Daniel Palmier, Boston based entrepreneur and philanthropistEvery leader is different. We bring different talents and perspectives to the job, and different visions call for different sets of priorities. That said, there are a series of character traits that most, if not all, of the best leaders possess. Don’t look at this as a checklist, but as more of a series of goals to work toward, with the understanding that this will remain a pursuit throughout your career. The moment you think you’ve arrived is the point at which you stop growing and cap your capacity for success.Patience. You should be willing to wait for success, but you need to be willing to do the work and persevere through the process. Taking short cuts might get you where you want to be faster, but those cut corners could come back to haunt you down the line.Calm in the storm. Hard times will come. You will be surprised, things will go bad, and people will fail you. Just remember, if you freak out, there’s no one left to steady the ship and get everything back on course. It’s okay to be emotional, but you need to stay in control. This isn’t about being a robot, it’s about priorities and understanding the relationship between reaction and response. You may not be able to control the situation, but you can control yourself.   Perception. You really do need to know what it’s all about. You need to be able to “get” the people, and you need to be able to “see” the numbers. The better you understand both the people on your team and the factors that create the numbers you use to measure and define success, the better you can lead both.Resolve. You need to be able to make an informed decision, do it quickly, and be willing to stick to it. It’s one thing to mull over an important decision, it’s something else entirely to put off a decision because you’re unsure of the consequences. People can feel indecision, and it spreads doubt like a virus.Accountability. The buck stops with you. Live that. This doesn’t mean everything that happens is your “fault.” It isn’t, and it never will be. Still, you’re responsible not only for what your people do but also for what you give them to do it with. Communicating your vision and resourcing the right people with what they need to get you there is the positive side of accountability that many people don’t talk about nearly enough.Inspiring communication. There’s no doubt about it, poor communication is the #1 issue that faces relationships both in and out of the office. When people are talking at or past each other, nothing gets done as well as it should be. Sometimes they don’t get finished at all. But talking about what you want done is not true communication. It’s about balance and understanding, ideas flowing back and forth, getting better with each conversation. If your team isn’t comfortable sharing and critiquing ideas, your communication needs some work.