Is Character A More Potent Ingredient Than Strategy In Leadership?
Kingsley Grant quoted recently on his LinkedIn page: “Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without strategy, (General Norman Schwarzkopf).
However, John C. Maxwell said #Leadership is #influence; nothing more, nothing less.... Indeed, it’s the ability to move people to achieve a #goal, and that goal could be anything! But when you can command a group of followers and get them to blindly or clearly do what you want them to do is the idea and aim of leaders or leadership. #Hitler was a leader... whatever the outcome. And #DonaldTrump is an effective leader in terms of having the ability to shoot someone in public and still get away with enjoying the support of his followers.
Trump is somehow revered and celebrated as a hero, a bastion of hope for conservative or some white and black people (called Trumpists) and has an ideology called Trumpism. He’s beloved and enjoys the majority if not all of his party support and is funny and has a way with people even if he comes across as crazy or eccentric, he is still loved.
#charismata or charisma is an important aspect, that charm or appeal that some people have that drives their supporters or followers wild and in a frenzy of die-hearted service. Leaders are smart in boasting a strategy of providing a charismatic persona that enables them to influence. Leadership is not position it is influence & if you have character & cannot lead /or nfluence then what do you have...?
I understand some of your points but as I read I noticed a few disagreements in your argument. First there are “managers” and there are “leaders” To be a leader is to LEAD others to be an example of what ever mission you want to guide others to. It’s not someone who commands and forces demands it’s someone who guides people to complete a goal. The role of a leader is to benefit the group by taking initiative in hopes of guiding their followers into the right direction. Managers are people who give commands in order to complete their goals. Hitler was not a leader he wouldve been considered as a manager. Trump is not a leader he is a manager. Both of those examples are men who can do whatever they want because they’re in a higher position and have that power to control other and make demands because of their authoritative role as a manager. They don’t need to influence others but they still have the ability to influence. All Managers need is strategy to get those bellow them or in a lower position to utilize that strategy to attain the goals or accomplish the mission they’re not influenced they are controlled.
ReplyDeleteLeaders influence their follower to follow their lead. Managers demand their followers to accomplish their goals but can also have influence on their followers.
So that being said I can agree that leadership is not a position, it’s not a title or authoritative role. It’s influencing others by being an example of what and how it’s should look to use the strategy to accomplish the goal. There are many different ways to do this and those ways are called leadership. For example servant leadership; leading others by serving to their needs which influences them to act out the strategy the strategy and follow the lead of the leader. That’s just one way to influence others.
Having Charisma is an aspect of what might influence others. It’s a characteristic that both managers and leaders can have.
If I had to choose I would choose character. Character is the foundation of what influences others. I can still lead others with out having a strategy. And I can have a strategy but not know how to lead others into following it. The quote basically is saying that leadership; the act of leading others can be done by leading people with a strategy or leading them with character Ian’s he suggests that if you must perform the act of leading someone choose to do it with character in mind not strategy.