Posted by Luke in A recent experience has shown me the importance of leaders. As our discipline (Information Systems) meanders towards a slow tumbling death from hell, I have been wondering where the leaders are? And yes I put myself in that category. This got me thinking… sometimes you NEED leadership.
Leaders know the way
What we really need at work at the moment is someone to stand up and show us the way forward. Most of us don’t have the faintest idea what the hell to do or what is going to work. Leaders know what needs to be done and they know there is a path. Even if a leader doesn’t know what the path is and where it will lead they have insight, foresight and direction. We need a leader to help us in these times and most importantly we need direction.
When you don’t know what to do … you need a leader
In my life I have been spiralling downwards with a clear lack of direction for about twelve months. I won’t lie, this has been one of the worst experiences of my life to date. What I have learned in this time is that taking advice from other people is great… but I really need is leadership. Some turn to various places to get that kind of leadership but for me I find people that are willing to listen and can offer some sound advice. Still, you can’t live your life around these things you need to “man up” and make decisions that you are accountable for.
A good leader helps you to see the bigger picture
One thing I have come to find very annoying is people who deliberately leave out key information about a topic in order to protect ideas they think are valuable… why share it in the first place. DAMMIT! I don’t know how many times I have read something on the internet about how to this or make something and the end result is different. My wife’s grandmother used to leave key ingredients out of recipes all the time for example!
However, a good leader will be able to call you out and help you to see the bigger picture at all times. They will be able to point the direction towards what you need… not necessarily what you want. A good leader can show you the way and point you towards the steps you need to take in order to make it work for you. They will give you keys and help you to see the very best. In short a good leader will help you to think strategically.
I think that in every area of life there are leaders. You would be hard pressed not to find one. However, how many good ones are there? I leave you to work that out.
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If I lead you here, will you follow?
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