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In order to lead people, do I need to be a lone wolf?
Home » Leadership » Leadership - The Misconceptions of Leading People » In order to lead people, do I need to be a lone wolf?
One common idea of leadership is that the leader stands far in front of the people he leads. The leader charges the way into the wilderness, while the masses follow behind him, like Charlton Heston’s Moses in The Ten Commandments. In reality, however, regardless of where he stands, a good leader is intimately involved with the people he is leading.
Good leaders know that they need help. Though they make the final decision, they seek advice from others before making that decision. Imagine William Wallace charging the British on his own. He needed the thousands of Scotsmen behind him and with him. No matter how visionary a leader is, he cannot accomplish his goals by himself. He needs the help and support of those behind him.
In addition, a leader must know the people he is leading. One of leadership guru John Maxwell’s twenty-one laws of leadership is that leaders touch a heart before they ask for a hand. Good leaders build relationships with those around them. Good leaders communicate to the people they are leading that who they are is of more importance than what they can contribute.
A leader must have continual involvement with the people he is trying to lead. Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter said, “A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go but ought to be.” Motivation is brought about in part by effective vision casting on the front end, but a leader also needs to be continually motivating and reminding of the ultimate goal. Only by intimate involvement with the people can a leader sense the mood, energy, and needs of the people he is leading.
There is truth in the idea of the leader going out ahead and leading the way into the unknown. Taken too far, however, this image is distorted into a picture of a leader blinded by selfish ambition, with no knowledge of or involvement with the people he is leading.
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