Lately, I’ve often wondered what has happened to effective leadership and what direction we’re going. It often seems that we hear so much about strife and inequity and problems that seem to cause us to step back in time as opposed to forward. I saw a quote attributed to Peter Drucker: “So much of what we call management consists in making it difficult for people to work.” That seems to sum it up much of the time, unfortunately.
So what do we do about it?
Individuals in leadership positions need to reevaluate their actions. If they’re doing things the same way they’ve been doing them for some time, they likely need to stop. The world is not the same and is constantly changing, so how can we continue our habits and be successful? That seems counter intuitive.
Individuals who do not see themselves as leaders need to also reevaluate their actions. Everyone is a leader in some way. We are all examples of how we’re living our lives and people are watching. We can all choose to work hard/work smart/learn something new—each day we decide how we are going to face our realities and whether we want to play an active or passive role.
Choose to move forward in your life. Things do happen in spite of our actions at times, but I’d still rather work towards change than have change simply happen to me. One of my favorite poems is by Edgar Albert Guest: “It Couldn’t be Done.” I try to remind myself of the last lines of his poem: “Just start in to sing as you tackle the thing that ‘cannot be done’ and you’ll do it.”
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