Take the 15-Minute Leadership Quiz©
By Dr. Laurie Anderson

Fall 2003


The following quiz was designed to help executives determine if coaching with me would be helpful. Each question represents an area of focus in my work with executives. As you go through the questions, note how easy or how difficult you find them. The goal is not to arrive at just any answer in less than 15 minutes. Rather, it is to have smart, clear, and concise answers that are top of mind and immediately actionable for you. Why? Because these answers represent decisions that strong leaders execute against routinely to be maximally effective, in both their eyes and the eyes of history.

So, if you can answer these questions in fewer than 15 minutes and be content with your answers, then you likely have no pressing need for the kind of executive coaching I recommend or offer.

Check your watch now and go:


1. How is a leader different from a manager in your work? How much time (i.e., in percentages) do you dedicate each week to leading versus managing?

2. In your work world, what characterizes a GREAT leader from a good leader?

3. Are you a great leader? If yes, how did you determine that? If no, do you want to be a great leader? How will you know when you’ve become great?

4. What is your individual leadership vision relative to your current assignment? Would key staff, key colleagues, management be able to articulate your vision immediately if asked?

5. What makes your leadership distinctive (even from other great leaders in your organization) and how do you currently leverage your strengths to better deliver targeted results, motivate your team, or gain alignment with your colleagues?

6. How will you be measuring your individual leadership success for this year? What one thing do you most need to improve to ensure success against those targets?

7. What new approaches are you using to improve your leadership efficacy? Are these approaches better, faster, or cheaper than what you have done previously? Will they guarantee a rate of improvement equal or better to the improvement rate expected of your business unit?

8. What are your individual accountabilities in terms of: values, behaviors, and results?

9. Who holds you accountable for those contributions? How often do you calibrate with relevant others about how you are doing in each of those key areas (i.e., values/behaviors/results)?

10. What are the three most important steps you routinely take to align people with your leadership vision? Are you confident that those are the most effective initial steps for building alignment efficiently?

11. How would you grade the balance you have now between work and life outside of work (A-F scale)?

12. What would it take to get a higher grade next year without losing any substantial effectiveness?

13. What are the two things you could master to make you a candidate for a tougher assignment next year?

14. What do you want your legacy to be? Does it matter that you have a clear intention now around your leadership legacy or should time tell us what your leadership signature was?

15. Who are the smartest, best-informed people you count on regularly from outside your organization to challenge your thinking and build your understanding of key trends and best practices? How did you select those people? How often do you consult with them?

16. Are you deeply fulfilled with your career in general and your current leadership assignment in particular? What might make you more fulfilled and are you working now on implementing those adjustments?

17. Which of these questions would you say is irrelevant to your individual leadership success?