Reaching for Star --- Image by © Images.com/CORBISSuccess is defined as a triumphant struggle against difficulty. If that doesn’t describe leadership I don’t know what does. People don’t like to change, develop, or do the right thing. They’ll fight it tooth and nail. It’s not part of our inherent nature and it takes great resolve and discipline because the more we settle into organizations and bureaucratic tendencies, the harder the struggle.

For the leader this just sweetens the challenge. To deny the struggle is to deny the victory. And leadership in any capacity is a battle and the true reason why the extra mile is rarely crowded. Joshua J. Marine said it best: “Challenges are what make life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.”

Stake Out Your Domain! One size does not fit all when it comes to being a leader. Everyone is born with a specific temperament and inherent skill set. You may have never thought of yourself in these terms so here’s a good rule of thumb: what comes easily and naturally to you is your special gift. Next, the leader forms the basis of their principles which allows them to differentiate between a mountain and a mole hill.

Defend Your Realm! We all have an obligation to lead. If you are breathing, you should be leading. If you do not, you will have left the planet with fewer resources than before you arrived. That is a terrible, negative karmic imbalance and you will go down in the annals of history as a lazy, self-indulgent sloth. A lack of involvement in decision making is the height of disrespect.

Savor the Victory! Leadership is so rewarding because it’s so hard. You can’t fake it and you can’t dabble in it and truly savor the thrill of victory, the agony of defeat. It’s a bittersweet symphony that’s life. General Patton said, “You can never grow until you push yourself past the point of exhaustion.” So once you’ve done that, be sure and look yourself squarely in the mirror and give yourself an “atta boy”. Victory is yours. Savor it.

BureaucracyChangeInertiaLeadershipResistanceStruggleSuccessTriumphUncategorized

4 comments

joegergen

joegergen

I’ve always wondered if we need to redefine change. We always pair it with negatives like hard and struggle. Change is life itself. The whole obstacle is the path thing. Change your attitude about change, change your life.

traceyjones

traceyjones

Couldn’t have said it better Joe! Thanks for the read and comment. Without challenges, life is a big blob of nothingness.

Mark Armstrong

Mark Armstrong

“…what comes easily and naturally to you is your special gift.” Such a simple, beautiful line, expressing an enormously important truth. Wish I’d heard it at a much earlier age. Thanks for getting the word out, Tracey, you wunnaful leader, you!! : )

joegergen

joegergen

I just wrote about helping people face change by focusing on trusting that they can handle change instead of focusing on fear of the unknown of change.

http://fortressofdissolitude.wordpress.com/2014/02/18/looking-for-a-change-of-winds/

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