Finding Leadership

Finding Leadership July 28, 2015

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The leaders who inspire me work to build organizations which develop leaders. They are passionate about finding and strengthening leadership in the people around them. They recognize the crucial effect the next generation of leaders will have on what they have done.

The leaders who inspire me want their organizations to appreciate people’s potential.

They want people to leave their companies better off than when they started.

The leaders who inspire me also recognize when organizations do just the opposite. They may look for people with the best potential they can find, then waste it.

It turns out there are a number of companies and organizations which are not very open to leadership. They bring in bright, talented people to teach them to do things the way they have always done them. They want people who will just follow the procedures, just do what they are told. They are developing followers, not leaders.

They may not find leadership potential because they are not looking for it.

Some of these organizations and managers do not intend to ignore the leadership around them. They are simply doing business the way they were taught to do it when they started.

Some people, though, ignore leadership potential on purpose. They see themselves as responsible for making sure nothing bad happens. They may be have a need for control, or be insecure about their own leadership potential. The fact is they are harming their organizations in the present and jeopardizing their future.

The decisions we make today will determine our future leadership. Are we spending today developing leaders, or developing followers?

We tend to find what we are seeking. Are we seeking leadership?

Who is developing your leadership potential this week?

Where is the source of your organization’s future leadership?

[Image by Wesley Fryer]


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