New Year Resolutions

I have rarely made New Year resolutions in my life. The occasional January when I have considered some goals, I have decided not to set myself up for failure by declaring a resolution. As a young boy, I set some resolutions for the New Year, but usually had missed the mark by the end of January. This year, I have decided to give some realistic thought to establishing some habits that positively impact my life. I have developed a list of resolutions – ten in all, but only four will make this blog. The remaining six are more personal in nature and more difficult to measure. I would like to make the Big Four a vital part of the blog by tracking my progress (and hopefully my faithfulness) toward the goals. I will make some sort of measuring chart on the blog so if you visit periodically throughout the year you can hold me accountable for the progress.

Here are the four resolutions and a short explanation of each.

1.Blog : (3 times per week) = 150 posts during 2012
I really enjoy writing, but often the tyranny of the urgent and the call of convenience destroy my priority of written communication. The sporadic postings of this blog were a disappointment to me this last year. My goal is to keep this site up-to-date during 2012. My daughter-in-law maintains her blog (Silly Eagle Books) every day and has developed quite a following – you should check it out if you have young children (www.sillyeaglebooks.com/ ). My goal is not to attract a large reader base (although that would be nice), but to practice the discipline of writing. I have found that expressing my thoughts on paper is a vital part of my leadership role. The better I can put my ideas down on paper, the more effective I can be in sharing my vision. So my resolution is to submit at least 3 times per week. Now this is a huge commitment for me since this is my third year to blog and my yearly outputs to date have been 17, 60, and 30. For 2012, I plan to submit 150 postings. Is this too aggressive? Are my idealistic eyes bigger than my realistic schedule will permit? Only time will tell but I really hope that I can reach this target.

2.Run: (Three 5Ks per week) = 540 miles during 2012
I have been running pretty consistently since August of 2011. I started with a short distance (1.4 miles) from my house to the main intersection and back. I expanded that to a nice 2.4 mile run around the neighborhood. But I really wanted to run a 5K so I found this great little circuit that circles our housing community that measures 3.6 miles. It has some nice hills that challenge my old legs and provides me with a great little workout. Spring, summer, and fall are not too hard to maintain a routine, but those winter months can be tough to keep the pace. My goal is to run between 500 -550 miles this coming year which averages out to 3/5K runs per week. If God will provide the good health and strong knees, I hope to accomplish this resolution.

3.Weight – Maintain current weight +/- 5lbs (160-170 lbs) during 2012. I have worked hard this past six months to lose weight. I have lost nearly 30 pounds and find myself today at 163 lbs. However, I have lost weight before and then regained. In fact much of my adult life has been a roller coaster of loss and gain. I feel really good right now and would love to maintain my body weight over this next year. My running resolution (#2) will help achieve this goal as they will go hand-in-hand. Diet is such a key as well. I have a strange but effective diet right now that seems to work for me. But I need to be careful not to “fall off the wagon” and begin to eat unhealthily.

4.Read – minimum of two books per month = 24 books during 2012. I enjoy reading, but finding the time to systematically do so has not been easy to accomplish. I have a 35 minute drive (one-way) between the two campuses of my school system. I make this drive twice a week, so I have taken this time to read (listen) to books on tape. What a great way redeem the time. I have been able to read several books this past year and hope to continue this practice going into 2012. As I complete a good book, my comments and review might appear as one of the three blogs I plan to make each week. Two books per month does not seem to be very challenging to some of you. My wife reads that many each week, but for me, I think this is a stretch. I have never counted the number of books that I read each year, so this will be enlightening for me as I move throughout the year.

Really? New Year resolutions? They may go up in smoke after the first week OR they may be a focal point of fun and order. What do I have to lose? Come back and check out my progress. Better yet, develop some resolutions of your own and chart your own progress. Happy New Year!

Survivor Insights: Pt Two

Continuing to reflect on Survivor, South Pacific (Season 23 of the reality TV series), I would like to highlight three more players of the game. These three individuals capture some of the essence of the leadership qualities demonstrated throughout the show. This post will explore the winner (Sophie) and two people that many fans might classify as the biggest losers in the game: Cochran and Brandon. I would not share their conclusions. The qualities of the leader are often seen in the eyes of the beholder.

Sophie Clarke (age 22) from Willsboro, NY was the ultimate winner of the million dollar prize. Sophie is a medical student and she played a very strategic game. She aligned herself with Coach and four others on day one of the show. This alliance of five made it all the way to the end. Once there were five and they had to begin voting one another out, she positioned herself well and took advantage of the weaknesses of others. With a little help from Brandon (see below) and her ability to win the last immunity challenge she found herself sitting as one of the last three players. Sophie was intelligent but opinionated; she was introverted but conceited; she spurned the prayers of other players but kept her criticism silent. In many ways she hid behind the visible leadership of Coach and the verbal plans of Albert (other in the alliance of five). She played well behind the scenes and ended up with a great deal of influence at the end. Her conceit and “brat-like” nature almost lost the game for her, but the jury preferred her strategy (despite her selfishness) over Coach’s dishonor.

Lessons from Sophie: 1. Be careful what you say and recognize a need for true humility; 2.You can be a person of great influence without being the visible leader or the mouthpiece for the organization; 3. Although you might win an earthly prize, it does not always reveal the inner character.

Another interesting player was Cochran. John Cochran (age 24) lives in Washington D.C. and is a student at Harvard Law School. Cochran was a self-proclaim expert of the game of Survivor. He had studied the game and knew the details of all 22 previous seasons. He was intelligent and verbally articulate, but his lack of self-confidence and social skills, hurt his game drastically. He came across as a geek (because he was) and failed to gain the respect of the other members of the tribe. His original tribe continually put Cochran down and began early to include his name at tribal council votes. He managed to survivor each council as other tribe members received more votes, but he was seen as a weak link (and criticized to his face). He survived to the merger of the two tribes into one. He then flipped his alliance to the other tribe and voted out one of his original tribe members. This was seen as an act of treason by his old tribe, but Cochran’s original team was slowly eliminated on member at a time – all because they failed to treat Cochran with respect and kindness. Cochran did not win Survivor, but he may have influenced the results of the game more than any player on the island. Cochran’s decision to switch tribes may not have been the wisest one, but I understand it completely.

Lessons from Cochran: 1. Research without experience may lead to misconceptions and blind-spots; 2. Treat all people with respect and honor – team success needs every member of the team; 3.The heart and courage of a leader is not always seen on the surface.

Finally there is Brandon - Brandon Hantz (19 years old) resides in Katy, Texas. He is an Oil Tanker crewman and the nephew of one of the biggest villains in Survivor history (Russell Hantz). When asked why he wanted to play the game he responded that he wanted to show everyone there is more than one side to the Hantz family (other than being mean). Brandon openly proclaimed his Christian faith and his desire to live a righteous life. However, Brandon also made some foolish and impulsive decisions. His religious beliefs did not seem to match his actions from time to time. It was easy to see that Brandon struggled between his commitment to righteousness and his sinful nature. He truly desired to play an honest game, but sometimes shared that honesty in brutal, tactless ways. His words often alienated him from other tribe members who began to doubt his ability to keep confidential information. Brandon won an immunity challenge that would have thrust him into the final five. He confronted Albert about some of Albert’s lies – the rest of the tribe was ready to vote Albert out of the game. Albert came to Brandon and sought his forgiveness for the deception. Brandon not only forgave Albert but he gave Albert his immunity at the tribe council. Without immunity it was Brandon that was voted out by the tribe. This was a stupid move from a game’s perspective, but I think Brandon really won the game of integrity. His Christianity shone brightly at that moment and he left the game with true honor. At the final show (live in Hollywood), Brandon shared that most of his family was disappointed in how he played the game including his dad and Uncle Russell. How sad, because, in my book, Brandon was the true winner of character (not Sophie) and demonstrated a testimony of faith (not Coach).

Lessons from Brandon: 1. Stand up for truth, but speak the truth in love; 2. Tact and confidentiality can exist within a lifestyle of integrity; 3. Winning the battles deep within one’s spirit are far more important than temporal, earthly rewards.

Survivor Insights: Part 1

I really enjoy watching the reality show, Survivor, on Wednesday evenings. I like it so much because of the personal interactions between contestants and the leadership (or lack thereof) displayed within the tribal context. For those who may have not seen the show, the first episode introduces the players as each belongs to one of two tribes. The two tribes compete against one another and the losing tribe is forced to vote out one of its members. Once the tribes are reduced to a suitable number, the two groups are united into one tribe and the competition for immunity becomes an individual challenge. After each immunity challenge, one member is eliminated with every member vulnerable except the winner of the challenge. When the contestants diminish to 12, each player voted out then becomes a member of the jury. The final three castaways appear before the jury of nine and the jury then votes to determine the winner – the sole survivor.

This past season was filled with interesting twists and bonehead decisions. It was also filled (as usual) with lots of deception, lies, and dishonesty. This was season 23 and over the history of the game, it has become the strategy of players to make alliances with other players, but those alliances are tested and challenged through a variety of situations. Most contestants end up breaking alliances and voting out someone who trusts them and relies upon their loyalty. Survivor is a game – but it is a difficult game of decision making and compromising situations. To play it with integrity and honesty is not that difficult, but to play and win it with integrity and honesty has proven very difficult indeed.

I am not recommending this show as family entertainment or even a series for Christian adults. But if you like to study human nature and observe decision making in progress, then Survivor is an interesting show to view. This season there are several individuals from whom I learned a great deal. Let me share five quick insights (two in this post and three in the next – Survivor Insights: Part 2).

First there is Coach – Benjamin “Coach” Wade (39 years old). Coach current lives in Susanville, California and this was the third season of Survivor for this man of idiosyncrasies. During the first two seasons, Coach came across as a radical (maybe even unbalanced) individual calling himself the “Dragon Slayer” and presenting himself as a mystical philosopher. This season, he played the game as a more gentle leader of the tribe. Off the Survivor Island, coach is involved in athletics and music at a college level. As a contestant, honor and integrity became his motto but a failure to consistently demonstrate that integrity ultimately lost him the game. He played a game of excellent strategy but, in my opinion he presented himself too visibly as the leader of the tribe in front of the jury. He was loyal to his original alliance of five, but made some promises to two players, Cochron (to be highlighted during the next post) and Etna that he was unable to keep making him look rather dishonorable. He also made a promise to Ozzy(see below) and gave his word to him , “as a Christian man” on which Coach later turned his back.

Lessons from Coach: 1.Never give your word and your promise if you are unsure about its validity and your ability to keep it; 2. Providing friendship and a spirit of unity to a group produces strong alliances and deep loyalty; 3. Experience can bring great wisdom to life if one learns lessons from the past.

A second player is Ozzy – Oscar Lusth (30 years old). Ozzy was a returning player as well, having experienced two previous seasons. Ozzy lives in Venice, Calif. He is one of the most physical players in Survivor history, excelling in physical challenges and providing food for the tribe through spear-fishing and climbing coconut trees. Lusth currently works as a freelance photographer and writer. Part of this season of Survivor involved Redemption Island where a player, once voted out was exiled to solitude and competed one-on-one to stay in the game with other voted-out tribe members. Eventually the winner of Redemption Island reentered the game. Ozzy was ideal for this role because of his physical abilities. After the merger of the two tribes, Ozzy was voted out of the unified tribe and sent to Redemption Island because of the leadership he provided for the minority group, thus was seen as the underdog and martyr, a role he played quite well for the second half of the season. Ozzy was fantastic in challenges and consistently defeated the other cast-offs. He reentered the game with only a handful of contestants left. He needed to win two immunity challenges in a row to make it to the final three. He won the first with relative ease. He had a huge lead in the second challenge, but lost by failing to complete a complex puzzle. This loss resulted in his elimination in the game and a seat on the jury. Had Ozzy won the second challenge, he would have won the game. Even though he did not win the million dollars as Sole Survivor, he was awarded $100,000 for receiving the most online votes by the fans for the Player of the Season.

Lessons from Ozzy: 1. Total reliance upon one’s own abilities often lead to defeat; 2. Being seen as a threat to the stability of a group, no matter how powerful you think you are, can lead to leadership disaster; 3. Diligence and determination in the face of failure can ultimately lead to success and great accomplishments.

Book Review: Nurturing the Leader Within Your Child - T.Elmore

I took 19 pages of notes as I read through Elmore’s book (2001) on nurturing leadership skills in children but let me highlight a few thoughts. This book is filled with illustrative examples of young leaders accomplishing significant achievements in their lives. The pages of this text provide parents substantial ideas and suggestions for developing and instilling leadership in their children. Here is a quick run through of the content with hopefully enough salt to make you thirsty for a deeper read.

Elmore introduces much of his perspective of leadership development through a look at culture and how we “fit” into the times in which we live. He presents three basic views of culture: 1. Isolation: culture is evil and must be avoided. 2. Saturation: culture is everything and we must blend with it. 3. Interpretation: culture is useful and must be employed to communicate values and truth to the younger generation. He concludes that we must engage the culture, explore the culture (learn from it) and employ the culture to explain truth.
Practical ideas and suggestions is a major focus within Elmore’s writings. He suggests seven ways for parents to stay relevant and four roles a parent must fill in helping their child navigate through the pitfalls and potholes of our culture. A parent must learn to be a Host, a Doctor, a Counselor, and a Tour Guide for his/her child. I love the following story taken from the section on becoming a Counselor,

“Katie (7 yrs old) asked her dad if she could play with her friend next door. Dad replied it would be fine as long as she was home by 6:00 pm. Unfortunately, Katie was not home by 6:00 pm. Dad grew a little upset when he had to call and ask that Katie be sent home. When she got home a half-hour late, her dad said, ‘Didn’t you hear me tell you to come home by 6:00?’
‘Yes’, she replied, ‘but my friend’s doll broke.’
Her dad mellowed a bit, ‘Oh, I see. And you stayed to help her fix it?’
‘No’, Katie whispered. ‘I stayed to help her cry.’” (p. 51-52)

Elmore then spends some time defining leadership in terms of a formula: Character + Perspective + Courage + Favor = Healthy Effective Leadership. He explains the formula in detail using the following basic concepts: 1. Character – enables a leader to do what is right, even when it is difficult. 2. Perspective – enables a leader to see and understand what must happen to reach a goal. Anyone can possess character. Leaders, however, think differently than followers do. Leaders see before others do and see beyond what others do. 3. Courage – enables the leader to initiate a plan and to risk stepping out toward the goal. 4. Favor - enables the leader to attract and empower others to join them in the cause. After exploring each element of his formula, the author provides some steps the child can take to develop his/her leadership skills.

The book delineates five Myths about leadership, five skills that leaders should possess, six goals for young leaders, and six stages of leadership development. The book closes with a summary of leadership development by looking at the concept of crossing the seven seas (C’s) of leadership: character, compassion, courage, competency, convictions, commitment, and charisma.
This book is filled with understandable leadership theory and practical ideas for families – a recommended read for parents of younger children and educators desiring to instill leadership qualities in their children/students.


Elmore, T. 2001. Nurturing the leader within your child. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

How Do You Help a Child Discover a Vision?

Young students need to discover what God is calling them to do. Sometimes the calling involves their lives right now. For others the vision might need nurturing, training, or more education. As I have done some reading recently, I have been impressed with a number of young people who have made a significant change in the world around them.

Consider Josiah - a boy of 8 years-old who became king of Israel. By the time he was a young teenager, Josiah had brought significant moral, social, spiritual, and ethical reforms to his country (2 Kings 22-23).

Or Joan of Arc, who as a teen, led 3000 French knights to victory.

Or Trevor Ferrill who was 11 years old in 1983. As a typical pre-teen, he was doing his homework in front of the TV. A documentary came on the tube about the homeless in his hometown of Philadelphia, PA. Trevor was moved emotionally and deeply motivated to help these people who were without a place to stay and without food to eat. With the help of his folks, Trevor delivered a blanket and a sack lunch to a homeless person in the inner city of Philadelphia (the city of Brotherly Love). But this one time delivery was not enough for Trevor and soon this because an adventure that included his whole family. Trevor, his parents, his brother and two sisters were making nightly trips to downtown Philadelphia. Church groups and other service organizations heard about this ministry and started to support the outreach - before long, over 100 homeless people were impacted every night. Vans were donated; volunteers joined them in the streets. In less than two years, "Trevor's Campaign" became a million dollar, non-profit organization including 100 volunteers and a formal board of directors. A homeless shelter (Trevor's Place) was established; a book, Trevor's Place: The Story of the Boy Who Brings Hope to the Homeless, was published; even a made for TV movie, Christmas on Division Street, was aired in 1991 (read more at http://archives.citypaper.net/articles/2003-12-04/cb2.shtm).

Reading about the lives of John Wesley, Mozart, and Bill Gates will continue to demonstrate the leadership potential of young people. Each with a vision and the passion to turn that vision into reality. So how do we help children develop vision? How can we help develop leadership skills in the hearts of the next generation.

T. Elmore (2001) makes numerous suggestions in developing leadership qualities in children. Five of them impressed me as I read about this area of helping children formulate a vision for their lives.

First, help them identify a burden or a problem that grabs their heart. Watch the news; read the newspaper; reflect on current events - explore the issues that they see around them. Then encourage them to make a list about what can be done to solve one of the problems. Developing an awareness of need and cultivating a heart of compassion can sensitize one's spirit to service. Delineating a possible solution, not only builds solid decision making analysis, but also drives home the element of personal responsibility.

Second, encourage children to read and listen to positive books, CDs, DVDs, podcasts, and websites. Provide for them a rich diet of big ideas from great people. Help them to dream by exposing them to dreamers - inventors, explorers, authors, and pioneers.

Third, exhort them to write out their dreams. Have them think about the answers to challenging questions. What is there about the world that they would like to change? What needs to be different in their family.... in their school.... in their community? What would they try, if they had no fear of failure? If they had spare time, how would they like to spend it? What activities and interests spark their imagination? How can they use their talents to help others? As a parent, be sensitive to look for areas that might hold a vision for them.

Fourth, interview visionary leaders. Develop a list of questions and then sit down with several creative, effective leaders. Record the interviews and then listen for common threads and insights. Ask the leaders about their passions. Ask them to describe their vision and how they discovered it. Ask them if they might define leadership in terms of a metaphor or picture (like a brick layer, or a planter of trees, or a compass pointing true north). Ask them to share three major goals they are working on right now. Creativity develop some questions that the child would like to ask these leaders.

Fifth, find a visual reminder of the child's goals/vision. Post pictures, photos, quotes, and scriptures that will remind them of what they can do if they follow their dream. These visual reminders can be a great source of motivation and inspiration. Keeping the dream in front of a child can encourage the heart and develop diligence and determination. As an adult learner involved in a formal degree program, I found many ways to focus my path - one of those was a quote from Peter Senge (1999), "The Journey is the Reward". I love this idea of focusing on the process more than the destination. If each step along the path is enjoyed to the fullest and every experience is embraced as a meaningful point of growth/development, then the trip is the treasure and the final destination is only the culmination of the adventure. This idea really helped me focus on my academic journey to the place that the experience became the goal... more than grades or a diploma... although the diploma was sure a nice result. I put this quote on my laptop as a screen saver. (Thanks, Peter for the inspiration! And thanks Tim, for such great insights into vision casting for young minds! - although I don't think either of you will ever read this blog).

Elmore, T. (2001). Nurturing the leader within your child: What every parent needs to know. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.

Sengue, P. M. (1990). The fifth discipline The art and practice of the learning organization. New York: Doubleday

Young Leaders: Why are They Significant?

I thoroughly enjoy working with students and the leaders who impact them. One of my goals as an Academic Dean is to develop student leaders and prepare young lives to change the world. It is so imperative to challenge our students to find significance in their lives. Why is this so significant?

It is significant because of Louis. Louis injured his eye when he was 3 years old and within 2 years found himself totally blind. At the age of ten, Louis was sent to an institute for blind children. He found himself very dissatisfied and discouraged because he could not read. By the age of 12 he created a method that enabled himself to read; by 15 he was sharing this method with his friends. In 1854 the world adopted this teenage boy's method as a standard - the Braille System is named for Louis Braille (Elmore, 2001).

It is significant because of 13-year-old Sydney Ling, who wrote, produced and directed a feature-length film, Lex the Wonderdog
(Elmore, 2001).


It is significant because of Dennis Vilmer, a 6-year-old from Oklahoma, who had a dream to write a book. Dennis wrote and illustrated the book, Joshua Disobeys. He won a national contest in 1987 for this wonderful story (Elmore, 2001).

It is significant because of Joseph Melenick, a 2010 graduating senior from Bay High School in Bay Village, Ohio. Joseph has Crohn's disease. Over the past five years, he has raised $50,000 to help find a cure for Crohn's. As a 7th grader he invited his entire class to a birthday party at a bowling alley. He asked his classmates to bring a small donation to the research instead of a birthday present. Over the years Joseph's annual birthday Bowling Bash has expanded to T-shirt sales, cookie sales and raffles (The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards).


It is significant because of Laura Sweeting, a young lass from England, who dreamed of being the youngest U.N. goodwill ambassador. She accomplished her goal on June 9, 2000 at age 16 (Elmore 2001).

It is significant because of a 12 year old 6th grader from Toledo. Last year Beatrice Thaman heard about the malnourished children in Guatemala. She began her campaign and through fund raising and donations, Beatrice provided 150,000 vitamin tablets to a medical mission in that country - a year's supply for more than 400 children (The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards).

Why is it so imperative that we challenge our students to find significance in their lives? Because everyone of them can do extraordinary things. We have students like Dennis and Sydney and Joseph and Beatrice sitting in our desks at our school. What do all these children have in common? They all have a burden, a dream, a vision. Once they caught the vision, their passion to do something about it changed their lives and the lives of those around them.

As our school looks at developing young lives into servant leaders, we must become strategic in helping them to identify God's vision for their future. My definition of leadership points to the centrality of vision: Leadership is the dynamic, interactive process of creating, communicating and transforming vision into reality. Snyder and Graves (1994) stated. "Organizations whose leaders have no vision are doomed to work under the burden of mere tradition." Traditions are needed and often establish high standards within organizations, but if we hope to develop and train new leaders, we must encourage and inspire our students to find and follow God's vision for their lives.

How do we do that? The next post will make a few suggestions in helping students discover a vision.

References:
Elmore, T. (2001) .Nurturing the leader within your child: What every parent needs to know Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.

Snyder, N. H., & Graves, M. (1994). Leadership and vision. Business Horizons, 37(1), 1-7

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards http://spirit.prudential.com/view/page/soc/301 .

Photos:

Sydney Ling - http://whitehorsefilms1968.blogspot.com/2006/12/white-horse-films-1968.html

Joshua Disobeys - http://openlibrary.org/books/OL2033514M/Joshua_disobeys

Joseph Melenick ad Beatrice Thaman - http://spirit.prudential.com/view/page/soc/307?lp=306&regid=1579

Laura Sweeting -http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/114138/Meet-the-record-breakers

Leadership: A Process?

Here is my definition of leadership: leadership is a dynamic, interactive process of creating, communicating and transforming vision into reality. As I have recently reflected on this definition, I discovered that I have focused more on the role of the leader than the process of leadership. So much of what I have been reading lately emphasizes the traits, characteristics, skills, mindset and actions of the leader rather than the process of the concept of leadership.

I began studying leadership several years ago out of a desire to become a more effective leader. When I began to formulate my leadership definition I failed to realign my thinking with my discoveries. If effective leadership involves a dynamic process then it is the process itself that is of uttermost importance, not the individual leader. Now, I do understand that the process is made up of people and relationships and communication, but maybe the role of the specific leader has been over emphasized to the detriment of understanding the process itself. A particular leader is only effective if he/she can make the process work.

There are many theorists and scholars in the area of organizational leadership that would challenge my definition of leadership, but I have found it meaningful and practical in my limited experience as an individual with some leader responsibilities. A more traditional approach to leadership provides leaders and followers; the leaders develop the vision, design the plan and share the specifics with the followers; the followers, then, take the plan and make it happen; the leader points the way and motivates the followers in order to accomplish the goals of the organization. This is pretty simplistic, but the real disconnect here is the division between the role of the leader and the role of the follower. My view of leadership blurs those lines to the place that leadership can be (and should be) a collaborative process.... so dynamic and interactive that many individuals play a leadership role from time to time. An effective leader is a facilitator of the process, not a dictator of an agenda... or a charismatic voice that inspires the masses... or a parental figurehead that guides the sheep along the narrow way.

If a positional leader (one who holds a position of responsibility within an organization) has a dream and wants to make that dream come true, he/she had better surround him/herself with talented, gifted people. And if a positional leader has a quality, qualified team, then he/she had better facilitate that team in the process of leadership. Without the skills of delegation and empowerment, the positional leader will never bring effective leadership into the organization. Now, don't get me wrong... a charismatic individual can amass a following and a coercive CEO that rules with intimidation and power can get lots of things done with efficiency and profitability, but in my opinion, the results have not been accomplished through leadership.

True leadership occurs when a dynamic process occurs. The team enters into debate, discussion and dialog about the purpose, mission and vision of the organization (or project). The team interacts and interfaces with one another as both colleagues and personal stakeholders in the issues on the table. The flow of ideas, concepts, insights, along with resistance and support result in brainstorming from all directions. When true leadership is taking place, the fly on the wall might not be aware of who the positional leader is at all. The roles of the leader and/or follower bend and shift within the dynamic nature of the process. Just some thoughts as I wrestle just a bit with my own definition.