This week, we learned how to sound confident, the characteristics well-respected leaders all share, and why boring managers are sometimes better.
Here are the stories you loved in Leadership for the week of July 20.

1. SIX HABITS OF AMBITIOUS PEOPLE
Not everyone looks kindly on obviously ambitious people. But a healthy dose of ambition can take you a long way—when you harness it the right way. This week we found out how.

2. 10 SECRETS TO SOUNDING CONFIDENT
Sure, some people are naturally more confident than others, but appearing confident is another story. In fact, projecting that quality can be boiled down to a public speaking skill that anyone can master with a little practice.

3. THE TOP 5 TIME MANAGEMENT MISTAKES YOU’RE MAKING
Time management is a constant struggle for many of us. Just when you’ve gotten really efficient at one thing, something new comes along to derail your routine. Here are five ways to give some structure to the way you work, no matter what life throws at you.

4. 7 HABITS OF HIGHLY RESPECTED LEADERS
Learning how to lead effectively is something of a balancing act. Strive only to be well-liked on one hand, or rule with an iron fist on the other, and your team risks crumbling. Earning employees’ respect is the more effective approach, and this week we discovered seven ways respected leaders become just that.

5. THE UPSIDE OF BEING BORING
Boring people don’t make the best dinner guests, but they might actually have a leg up in the workplace. “The best managers in the world tend to be stable rather than excitable, consistent rather than erratic, as well as polite and considerate,” says business psychologist Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic. Here’s a case for leaving room at the table for more tamped-down personalities.