Leadership is everywhere. No matter where we are, no matter what we do, leaders are there, making an impact on our work and our lives.
Every organization in every part of every sector of society has leaders. Those leaders occur at every level, far more of them below the executive level than in it. And, beyond that, there are the many people who provide leadership through their initiative, expertise, and energy but don’t have positions of formal authority. Furthermore, there is leadership that takes place in collaborative, collegial teams.
And yet, despite the pervasiveness of leaders across sectors and levels, why is it that so much of what we read about leaders pertains mostly to CEOs, Presidents, and Generals when, in reality, most of the leaders in our organizations work next to us, toiling without fame, fortune or fancy titles, doing the bulk of the motivating, coaching, directing, hiring and firing?
It’s not that I don’t give leaders at the top of our organizations their due, but to be honest, the overwhelming amount of leadership occurs not in board rooms or strategy meetings, but in the myriad number of personal interactions that make the daily work of all our organizations happen.
I’ve been observing and studying leadership for decades, as a consultant, professor, and coach. I think we need to do a better job of recognizing the massive impact of the work done by those leaders who don’t have corner or oval offices, but who sit next to us on the metro and bring their own lunches to work.
In my time working with leaders, I’ve seen thousands of examples of those heroes and heroines, leaders in the trenches, who make the places where we work better. I wouldn’t be surprised if you’ve seen the results of their daily work, too. Perhaps you’re even one of them?
What do you think?