Leadership is much talked about in today’s world, especially at business schools, corporate settings and in educational institutions. What it is, how to develop it and what to do with it are also the subject of endless books, blogs and articles.
I’ve written often on this subject myself, as I too navigate the waters of this topic in my own entrepreneurial journey. One thing I am pretty sure of though is that leadership of others is only possible when you have sufficiently mastered the leadership of self.
I was fortunate to take part in an extraordinary programme at the Kennedy School at Harvard last year, a programme for the Young Global Leaders of the World Economic Forum (of which I am a part), entitled ‘Global Leadership and Public Policy for the 21st Century’. As part of this programme, we were asked to read a book, ‘True North’, which documented stories of leaders who had all faced ‘crucible moments’ in their leadership of their organisations. As someone who has gone through a fair few of those moments myself, the themes of the book resonated strongly with me, as it did to most of my colleagues on the course too.
A profound take away for me, and something that has been especially true of my own leadership journey recently, has been the importance of developing ‘self-mastery’, in order to effectively lead others. As someone especially committed to my own spiritual growth, I have recognised that the quality of my leadership is always directly related to the commitment I place on this aspect of my life. We are all here not so much to be pioneers or leaders in our field of endeavour so much as we are placed to bring healing to the everyday lives of those we encounter, whether we are leading companies or raising a family. And we can only do this if we let go of fear, ego or self-doubt and rise to the occasion that is demanded of us, leading ourselves with grace and humility. We all have the choice as to whether we ‘choose’ to take leadership in any given moment, raising the bar on the outcome of any situation, choosing to bless those around us.
For more blogs on leadership, please check out the following. And I look forward to hearing about your own ‘leadership’ experiences!
https://love-not-fear.org/2013/07/12/spirituality-and-transformative-leadership-a-call-to-action/
https://love-not-fear.org/2013/05/19/spirituality-and-mindful-leadership-in-myanmar/
Love Not Fear 