speak, write, or communicate well. The notion of product endorsement by
famous people provides validation for the impact of the halo effect. Having a
famous person endorse a product creates more sales of that product. This is
the direct impact of the halo effect. We see the effect on the negative side
when we demonize people who have made serious mistakes.
The halo effect is very real, and everyone has experienced its impact. The
important issue for leaders is to get this effect to work for you rather than
against you. We believe the key to getting the halo effect to work for you is to
build up a few profound strengths.