Recently, as I was having lunch with a client, he began to complain about the lack of ownership for many of his managers. He continued, far longer than I would have thought, about the widespread inability of his managers to accept personal responsibility for their work.

The longer he went on, the angrier he got and the more I realized that what his managers needed was a good dose of President Truman.

President Harry S Truman had a sign on his desk, "The buck stops here."

Truman's philosophy is more important today than ever before. As my client realized, we need leaders who make decisions and accept responsibility. Do you measure up to Truman's tough standards?

What does it take to make good decisions? More than meets the eye. After working with successful leaders for more than 30 years, I have condluded that the best decision-making leaders employ three Cs: Competence, Comfort, and Confidence.

Competence is the ability to make sound decisions. Good leaders make good decisions most of the time. Over time, with trial and error and with improved competence, the best leaders develop a well-earned reputation for doing the right thing, making the right decisions. In the few instances where they make a mistake, they acknowledge it and fix it.

Comfort is the ability to make decisions that affect the lives of others without angst, uncertainty, or anxiety. Good leaders don't avoid, run from, or shirk the responsibility for making decisions. Just the opposite. They are completely at ease being the person who decides the fate of others. Good leaders are comfortable making decisions because they don't fear the consequences. They wear the responsibility well, like a well-made suit that fits perfectly and looks good.

Confidence is the ability to make sound decisions and know, deep down, that they are the right decisions for the business. Good leaders exude an assurance that is visible to others. They believe they are the best persons to make the key decisions. Their belief stems not from arrogance, but from having proved repeatedly their ability to make good decisions.

The combined effect of these three factors is that good leaders create a reputation and an aura that causes others to want to follow them. Other people willingly defer to their leadership. When leaders are competent, comfortable, and confident in their ability to make decisions, people follow.

How do you measure up to Truman's standards? Ask yourself three questions:

Am I competent that the decisions I make are the right ones - have my decisions proven to be good for the business most of the time?

Am I comfortable making decisions - do I make decisions without anxiety and uncertainty, or do I avoid and shirk that responsibility and put off making key decisions as valuable time passes?

Am I confident that my decisions are right for the business - do I truly believe that I'm the right person to make this decision, or do I believe that someone else should make it?

How you answer these questions can help you become a better leader - to become someone who inspires others to follow. Here is one idea you can use today.

Test your decisions rigorously. Rather than just assume you're right, evaluate whether your decisions worked by establishing specific metrics and publicly holding yourself accountable for them. The more you put yourself to the test, the better decision-maker you will become. And then you'll be able to say, rightfully, that the bucks stops at your desk, just like it did at President Truman's.

Confronting Reality - Doing What Matters to Get Things Right by Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan has a lesson for leaders today.

The authors ask you to rethink your business model to integrate three broad areas: External Realities, Internal Activities, and Financial Targets. Then, repeatedly update your understanding of how the three components work together to get things right in your business.

Why is this important and why should you read the book? Leaders often fall into the trap of believing that hard work and persistence are enough to survive. Bossidy and Charan argue, strongly and appropriately, that it's easy to work hard and still fail because you've failed to adapt to the many changes affecting today's businesses.

Taking the time to rethink the areas they've defined assures that you won't make that mistake.

Vince Lombardi said, "Contrary to the opinion of many people, leaders are not born. They are made, and they are made by effort and hard work."

What are you doing, in terms of effort and hard work, to become a better leader today?

Many of my clients have found simple ways to continue to grow as a leader. One of the simplest is to find and use a group of colleagues, outside of the firm, with whom you can let your guard down and engage in thoughtful discussions of what you're doing right and what you're doing wrong.