Think leadership and what comes to mind? All too often, it’s an image of leadership as a title, reserved for those in the highest echelons of corporations and public institutions. But to me, leadership is so much more.
Pick up any article about leadership and you’ll see examples of global business icons like Richard Branson and the late Steve Jobs, CEO’s of global corporations that took on the world.
Locally the CEOs of our largest businesses are all deserving of the title, their companies employing hundreds of thousands of employees across Australia.
Then there’s political leaders – like our own Prime Minister (as long as you haven’t lost track of who’s currently in the seat!) or Germany’s Angela Merkel or USA’s Barack Obama.
And of course every religious institution has their own sovereign head – like Pope Francis in the Catholic church and Queen Elizabeth in the Church of England.
No one can dispute that it takes skill and competence to steer any of these ships. They are big and complex and have lots of moving parts. These big-egg leaders deserve kudos. But there’s so much more to leadership than a job title, and climbing your way to the top.
Many of the most inspiring leaders I’ve known had no inkling of seniority in their job title; some have never even had staff.
And yet they were able to engage and inspire others into action. To create followers, who in turn were willing to follow a spark of an idea, in pursuit of a common goal.
Indeed, leadership comes in all shapes and sizes. It’s not a title; it’s a state of being. And it’s not reserved exclusively for the privileged domain of the employed.
Rather, leadership is a way of living that’s available to anyone in our community – man, woman or child – who has the courage to step up, to take responsibility for someone or something, and to see their actions through to a conclusion.
I’m drawn to this attitude in individuals, this determination to create followers and make change happen.
My friend Ronni Kahn had me believing in OzHarvest when it was just a seed of an idea, to rescue leftover food and re-distribute it to homeless shelters. Today, more than a decade on, her leadership has seen 38million meals provided to those in need, with food that would otherwise have been binned. This is leadership, but Ronni never set out to be a leader. Her goal was simply to match surplus food with those who were hungry, and she showed us all how this could be done. Ronni will always be a funky-egg leader to me.
More locally, my friend Mary has been a magnificent green-leader at my son’s school, creating a gardening program that teaches children the magic of growing food. She’s successfully applied for grants, engaged a team of volunteers to build and maintain the gardens, and created an army of student followers all eager to learn how to germinate seeds, care for the garden and harvest fresh produce for the school canteen. Mary never set out to be a leader either. She just wanted city kids to experience the joy of growing food, as she (and I) had done in our childhood. Mary is a little-egg leader and wouldn’t have it any other way.
And actually, I was inspired to write this post not only by my girls (who produced the eggs – they are indeed real eggs from our farm!) but also by a wonderful woman on my table at breakfast yesterday. We were there learning about WIPAN – the Women in Prisons Advocacy Network that runs a mentoring program for women who have been or are in prison that is achieving amazing results in terms of diminished recidivism (likelihood to reoffend). I’m going to have to write another post altogether about that event as it really took me out of my comfort zone which I’m still reflecting on in many ways… but…
The point of reflection for me is that this wonderful intelligent young professional on my table shared as we were leaving “well maybe I could be a mentor in a few years time, I don’t really have much to offer right now”… to which I replied – OF COURSE YOU DO! You have a job, you’re working in a competitive industry, you are living a life these women who find it so hard to get employment (because of their past) could only dream of. You could inspire them. You could offer tips on how to dress for a job or write a resume. You could be so many things to them, but most importantly you could be the one thing that gives them hope and changes their path in life.
So there it is… Every one of us has the capacity – and the choice – to lead, to inspire and to create our own brand of leadership. For leadership comes in all shapes and all sizes!
So, what does leadership look like for you? Are you engaging people, and making a difference, in your own distinct way? Or could you?
Whether you’re a big-egg, little-egg or funky-egg kind of leader, when you choose to lead, YOU get to choose the change that you will be.
Yours in admiration of those who lead,
Jen 🙂
Anne says
Hi Jen
Great article. I think a true leader is one who listens and knows the benefits of working with great teams, inspiring everyone in their team to deliver beyond their expectations and who can play to each members strengths.
In my corporate life I have only ever had the privilege of working with one person (a man) who showed these amazing skill sets. He was NEVER for himself, he wanted his team (including me) to deliver above and beyond. Other than running my own businesses today, I would have to be honest and say it’s the hardest and the best I ever worked in any job. He encourage and made me feel passionate in my job, today I get to do this in running my own businesses.
Anne
Jen Dalitz says
Funny how we have that special person we remember fondly throughout our career. Mine was one of my first managers in the banking industry, she taught me an incredible amount about managing myself and others. I’m inspired, when I think of Di, to try and do the same for others.