Leadership

We talk about the need for leaders and the people who present themselves as leaders. We praise “leadership qualities” without quite knowing what they are. There are external traits - a leader is assertive, even aggressive; charming, even charismatic; well-spoken, even persuasive. A leader is principled, forceful, commands respect, organized, disciplined. A leader inspires confidence. A leader gets things done.

Yet none of these traits explain the relationship of a leader to the group. They don’t identify the responsibilities of a leader. And if we don’t know what relationship a leader is supposed to have with us, what job he’s supposed to do, how can we tell if a leader is really leading?

The nature of a leader is two-fold: first, a leader is a representative, or emissary, of the group. The leader acts on behalf of the group; his or her acts are their acts. Second, a leader is the guide and director, the decision maker for the group. He is both representative for and supervisor of.

These two responsibilities, or roles, manifest themselves in two different responsibilities: As representative, the leader must worry about the needs of the group as a whole. As the supervisor, the leader must be concerned with the individual, each according to his or her needs. 

This, then, is a simple way to test the effectiveness, and value, of a leader: When speaking for the group, is awareness of and concern for a particular individual evident? When solving the problems of an individual, does the leader recognize and address the larger issues that create such problems?