What Makes a Good Leader?

I found this motivational speech by Simon Sinek, a British-American author, speaker, and organizational consultant while surfing YouTube, and it made me think about the meaning of leadership in the modern-day society.

In the past, a leader was viewed as someone who held an authoritative power and whose decisions and directives had to be followed without question. However, this definition has changed dramatically in the past few years. Good leaders are now viewed as someone who can inspire and enable others. Someone who can be a “humble servant” rather than a ruthless dictator. Someone who is able to recognize that they can benefit from the expertise of others who may have less power than them. This 180-degree shift in perception of what makes a good leader has affected many organizations as they have stated to analyze and rethink their leadership strategies. These days we see numerous leadership classes, courses, and seminars that are all aimed at fostering a certain set of qualifications necessary to succeed in a leadership position.

However, this video made me think of leadership from a different prospective. As Sinek says in his speech, “it is our job as individuals to take initiative in helping others.” We do not need to have a title or to be in one of those “emerging leader” programs, we simply need to have a clear vision for a better future and people will follow us and success will come. It is also important, when success does find us, to remember about humility and to not let it go into our head. Sinek says, “none of the perks that you receive as a leader are for you, they are for the position that you are in and for the contribution you can bring to the organization.”

Do you agree? What makes a good leader and what can we do as individuals to develop the necessary skillset in order to make a difference within our organizations?