leadership

When I was in school, I could never understand all the hype about leadership abilities. I couldn't fathom why they were such an important factor in scholarship applications. And why the fact that I had a gold medal meant nothing since I was not captain of the team. Personally, I had no interest in leadership roles, and I enjoyed being an irresponsible free spirit.

A couple of miles into the rat race and it has become strikingly apparent to me why this intangible virtue is valued so highly. One man, on his own, can only do so much. No matter his talents or intellect, he only has 24 hours in a day, one brain and two hands. The only way to transcend the physical limitations of our human body is to further our purposes through others. Too many cooks will spoil the broth unless the head chef is able to mould them into a cohesive and integral team. And that is the job of the leader.

The other job of the leader is to motivate. Having worked under several, I begin to discern the good leaders from the bad ones. And the good ones will keep you working and energised even if they are not there in the office with you at 10pm at night - you do it not even because you think the work is meaningful, but out of love and respect for the man. And because you may not understand his plans, but you have faith in hisdecisions. I hope one day to be that kind of leader.

Many schools of leadership teach leadership by example. Lead from the front. Come On not Go On. I think that is all bullshit. A true leader would not need to be there. It would be good, of course, but a team should not rely on the leader's presence for motivation. The leader is only truly effective when he has made himself redundant.