Leadership is tough and lonely.
And yet with the wealth of articles, research and noise about the subject it would seem that it is really very easy. All that is needed is to follow a five step (or 10 or 20 step) process and leadership happens. Indeed that seems to be the challenge – leadership is a process that happens. But it isn’t like that at all.
Leadership is about people. It’s about situations that happen and the ways that people react to them. Leadership can come from the top of an organism (business, country etc) or from the bottom; relative terms that imply incorrectly some form of status.
So much of what is defined as leadership today is little more than shouting louder and more slowly. Exactly how we British have been taught how to deal with anyone who isn’t British.
A wise man who I worked for described a leader as needing to have followers. There is no point in leading to the top of the hill if when you turn round people are waiting at the bottom or more likely heading in a variety of different directions.
Leadership is about making change. Its as simple as that and as complicated as that.
So despite there being more written about leadership than almost anything else I am going to add some more. And I’d like it to be a discussion. I hope you’ll join in as I do believe we need to try something new. So while Leadership is tough and lonely – it’s not about the leader anymore.
It’s about what they do and the affect it has on those around them.
The Burble 