The World Calls Out for Leaders
Will You Answer?
Welcome to the YouTopian Journey. Each week I will be sharing unique wisdom that can help you in the daily battles that we must all fight in the game of life. This week we discuss why we need leaders now more than ever.
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Now onto the good stuff.
A SPECIAL NOTE
Last week’s issue was a topic that a subscriber requested. This week’s topic is to coincide with my guest lecture at the prestigious Georgetown University this week, where I will be speaking to the MBA students on ethical leadership. I hope you enjoy it and if there is something specific you want me to cover, drop me a comment.
FALSE LEADERS EVERYWHERE
“We must all face the fact that our leaders are certifiably insane or worse.”-William S. Burroughs
Throughout history, civilizations have turned to figures to lead them through the chaos of existence. Whether they were democratically elected or seized power for themselves, there has always been a vacuum that needed to be filled. People have always been unable to exist without some direction, some figure goading them on, providing a purpose and a sense of belonging. No matter the region or epoch, a leader was always needed.
This continues today, where everything from international conglomerates to the simple family household have leaders at the helm. Yet as time goes on, we begin to realize that not all in positions of power are leaders. We have become inundated with false leaders.
And these false leaders are inescapable. They are everywhere.
On social media, leaders beckon you to their webinars and seminars, promising you the transformational skills that will be life changing and career altering.
Offline, retreats in exotic locations offer you esoteric secrets that will make you the leader that you were born to be.
Books line the shelves, providing leadership methods and skills from former executives, military generals, statesmen, professors, etc.
Everyone has something to offer. Everyone has some method that will make you the greatest leader of all time. And everyone has a price for this knowledge.
The notion of leaders and leadership has been hijacked for nothing more than profit and the appearance of authority. The reality of leadership has been transformed into something that resembles a cookie cutter assembly line, where would be leaders are awarded certificates and sent off to lead. They are groomed for roles that they eagerly accept via business cases and personal examples.
But the truth?
Leadership is a burden and one who finds themselves in a position of leadership knows that the responsibilities are difficult to shoulder. Being a true leader requires responsibility, not only to yourself, but to the people who look to you for guidance. You must be the shining example of not action, but of resilience and endurance.
“The general must be the first in the toils and fatigues of the army. In the heat of summer he does not spread his parasol nor in the cold of winter don thick clothing. In dangerous places he must dismount and walk. He waits until the army's wells have been dug and only then drinks; until the army's food is cooked before he eats; until the army's fortifications have been completed, to shelter himself.”-Sun Tzu, The Art of War
Many leaders do not engage in such behavior. Instead, they bark orders and delegate duties, remaining hidden from the very people who look to them for guidance. They are in it for the perks and powers. They want the impressive title. The result of this is that we are left with ineffectual leaders who fold when they face a minor crisis. And unfortunately, from the classroom to the board room, we must deal with the ineffectual individuals who we rely on for knowledge, our careers, and our future fortune.
This cannot last.
The world needs true leaders, not false actors. The world needs people who will take up the mantle of a leader, facing the obstacles that come their way each and every day.
The world needs you, if you are willing to accept such a position. If you are willing to leave your comfort zone. If you are willing to stand on your own and accept the responsibility of your decisions and actions. This is no easy position, but it is mandatory!
A position of truth. A position of endurance. A position of responsibility to your followers, organization, class, company, and to yourself.
“Let us not wait for other people to come to us and call upon us to do great deeds. Let us instead be the first to summon the rest to the path of honor. Show yourself to be the bravest of all the captains, with more of a right to leadership than those who are our leaders at present.”-Xenophon
ACCEPTING LEADERSHIP, DESPITE THE DIFFICULTIES.
“One has to test oneself to see that one is destined for independence and command-and do it at the right time. One should not dodge one’s tests, though they may be the most dangerous game one could play and are tests that are taken in the end before no witness or judge but ourselves."-Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil
Leadership is grueling and being a leader, while respectable, is a twenty-four hour a day position with no breaks. You will find that there is no off switch. This is a position that the multitude cannot stand.
Why?
Because people like well-ordered lives and set schedules. The alarm clock ringing each and every morning, the lights turning off each and every evening. Meals at the same time. Calendar invites to setup their days. Happy hours, tailgates, and brunches. Set vacation days and periods.
But the leader?
The leader must always be at the ready. The leader must be handling the problems of the present and planning the strategy for the issues of tomorrow. They are first in and last out. They work while others play. They plan while others sleep. They go forward with action when their peers may be expressing caution.
The true leader isn’t about perks or power. They are about improvement, both of themselves and those around them.
It is not for everyone and nor should it be.
But it could be for you.
It could be for you if you desire to aim higher, achieve more, and be more.
It could be for you if you know that deep down, you can do better than what currently passes for leadership.
It could be for you if you are tired of the status quo, knowing that you are the one who could not only improve the current system, but create a new one.
Because we need a new system. The current status quo won’t cut it any longer. We need new leaders with a new vision of how things can be. We don’t need any more armchair generals and wannabes who have seen too many movies and read too few books. We don’t need any more people who hold fictitious positions with big titles that stroke the egos of small people. Chief Happiness Officer, Chief Heart Officer, Chief Cheerleader Officer, and so on. These are not the positions of true leaders. These are the positions of bosses, a pale comparison.
Finally, this could be for you if you have a desire to achieve a leadership position, but have the humility to remain a lifelong learner, one who doesn’t let this position corrupt your values or relationships.
“Study means the wisdom to emulate the leaders in your chosen field, and the modesty to remain a student, no matter what your eminence may be.”-Edward E. Purinton, Efficient Living.
Ultimately, a leader is one who has an effect on the people around them. They inspire, motivate, and bring out the best in people. Sometimes this is through effective action and examples. Other times, it is a passive quality, where the mere presence of the leader is enough to motivate someone to do more and eventually, be more.
Despite all of the stresses and difficulties, you can be this person.
“Finding the center of strength within ourselves is in the long run the best contribution we can make to our fellow men....One person with indigenous inner strength exercises a great calming effect on panic among people around him. This is what our society needs — not new ideas and inventions; important as these are, and not geniuses and supermen, but persons who can "be", that is, persons who have a center of strength within themselves.”-Rollo May
YOU WANT TO LEAD? COMMAND YOURSELF
“No one is free who has not obtained the empire of himself. No man is free who cannot command himself.”-Pythagoras
In this busy world where the race is on to achieve wealth, power, and clout, we often forget about ourselves. We forget about our own weaknesses and desires, some of which can be extremely destructive.
We know we should focus on our health, yet we continue to indulge in unhealthy habits.
We know we should have less screen time and more family time, but the pull of the screen is something we cannot overcome.
We know we should be focused on improving ourselves but instead, we focus on the drama of others.
We know we should search for hard truths and cling to them but we rather have soft and comfortable fallacies.
This is no position for a leader as leadership requires following the reality of the situation, however difficult it may be. The position of the leader requires hard choices, each and every day. This is the brutal truth of it all and precisely why it is easier to be a follower and far simpler to let someone else take up the mantle.
“People who cling to their delusions find it difficult, if not impossible, to learn anything worth learning.”-James Baldwin
But not you.
You know something is inherently wrong. You know you can provide a solution to the problems at hand. You know you are more than capable. But something is preventing you, something within.
And this is why you must first seek to command yourself. You must treat yourself as someone who you are responsible for leading to a better tomorrow, because you are. You must be able to lead yourself before you can ever lead others.
This is mandatory.
Why?
Because we are at the mercy of external events. We cannot command the weather. Try as we might, we cannot anticipate the actions of others. We cannot control events or their outcomes. All we have is our ability to choose our responses to whatever life may throw our way. All we have is the ability to command ourselves.
“Not being able to govern events, I govern myself, and if they will not adapt to me, I adapt to them.” -Montaigne
Realize that an individual who commands themselves is a free individual and a leader, one who is able to be a positive force on their peers and the world at large. They are able to be a source of strength and can give comfort to those in need. They are able to appreciate everything that makes them great, holding themselves in awe for their abilities that they themselves developed. They take pride in an apprenticeship of their own work, one which is never able to be fully mastered, but that does allow them to grow stronger with each and every day. Set out to command yourself. I promise that the results will be worth the pain, worth the hardship, and worth the time.
Once you have realized this power over yourself, things begin to change in ways that you cannot begin to fathom. You see the world in a new light. You are able to see the weaknesses around you that you can personally address and shore up. You are able to see the opportunities that come from the chaos of the office or the streets, stepping up where others would step out.
It isn’t easy but it is powerful and necessary.
Ultimately, the choice is yours.
Make the right one. Command yourself so that others can have someone to look to, to be inspired by, and to hopefully one day, emulate in the highest manner possible. And that emulation is one that will truly make a difference in society for the better.
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader.”-John Quincy Adams
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I’m Shaun Gold and if you are reading this, you are already on your journey. Catch you next week.