On Leadership

Nowadays there are SO MANY books about “leadership”. People will read these books, follow the steps provided, and think “Yup, I’m a great leader. I did exactly what the book said to do”. I have a number of thoughts about the concept of leadership. You are free to agree, disagree, or feel completely indifferent, but here are some of my random thoughts on leadership:

-In my mind you are a leader, a follower, or a bystander in any given situation (and obviously you can be a leader in one situation, a follower in another, and a bystander in yet another). Other than the obvious fact that if you are a “bystander” then you are not partaking, I think being a “leader” is automatically associated with “good” and being a “follower” is always associated with “bad”. But in its simplest form it boils down to this: if you’re setting an example (walking in a certain direction, sharing certain information, promoting a certain brand, etc.) and someone is obliging then you are a “leader”. Conversely, if you are obliging by the example set by someone else, you are a “follower”.

-Because of the previous point, THERE CAN BE LEADERS WHO ARE BAD. Extreme example: If you promote the idea of killing others (think cults here), and others oblige by your orders, you are in fact a leader of others, and the others are followers of your lead. (If you need a real life example think Charles Manson if you must). You are a GOOD leader if you set a good example by which others follow (and conversely you’re a bad leader if you set a bad example by which others follow).

-Taking this a step further, you are either good or bad AT leadership based simply on the percentage of others that follows your example. If you try to get 10 people to join your cult and you get 8 you are good AT leadership, but a bad leader. If you try to get 10 people to join a gym to promote a healthy lifestyle and only 1 person follows then you are bad AT leadership, but a good leader (in spirit).

-My final thought for now would be this: “Leadership” is based completely on persuasion. How can you increase the percentage/total number of followers to your given idea/example? Leadership IS NOT life lessons, rah rah speeches, or being a servant to others. These are PERSUASION TECHNIQUES to get others to follow you. Do not determine whether you are a “Good Leader” based on how many speeches you give or how loud your voice is, but instead determine if you are “Good AT Leadership” based on how many people you can persuade to follow your example in any given situation. Sometimes those are who good at leadership can be very persuasive by being loud, boisterous, and self-promoting. They give a great speech and others cheer in approval. But there are also those who are good at leadership by being quiet, observing their surroundings, and manipulating the environment to get others to “buy-in” to their beliefs. They get people to follow them without others even realizing it has happened. Neither way is “right or wrong” other than by this objective fact: When you try to get others to believe in your example, how many actually follow?