Leaders are born, not made
Leaders are born, not made
Introduction
Everybody looks up to a person they can trust, and who can guide them. We all are inspired by someone who can hold their own confidently, is sure of what they are saying and doing, and walks the talk. These are people whom we idolize; these are the people who we call leaders. Our leaders can be an influence in any sphere of our life. It can be anyone from our boss at work, to a teacher, to a political leader.
Can leadership qualities be cultivated?
Firstly, what are the qualities of a good leader? Confidence in their words and actions, integrity and honesty, clear communication skills,
Pride is an important aspect of an individual’s personality, but arrogance is a negative trait, which should be avoided. If a person wants to be regarded as a leader, she or he should never be too busy or big to interact with anybody who approaches them. Politicians know this very well, which is why when they campaign, they spend time walking and talking to people from a wide cross-section of society. They want people to know that they are also ordinary people, and so understand the problems faced by the majority. Around the time of campaigns, newspapers are flooded with pictures and reports of election candidates eating, and sometimes sleeping at the homes of the economically and socially backward communities.
Spiritual leaders like the Dalai Lama, Mata Amritanandamayi, and the late Pope John Paul II have the ability to influence millions, despite their gentle and peaceful demeanor. On the other hand, political leaders like Hitler, Subash Chandra Bose, or Gaddaffi are known for their fiery and passionate speeches.
Some features like confidence, communication skills, grooming skills, and a well-defined personality can be developed. Nobody is born brilliant. Our personalities are formed as the result of the influence of several factors, such as our education, the company we keep, the books we read etc.
However, there are some things that cannot be cultivated. Not everybody can be a great leader, who has the charisma and might to influence people. Integrity; the ability to stand their ground no matter how great the odds, or the threats, these are qualities that are inborn, and cannot be cultivated. Gandhiji’s faith in peaceful resistance did not waver in the face of grave danger. Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi was placed in house arrest for several years. She was denied the right of meeting her dying husband. Yet, she refused to back down, and stood for her principles. These examples are known for their enormous strength of mind and character.
Conclusion
So, to conclude, we can indeed say that leaders are born, and cannot be made. While we can inculcate some features in ourselves, some things are definitely inborn.
Discussion
- RE: Leaders are born, not made -Deepa Kaushik (05/10/14)
- Leadership is an in born quality. The tendency of the leader is to handle a complete unit in a supporting and controlling way at the same time. The leadership is a special trait only in few selected persons. Though many a people get the position of handling a team or the unit, still not everyone attains success to such a magnitude.
The leaders who are born to rule the world definitely show up their charm since childhood. Our nation has visualized many great leaders who have ruled efficiently with the support and confidence of their citizens. With such calm and peaceful place to live, every citizen will have the same level of respect and pride for their leader.
All those who claim to be leaders are not so, as they need to incorporate the effective team handling quality, managing and controlling the views and expectations of all the members. These qualities cannot be attained by any course of personality management. A person can shape his inner zeal and quality with the crash course for the same. But no course in the world can teach to inculcate new qualities which is not there in the genes of the person.
Thus, leaders are definitely born, and not made on earth.
- Leaders are born, not made -Usha Iyengar (03/27/14)
Leaders are born not made
Despite the horrors of wars, genocide, social inequities like slavery and racism, the century has more people living in freedom than at any time in human history. The reasons are manifold, but credit may be most due to leaders the world over who stood up for human dignity when it was threatened by hate and fear.
There are many influential leaders who shepherded humanity through tumultuous and often violent times. Mandela has been an enduring symbol of African democracy and of Gandhi’s dream of peaceful political change. There have been many statesmen who have orchestrated the history of their countries in a dynamic way. Equally there are many business leaders who have exemplified leadership strength and led their businesses through recessionary periods and layoffs, with innovative techniques
Are all these influential persons born with such talent? Are we all not a product of our circumstances and history? Do people have the ability to go beyond their circumstances? Being born a human being we have been gifted with fantastic capabilities, much of which we haven’t explored. Yes, there are some people who are born with very high intelligence with superlative IQ (Intelligence Quotient) but the new age is also talking about EQ- Emotional Quotient.
There are certain genes which will make one who he is, but to be able to enable change, to drive transformational decisions, needs more than intelligence. There are people who have learnt this art of navigating life with ease. They have painstakingly learnt their art through experience. They can harmonize and control team efforts towards desired outcomes. They have gone that extra length to know what works, what does not, understand the environment and the people working in the circumstances, their motivations, all the time training their mind to be on top of the game.
Leaders may be gifted with certain intuitive insights but the drive and the inclination to put it to use for the larger benefit of the society, are evolving traits as one progresses in life with myriad experiences.
There are some people who are born with all the right attitudes, and gained the skills with the right education, which give them an advantage; however, there is no denying that given the right environment, leaders in their respective areas of expertise can be developed with training and guidance. Leadership is not a privileged right held by few- those to the manor born!
