What is Leadership?

Leader is a term loosely used, easily applied, and rarely earned in this day and age. Today, anyone can be a leader with enough followers or people to listen to them. What makes a true leader, in my opinion, are the things that nobody sees… the things you can’t brag about or broadcast to the world. In the quiet moments with no audience, how do you behave? How do rooms feel when you leave them? In those moments when you look into the mirror, what’s looking back at you?
Some people live for the feeling of putting others down; yearning for the crush of egos beneath their feet, reveling in the pain of others just because they have that much “power.” It’s fun to them.
Real power is what you can’t benefit from. It’s self control, knowledge, wisdom. True strength comes from community and relationships, not one person alone. It takes a team, and that’s something I think people often omit from the term “leader.” After all, you can’t lead if there’s no team behind you.
People look at today’s biggest stars wondering why, with all the money, power, and fame in the world, they still seem to be struggling with something. It’s because being a leader is exhausting. It isn’t necessarily always fun, pretty, or rewarding all of the time. This glamorized version of leadership is what makes people go to extremes in their pursuits of whatever it is they want; stepping on anyone to get there, tearing people down to bring themselves up. I ask, where’s the integrity in today’s leadership? Where’s the heart?
Sadly, who you know will get you further than talent. Brown nosing will get you chosen over dedication. Politics will get you in the room even if you didn’t deserve to be there. And let’s not even mention if you look, act, or sound like me… But what people can’t deny is heart. A true leader has the courage to leave their heart on the table for all to see, never getting defensive or getting their ego bruised. At the end of the day they understand it’s not about them.