The incomplete guide to leadership — Part I

In this series of articles that I call “The incomplete guide to leadership”, I have crowdsourced some leadership lessons from my network as well as added my own. Part 1 is about my commitment to leaders and how I think about leadership. Enjoy!

A hierarchical responsibility — a title — is by nomination. Leadership is not. Leadership is the innate individual expression and empowerment of others who take you toward your goals. This empowerment motivates and enables others to contribute. Done well, leadership results in contributions delivered unselfishly by stakeholders and employees alike. They will apply themselves and marshal resources, with the company’s mission as their North Star.

Leadership is an emergent skill for every individual. Throughout our lives, we can learn as leaders. Leadership is cultural. It is contextual. There are common characteristics of great leadership, but they are expressed and delivered by individuals. Leadership is a journey of self-discovery. As a popular saying goes, “Be yourself, everyone else is taken.”

I believe that good leadership has lasting, durable qualities that are inextricably linked to human psychology and human…