I used to believe that leaders were people who told us what to do. When I knew enough of the right answers, then I could be a leader, too.
I have learned that leaders are not people who fill us with accurate responses to questions. They do not deposit what they have learned into us to earn interest from future generations.
Leaders are about bringing out what is best in us, not pumping more things into us. They carefully help us peel back built-up layers of expectations and anxieties to reveal what we can become.
The leaders who inspire me begin revealing deeper truths in themselves. They do the challenging work to get acquainted with their true selves, to know themselves well. As they learn to overcome their own inner obstacles, they share themselves with the people around them.
I have worked with people who did not appreciate their own potential to become leaders. They did not recognize that they could become leaders who put their own core values into practice every day.
Together we have discovered how important, and how beneficial, their leadership could become. Together we have rediscovered their deeper truths, one layer at a time.
The leaders with whom I work, who inspire me, have the courage it takes to explore the depths in themselves.
It takes patience and compassion to become a leader. Leadership is a journey we take one step at a time, even when there is no path to follow. Each step has the potential to show us deeper truths.
Carefully, we work away at the layers that have hidden the truths beneath them. Each step reveals the best we can do.
What deeper truths do leaders help reveal in you?
Who is helping bring out the best in you?
[Image by John Kratz]
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In