Leaders want to believe they are making a difference.
People who see themselves as leaders believe they are creating good results by doing what leaders do. They plan, they budget, they encourage, they focus their resources. They see themselves as pushing the winds of change, sweeping across the land.
As we concentrate on the specific steps we need to take to move toward success, we can easily become discouraged. Even when we make wise decisions, our progress seems to be too slow. We may feel we are taking one step forward but three steps back. We may sense that other people are hindering us, intentionally getting in the way.
We may come to believe we cannot make the differences we would like to be making.
There have been times when I felt I was not a good leader. I was not able to make the differences I had set out to make. If I could not do what I expected myself to do, why should I even try?
The challenge for me is how I see myself, and how I see those differences I would like to make.
People tell me that I make a difference, even when I do not realize it.
I have read that a butterfly flapping its wings in one part of the world can make a difference in storms in another part.
I may not create the kinds of difference I see myself generating. I may not be able to change the direction of society with my own willpower. I may not make the kind of progress I think I need to make.
I can flap my wings, keep flying, and make a meaningful difference somewhere.
How has a butterfly made a difference to you?
Where do you recognize the differences you would like to be making?
[Image by AcrylicArtist]
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