The Paradox of Leadership
Every leader will tell you that leadership is difficult. It is a skill that has to be learned, and many mistakes have to be made along the way. Some of the greatest leaders which have graced our presence have fallen, and it deeply saddens us when this occurs. Great leaders install optimism and motivation, they keep us going when the going gets rough.
Leaders take on responsibilities and task which do not wish to be done by the majority. This is why they are leaders. Hollywood has done a rather poor job of painting a leader's job. We have all seen a scene from a movie where the CEO or boss's boss is in his office with his feet on the desk smoking a cigar. It appears as though leaders seem to just delegate and sit on their high chair.
The good thing is, the attitude toward leadership is changing. And we are all accepting that leadership is not for everyone. It is a hard job that requires sacrifice and much diligence. But few of us understand the many contradictions which occur in a leader's mind.
What makes leadership difficult is the constant dilemmas they are faced with. And these dilemmas can not be passed onto the team. Mostly, the team is seeking an answer to the dilemmas which the leader faces. It is easy to say things like, “put the team first” or “be vulnerable with your team members” but what do those things mean in the bigger context of…
