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How should I lead people if I’m not a born leader?
Home » Leadership » Leadership - The Misconceptions of Leading People » How should I lead people if I’m not a born leader?
There is a basic leader archetype in the American subconscious. This leader has the charisma of Franklin Roosevelt, the conviction of Abraham Lincoln, the motivational skills of Winston Churchill, and the troop loyalty of George Washington. According to this model, the amount to which you possess these qualities determines your strength as a leader. In reality, however, anyone can be a leader—regardless of their parents or their personality.
Warren G. Bennis said, “The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are born—that there is a genetic factor to leadership…That’s nonsense; in fact, the opposite is true.” Some people naturally have more charisma or tend to seize control amidst confusion; these people are what society calls “natural leaders,” but they have only the most obvious characteristics of a traditional leader.
In the end, leadership has less to do with what you look like and more to do with how you influence people. Another one of John Maxwell’s twenty-one laws of leadership is that the true measure of leadership is influence. Anyone can influence people. The charismatic leader may have a head start because people are drawn to him, but the quietest, humblest man or woman often influences people far more than many charismatic leaders.
But if leaders are made rather than born, how are they made? Through hard work and on the job training. Anthony Jay said, “The only real training for leadership is leadership.” Many leaders had the charisma and conviction we normally associate with leadership, but those personality traits did not make them a leader. The best leaders become leaders not because of their personality but because they sought to influence people, and they learned from experience.
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