I wish that instilling leadership qualities into an individual was as simple as giving them a “BIG” title on their business card. Can you imagine how simple that would be? Everyone could have titles like VP of Inspiration, VP of Visioning, VP of Implication Thinking and just the sheer embossment would immediately create success. Kind of like kissing a frog.
Quite frankly, I would like to get rid of titles. So sure, at times they provide some guidance into what department someone works in or what role they may play. Yet often, it is just a place card for moving up the food chain and unfortunately a lot of the important stuff, such as true leadership competencies, gets left behind.
Leadership, no matter the title or tenure, belongs to everyone in a company. We are all responsible for leading those around us - whether it is our peers, our clients or our supplier partners - to a successful outcome. There is nothing more heartbreaking than for someone to say they don’t see themselves as leaders…in anything. Now, I know that some people would describe themselves as more of a “team player” rather than a leader, but that is using a stereotypical approach to leadership. Leadership isn’t about standing at the podium in a large audience, having 50 direct reports, or like I said before, the “BIG” title. Leadership is simple, it’s about serving others. Giving the best of yourself, assuming the best of others, and having the desire to see everyone succeed.
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