#SLA371 Leadership Lens

I have always been fascinated with leadership and various books on the topic.  It always amazed me that not one author can agree on its definition.  Most are very similar, however authors have made it their life goal to tweak the definition so that they can be unique.  Some authors can sell millions of books, while others never quite make it to the bookshelves. The books may have the exact same take on leadership, incorporate almost the same definition, analyze the same great leaders of the past, and yet have two completely different journeys.  I have found that trying to pin the definition of leadership down to any form is futile at best. The beauty of leadership is as tough as it may be to define, you know exactly what it is when you see it. Whether it is on the athletic field, in a boardroom, or on the side of a street, leadership is clearly abundant all around us.

For my view of leadership, I am taking a page Zenger and Folkman’s The Extraordinary Leader. They illustrate leadership through a tent model.  I utilized the same structure, however I changed the support beams of the “Leadership Tent.”

My view of leadership requires that a leader be knowledgeable, understanding, and a person of action, honesty and integrity.  A person can be a good leader with a combination of all of these elements, but a great leader posses all of them and has moral courage to live by them.

Knowledge refers to someone having core competencies developed through their education, job experience, and life experiences.

Understanding refers to a leader’s ability to recognize that everyone has a different story to tell, and everyone has something unique about them. A leader utilizes the strengths of others, and empowers those to see the world from different “lenses.” A great quality here would be to an empathetic listener. When one listens empathetically, they will listen first and not feel compelled to push their thoughts or views onto others. 

Action is the vessel that turns dreams into realities. Some many great people never implement their goals or dreams for one reason or another.  Without action, leadership should only remain in books. A leader recognizes not only when to act, but when to follow as well. Aristotle once stated that on should, “Do the right thing, at the right time, for the right reasons.” A leader recognizes his/her own motives and acts in the best interests of the group.

Honesty & Integrity is almost essential for all leaders. Words like accountability, trust, respect and sincerity will go a long way in establishing great relationships with followers.

Moral Courage is the backbone of any leader. Every leader feels that gut wrenching feeling when they know they should act. It is pushing through the feelings of doubt/hesitation that makes a good leader an eminent one.