Mandela: His 8 Lessons of Leadership
(http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1821659,00.html)
This response is a simple one. 8 Lessons to be a good leader.
No. 1
Courage is not the absence of fear — it’s inspiring others to move beyond it
No. 2
Lead from the front — but don’t leave your base behind
No. 3
Lead from the back — and let others believe they are in front
No. 4
Know your enemy — and learn about his favorite sport
No. 5
Keep your friends close — and your rivals even closer
No. 6
Appearances matter — and remember to smile
No. 7
Nothing is black or white
No. 8
Quitting is leading too
I really like points 7 and 8. In point 7 Mandela states life is never either/or. A good leader has to make tough decisions. But these decisions are complex, and there are always competing factors. You have to look at alllllllll factors leading into any decision. Just remember, nothing is ever as straightforward as it appears.
The last point is that leading involves quitting. It is vital to know when to stop. You may never be able to stop going as a leader but you must slow down. Knowing how to abandon a failed idea, task or relationship is often the most difficult kind of decision a leader has to make.
When was there a leadership opportunity that you had to quit or give up? Why?
November 7th, 2012 at 9:58 am
Great post! I believe that “quitting is also leadership too”. Sometimes as a leader I would give it my all to encourage others to follow my lead in order to take over eventually and to become their own leader. However, sometimes people do not want to lead and get out of their comfort zone. I have noticed that by my senior year, some of my Student Council members never wanted to lead or become independent and I realized what I was doing was the wrong direction. Instead of trying to pick up their paste and to “mommy” them around, I “gave up” on checking on them as if they are in middle school. I held them accountable and eventually me “giving up” made them more responsible and wanting to do something on their own. Sometimes, we as leaders, must realize that we can’t carry everyone’s load on our shoulders because they become comfortable with that and nothing gets done. I have successfully learned that there is no “I” in TEAM.
November 7th, 2012 at 12:54 pm
One of my all time favorite quotes is by Nelson Mandela, it says “There is no passion to be found playing small- in settling for a life less than one you are capable of living”. I definitely agree with how you said that nothing is ever as simple or as straightforward as it appears, most of the time we can only see the tip of the iceberg when we face challenges. But I think Mandela was exactly right when he said that passion is the key to living big and tackling these aspirations, not necessarily always succeeding in them but confronting these personal challenges and ourselves none the less.
November 7th, 2012 at 2:19 pm
Sometimes quitting is a great move to take, other times, it’s the only move to take. For example, when under checkmate in chess. You’re forced to quit and to give up.
I don’t think I have encountered any experiences in my life where quitting was the best choice to take, given that it wasn’t a forced surrender, and that it wasn’t the smartest thing to do. I give up a lot, I surrender, and I avoid things. But I think had I not given up on the majority of things I gave up on, I would have been able to learn more through the experience than if I had given up.