You are the leader!

Leadership? You? Isn’t that just for the top of the ‘food chain’? You just want an entry-level job, a promotion to the next rung, or to simply keep your job in tight times, right? In today’s corporate world, you think to yourself, you’ll be lucky to get to a leadership position in the next five years. Wrong! If leadership is not the most overused and misunderstood word, then it certainly ranks in the top ten in today’s corporate corridors. It’s time to set the record straight.

In my book, The Offsite: A Leadership Challenge Fable, Gwen, a key character, learns leadership is not about title or position or being the decider - that’s positional authority. It’s not about knowing it all, creating a fearful atmosphere, or getting obedience from others. Real leadership is about collaboration, asking questions that promote learning, and creating an atmosphere of innovation. And, she also learns, real leadership is for everyone. Moreover, it can be honed with practice, but it starts internally and grows from there.

Gwen comes to understand real leadership is a way of life. It is a choice about creating open, honest, authentic relationships that urge others to want to discover their power and focus on what matters to them and their community. It is about knowing what matters to you and what you want from your life, not just your job. Gwen learns real leaders ask, “what do I want my life to look like today” not, “what do I have to do today”. Big difference.

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