Who Are the Leaders?

I talk about leadership a lot in this blog.  In the literature there are hundreds of definitions of leadership. Here's mine:

Leadership is the act of influencing others.

That process can be used for good or evil purposes.  It is practiced in both intentional and accidental ways.  It is exercised both formally and informally.  Leadership is manifested through a wide array of acts/words (modeling happens to be my favorite medium).

Here are a few of the places/roles where I see leadership at work:

Playground                              Parenting              Clubs  

                           Teams                                                              Organizations  

     Churches                              Friendships          Schools  

                        Grade Levels                                                                  Workplaces  

Teachers                                   Coaches                              Siblings  

                       Families                                In the mirror

Leadership is at play wherever and whenever two or more humans interact with each other.

And, in virtually every circumstance of life, you and I are either playing the role of 

leader or follower (subjecting ourselves to someone else's leadership).

As you consider the concept, and those social arrangements I noted above, please ask yourself these two questions:

1. Who are the leaders I follow? (and why?)
2. Who are the folks who follow my lead? (and why?)

We get to make some important and defining choices on both sides of that ledger.