What does it take to be an effective leader in today’s world? It involves something significantly more fundamental than mere technique or skills. In the final analysis, it is much more difficult. What is required is the courage to face our fear, anger, and anxiety, move beyond them, and help make things better. Here are four dimensions of the necessary leadership courage for today’s world:
- The courage to resist cynicism. In our current environment, it is easy to succumb to anger, blaming, and cynicism. Effective leaders are able to face their frustrations and anxieties, still maintain a positive perspective, and work to find answers. The worse leaders are those who allow their cynicism and anger to affect their followers. They not only don’t help make things better, but pass on their own anger and cynicism to those they are attempting to lead.
- The courage to help others. The old adage is profound and simple: If you feel bad about yourself, find someone who feels worse, help him, you will feel better and he gets helped! In times of stress and confusion, leaders who make a difference have the grit to deal with their own issues, put them aside, and make themselves available to others. A person who is struggling with fear and an uncertain future doesn’t need a leader who is too caught up in her own issues to focus on others’ problems. She needs someone who has had the courage to face her problems and has the focus to be present for others.
- The courage to engage. One response to the problems we face today is to hunker down in the trenches, avoid risk, and hope things improve. Given the magnitude of the problems going on around us it is easy to understand why many leaders end up just going through the motions, limping through each day, not being of much use to themselves or to those they are attempting to lead. Courageous leaders get up in the morning and choose to engage. They feel the fear and anxiety and choose to make a difference anyway. They don’t add to the problems. They choose to help solve them.
- The courage to look in the mirror. Courageous leaders are made, not born. They have the ability to learn from their mistakes and from feedback. If they discover themselves becoming cynical, blaming, and withdrawing from optimistic engagement, they have the fortitude to change. Lots of people get feedback, but not everyone has the ability to hear it and the courage to take action. Leaders who make a difference have the ability to look in the mirror and the bravery to do something about what they see.
There is no magic formula for developing courage. It comes down to a matter of choice. Those who have the courage to help make things better make a conscious decision not let their frustrations and fears disable them. They choose to rebuild, not accept defeat. The bravery of the leaders we desperately need to help us through these uncertain times is not found in flashy speeches, but is discovered in their steady, quiet, and unrelenting efforts to make things better. These are the kind of people we need to rebuild our organizations, our nation, and our world.
