Believe it or not, you are a leader.

I do not know what silent thought just rushed through your mind, but for some of you it may have been, “No I am not!” or “Not Really” or “You Betcha”.  The truth is - everybody is a leader; like it or not.

I never really wanted to be a leader.  It seemed like too much work, and it actually appeared simpler to just sit back, follow, and let someone else make the hard decisions.  The dilemma that ensued was twofold:  most of the time I did not like the decisions others were making for me (but, if I did not help shape the decision, I had no authority to complain - right?), and when I wasn’t sitting with my arms crossed protesting like a young child who did not want to eat their spinach, I was usually chosen by others to be a leader.  A role that, if I was going to be asked to perform, I had better learn to do well.  Now, my passion has become learning to be a great leader.

Some believe in the school of thought, “leaders are born - not made”.  I disagree; no great leaders are ever born; only babies are born.  Leaders are made, and it is from there that my school of thought is birthed.  I stand by the leadership definition: Leadership is influence; nothing more and nothing less.

Whether or not you want to be a leader, in life, everyone has one person they must lead – Themselves. And whether you want to lead many or simply be a follower; you always have to at least be accountable for yourself. Life is nothing more that leading yourself so well that others cannot help but follow. Therefore, if your lead yourself well, you will influence others naturally; and by influencing others, you are leading. Thereby, making everyone a leader in some fashion or on some level. That raises the question: How are you influencing others?

I could never imagine how hard it would be to control others, as some leader’s attempt, when controlling myself is such a mammoth task.  Leading “others” in a formal fashion is a responsibility that not everyone is called to do, but everyone is called to, at the very minimum, lead themselves.  A true leader does not focus on leading others, they focus on leading themselves first and when you do that well, others will follow.  So - is being a leader really a school of thought or a way of life?

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