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The Leadership Challenge Middle East
From the globally recognized leadership development program - this podcast has a focus on the Middle East but the conversations are applicable everywhere.
The Leadership Challenge Middle East
Exploding the Leadership Myth
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There are several leadership myths.
One of them is 'leadership is hard'.
Another that it is tired to the position or rank that you have.
But the one above all, that still exists today is that you have to be born to be a leader.
You have to be born to be an accountant, school teacher, mechanic and even cryptocurrency billionaire.
In my workshop, I will say to participants that I’m yet to hear of the midwife or OB/GYN, when they deliver a baby, exclaim “Well, it looks like we’ve got one here, that’s the third leader this week. Yup, he’s a leader.”
Jim Kouzes has said, loud and clear - since the first edition of The Leadership Challenge - we are all born. If you want to be a leader, that’s your choice.
Leadership is learned.
The best leaders learn every day.
Leadership behaviors have little to do with the manager who makes micromanaging an art form.
It has little to do with the managing director who controls by fear.
Simple, learned behaviors which build relationships, which shows the leader is true to his values every day.
A leader doesn’t need a uniform with gold or silver braiding to genuinely and in a way that has real - relatable - impact to recognize the good work of the individual and the entire team.
He or she doesn’t need to have an office three or four times larger than anyone else in the organization to say a simple “Thank you”.
Authentic leaders make mistakes, they ask their direct reports “what can we learn from that ? And then “This is what I learned ….”
They regularly ask : “How can we do it better?” And surprisingly they ALLOW everyone in the team to perform better than they believed they could.
Hang on, if they were born to be a leader, how could they carry all these behaviors on their DNA until a switch is engaged when they become an adult and with rank, or an important sounding title.
Instant leader!
No. Leadership is an aspiration.
You want to be a leader ? Congratulations, your journey has now begun.
So please, can we finally knock that myth on the head?