The first thing that should cause us to question the value of the current dialogue about leadership in our organizations is the wide variety of peculiar sorts who appear in it. Bear in mind that this dialogue, peopled with so stunning an array of protagonists, is conducted everywhere from major consultancies and universities to the best-selling business books.
But this landscape we attempt to navigate with their aid is, indeed, littered with peculiar fellows. Here are just a few that have made appearances in the past year or so:
- The chieftain
- The governor
- The authoritarian
- The shaman
- The elder
- The immortal
- The anointed
- The educator
- The communicator
- The role model
- The action figure
- The visionary
- The pathfinder
- The moral compass
- The wise man
- The grand poo-bah
- The hero
- The renegade
- The provocateur
- The risk-taker
- The rebel
If all the business world’s a stage, then it surely is peopled with enough colorful characters to keep things interesting for some time to come. We will be spending some of that time here asking how all this play-acting is affecting not only our understanding of leadership, but the progress of our daily work.
Please do stop in.
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Today’s tips: Of course, division and discord over important topics is nothing new – and thankfully so; that’s one mark of their importance. Please see Cultural Offering for another example of this, and why it can make it difficult for the rest of us even to know where to begin.
And if you share the frustration expressed here with the cacophony of disputing leadership types, you will still want to reconcile yourself to the fact that they aren’t going away any time soon. Steve Roesler tells you how.
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An interesting and chuckle-producing post. It’s fun to chuckle and think at the same time. I like the idea of a leadership action figure.
I also chuckled at some of the list. Nice post.
@mikemyatt
Hello Wally and Mike,
It is endlessly amusing. Thanks for stopping in!