Leadership

By Stefan Stern, Financial Times

Good management requires 'integral vision' and the ability to build bridges rather than boundaries, author Mark Gerzon writes.

By Wally Adamchik

You cannot lead anyone or anything if you cannot lead yourself. Effective leadership of self depends on a high degree of self-awareness founded on honesty and introspection.

by Brent Filson

Johnny Cash said, "We played it and sang it the way we felt it, and a whole lot can be said for that."

Most people agree that one thing Johnny Cash had going for him was that he was authentic. He knew who he was and he put across who he was. And that's a leadership lesson.

by Brent Filson

Former heavyweight champ Jersey Joe Walcott was training for a fight against a boxer who had a ferocious left hook. Asked if he was worried, Jersey Joe replied, "Nope. I'll take his left hook and put it in his pocket."

by Kenneth Rice

Self-Identity

The most basic defining moment demands that leaders resolve the issue of personal identity which has serious implications for their future. In reading the lives of great men, I found that the first victory they won was over themselves. Self-leadership was understood as their number one responsibility. “The higher leaders climb up the corporate ladder the greater their burden of responsibility and their need to reevaluate themselves and their whole self.” (Fairholm, 1997, p. 6). Once you have mastered self-leadership, there is plenty of guidance available on leading others. Leadership of others is the subject of hundreds of books and courses. Self-leadership involves self identity, self-regulation, personal growth, and is vital for achievement of our goals, even if we never lead another person. London (2001) asserted that “People have to know themselves and understand their environments in order to adapt and learn.” (p. 27).

by Kenneth Rice

Leadership is a subject that has long excited interest among people. The term connotes images of powerful, dynamic individuals who command victorious armies, direct corporate empires from atop gleaming skyscrapers, or shape the course of nations.