In the reading the first thing that Robert Greenleaf says is that can a leader and a servant be fused into one role and to answer that question I believe that yes you can merge the two roles into a an effective leader. There were many leaders who have started off from beginnings less fortunate than others. Relating to the reading we had a couple classes ago with Machiavelli in one of the readings said that a leader who gets the leadership position by inheritance is not as an effective leader compared to the leader who gets to that position by his own merit.
When Greenleaf talks about the reading Journey to the East, he talks about a servant named Leo who is out on a journey and he eventually gets lost and is nowhere to be found. One of the explorers comes across him years later and he is said to be a leader of some sort. This story made me think about how if one can person can come out of nowhere especially being a servant and lead people than your beginnings really have no significant effect on who you can be. Being a servant, you have the same experiences and troubles from the same people that you can lead. You have been right there with them through the tough times and that can shape you to be the right leader for the right people.
I actually thought the story Greenleaf told (Journey to the East) was interesting because the servant Leo is revealed to have been a leader the whole time, keeping the spirits up of the travelers, until he disappears and lets the band of people fall apart. Greenleaf seems to be saying how it’s important to be a servant first, then leader, but it was only narratively that Leo was a servant first. He was actually a leader the entire time. But that does go with his point that you can be both; that leaders should be both.
I completely agree with your post. A person who inherits a position of power does not know what it is like or how to serve the people and is less likely to hold those characteristics. Where as the person who gets that position by his own merit knows the skill and effort that needs to be placed into that position. Being a servant first in a servant leadership style of leading will allow you to serve the people first and is crucial in making this title possible. The story relating to Leo was so interesting to me because Leo was a servant and they were unable to continue their mission without him but it was later discovered that he was a leader emphasizing the Servant in servant leader.