"Men fear thought as they fear nothing else on earth -- more than ruin -- more even than death.... Thought is subversive and revolutionary, destructive and terrible, thought is merciless to privilege, established institutions, and comfortable habit. Thought looks into the pit of hell and is not afraid. Thought is great and swift and free, the light of the world, and the chief glory of man. "
-Bertrand Russell
"A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way..."
-John C. Maxwell
"The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help them or concluded that you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership..."
-Colin Powell
If you know me, then you know where I am...
If you don't know me, first of all let me say, "Its nice to meet you." Secondly, I'm in Iraq. I'm deployed right now as a soldier in the U.S. Army.
Now, on to the meat of the subject...leadership...
At various times in my life I've been a leader. I've been elected, selected, and occassionally took the initiative to be a leader. With that being said, at times I've been a bad leader. Actually, in retrospect, I can say most of the time I was a bad leader. I'll tell you why...
As a younger man, I was under the impression that it was my job to have a vision and make sure everyone else was working towards what MY vision was. It was a selfish and misguided endeavor most of the time, and I'll admit that wholeheartedly. It wasn't until probably two years that I realized that much of my leadership experience was based on how I felt, I thought, and what I believed. Well...as a leader...that's waaaaaay too much "I" and not enough "we"...as a result, I squandered many a leadership opportunity.
Also, thre's another character trait that I possessed that didn't quite work well with me as a leader. I was very confrontational. All throughout my adolescent years and in my early 20s, I fought. Why? It was because I was under the impression that using my fists or harsh words would breed a sort of unspoken respect. I was under the impression that those who spoke subversively of me, those who espoused opposing viewpoints, and sometimes those who just had a different point of view, were my enemy. Well, thinking like that made me way more enemies than friends.
Am I sorry for it? No. I will not apologize for who I was, because it helped me become who I am. I will say I was wrong though. None the less, I can't change the past so I won't dwell on it.
Now, on to the present and the future.
As I stated earlier, about two years ago I had the epiphany that I was a bad leader. I took a "No Bull" assessment of myself and saw that I was probably intellectually and intellectually qualified for the leadership positions I had undertaken. I was more than likely charismatically qualified too. The fact of the matter is, I was taking a "Me Against the World" attitude. So, I looked at my set of circumstances at that time and said to myself, "That this is not how my life is supposed to be...this is not where I imagined myself. This will not be who or what I am. I must do something different. I must be humbled, I must be disciplined, and I must learn to follow." Sounds like garbage or something you may read in some sort of bad novel that you read in line at the grocery store, right? Well...that's pretty much the reason I joined the Army...
Since I've been in the Army, my life has taken a much different direction. As I expected it to. I've become a lot more humble. I've become a lot more disciplined and realistic in terms of who and what I am. Lastly, I've learned that I CAN follow and am good at it. Another thing I've learned is that there are certain KEY qualities and characteristics that make a good leader.
One of my Drill Sgts., a Staff Sergeant Edward Cummings, told me something that I've kept in my toolbag ever since. He said, "You can learn from EVERY NCO. The good ones and the bad ones..." I can definitely say that I've learned.
I've been fortunate enough to have some outstanding leadership since I've been in the Army. I've also been unlucky enough to witness some not so good leadership as well...
Here are five things that I've learned about leadership since I've been in the Army and from my own personal experience...
5. YOU CAN'T LEAD PEOPLE THAT RESENT YOU
It is absolutely impossible to lead people that resent you for one reason or another. If those who's job it is to follow you don't trust you, find you morally reprehensible, and an example of what not to do, your leadership will constantly be questioned and not respected. It is a matter of image and personality traits most times. A large percentage of being a leader is looking the part and leading the elements to the collective vision, all the way down to the basest level. This vision is ultimately directed by the leader, but it is shaped by the entity. It does not exist in a vacuum, but rather is a dynamic organism. The vision and the leader must share certain qualities. The vision and leader should be firm, but flexible; strong, but not overbearing; clear, but not so simplistic that it is crude. The leader should be a protector and guide of the followers. If you nurture the body, they will follow and love you. If you expose them to all sorts of ills, inconsistencies, threats, and problems while seeking personal gratification of wants in relation to the vision, they will resent you and will rebel.
4. A LEADER MUST STAND STRONG IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY AND SUBVERSIVE ELEMENTS THAT ARISE.
A Leader is only as good as his word. If direction or guidance is given, the leader must stand on it. Now, that does not make the entity a dictatorship. A good leader must be smart enough to take in different viewpoints and ideologies when shaping policy and guidance. If a directive is found to be ineffective or faulty, the leader must be strong enough to stand up and admit to the flaw and correct it confidently. If the leader is weak and malleable, the body will not respect him. If a subversive element should arise within the body, the leader must stand up to it and protect the bulk of the body and impart the need for urgent steadfastness among the body. By doing such, the leader will gain respect and loyalty. If the leader falters or wavers in the face of subversive elements, he has crippled his leadership and will be seen as a "paper tiger", so to speak.
3. A LEADER MUST NOT CONCERN HIMSELF WITH TRIVIALITIES OR MINUTIAE
A Leader CAN NOT show signs of pettiness or a fondness for triviality. Such things detract from the vision and mission of the body. That does not mean a leader does not pay attention to detail. In fact, details themselves should be a good leaders strong point in addition to him being able to see the greater objective. There are steps and phases to get to a goal. These steps and phases have their own benchmarks of progress. These benchmarks of progress all have their own subtle details. The details need to be addressed. The trivialities do not.
2. A LEADER MUST BE CONCERNED WITH THE WELL BEING OF THE BODY'S MEMBERS, BUT NOT OVERLY CONCERNED WITH THEIR PERSONAL LIVES AND ENDEAVORS.
Any healthy team, organization, or (the term I've consistently used) body is made up of a variety of types of people. These people all have different interests, personalities, family lives, backgrounds, etc. That is a strong point. A good leader knows a little bit about his subordinates. He can relate to the body on its basest level without pandering. The leader makes sure they are ok. The body feels comfortable bringing their problems to the leader, because they are sure that the leader can aid them, comfort them, and the leader is trustworthy. A good leader is not a judge, but a confidant. A disciplinarian, and a friend. A good leader is willing to walk through the fire with the body and its members to prove that they can come out better and stronger on the other side. Such a leader breeds loyalty. A leader who judges, disciplines without merit, busies themselves in the affairs of others that are of no consequence to them, and gossips, breeds mistrust, hostility, and resentment. They cannot be trusted and will be handicapped in their ability to lead so long as there is an element that has been affected by their actions. In short, the body must be allowed to live their lives and follow the body simultaneously.
1. A LEADER MUST BE ABLE TO MOTIVATE THE BODY
Every human being is motivated by something. Money, love, and respect are prime examples of peoples motivations. A leader must be able to tap into the things that motivate everyone. Leaders are keepers and caretakers of the collective vision. They are the ones that believe in the vision and support the vision when it seems improbable and at times impossible. A leader must guide and provide a beacon for the body to follow in dark times. As the body is growing and marchiung towards the collective vision, the beacon must shine in the dark times and provide relief when the body is weary. The leader must be a steadfast example so that the body can be a steadfast entity. When the leader and the body are both steadfast, the vision will be as well.
Ok...enough of my ramblings...
Sincerely,
Bleek
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