Leadership: What Does It Really Mean?

The concept of “leadership” has been converging in my little world, on just about every front. But what does the term “to lead” really mean, and what implications does that have for what we call “leadership roles”?

I think we’ve gotten confused along the way about what leadership really is. In the process, we’ve completely excluded from service the portion of the population that doesn’t think of themselves as “leaders”, present company included. I’ve been pushed into leadership roles before, and believe me, the shoe doesn’t fit!

What I am proud to step up with is my support in terms of being a “follower” — that is, one of the many that set out to accomplish the goal of the organization, as interpreted through the actual leader. Simple math says that we need more FOLLOWERS, not more LEADERS, to accomplish any goal.

The question is, why can’t we be honest and upfront about what we really need when we’re appealing for help? Why do we ask for leaders to complete a project, when what we really need are the action people, the workers, the doers. The Followers.