Life Practice · Social
Leadership happens when we go beyond simple cooperation and set a direction for everyone to travel in. We’re most effective as leaders when we ensure that a few simple elements are in place.
Illustration · 4:3
Same image as this function’s hub panel
Social Alignment · two or more figures, or paths that meet
For a person to be fully-functional w.r.t. leadership, they have to be able to step into the spotlight when it’s appropriate, take responsibility for the success of a team as a whole, and provide people with the gift of direction.
Think of a group and the branching structures of possibility ahead of it. Some branches lead to desirable states-of-affairs, others to undesirable states-of-affairs.
The most important aspect of leadership is the leader taking personal responsibility for ensuring that the group reaches one of the most desirable states-of-affairs.
In formal settings, leaders are usually given titles to recognise the responsibility they’ve taken on board, and formal powers to help them to exercise this responsibility. But in informal settings the leader is usually the person who sees what needs to be done the clearest. They step up and make sure that things work out well.
Leaders have their impact through catalysing the abilities others have to get things done. This means ensuring four elements are in place.
The first is a sense of game. Team members need a sense that what they’re doing together is worth doing. Teams also need an effective strategy. The leader’s role is to hold the strategy. The more people pitch in and help develop it, the better, but it’s up to the leader to make sure that the strategy is coherent and that everyone knows how to take up their place within it. Leaders are responsible for people’s roles. They should ensure that, as far as possible, everyone is playing to their strengths. And they’re responsible for healthy team dynamics. The leader is uniquely placed to keep the way people go about things on track. If the team dynamics gets unhealthy, there are always steps they can take to improve matters. It’s their determination to keep things on track that makes the most difference.It’s odd, but true, that the personality of the leader is always mirrored in the personality of the team as a whole, or of the organisation that they lead.
Leaders, then, should make sure they act in ways that they’ll be glad to see mirrored.
If they are true to their deepest sense of what it means to act well themselves, then they’ll end up proud of the way that their teams or organisations carry on.
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