How you carry yourself, how you communicate, the decisions you make, the actions you take, they all contribute significantly to the influence + impact you can have on the business you run, and perhaps more importantly, on the people you lead. 

What I learned from working with reputable leaders in various countries is that the greatest mark of great leadership is responsibility. No matter the culture or language, I learned that great leaders become great because they lead themselves first. They observe their thoughts, examine their beliefs, identify their values. They analyze their impact on others. They remove their blind spots. They gradually make the unconscious conscious to make better informed decisions.

By doing so they earn the trust and loyalty of people who know them. They become powerful not because of their authority or title but because of their ability to influence, inspire and impact the people and cirumstances around them.