People often talk about “leadership” both on a global political scale and in the safer private sector. Leadership skills are some of the most sought-after skills out there, even though nobody is sure what they mean. Many struggle to learn them and many try to teach, pretending to know something about it.
The disappointing reality, however, is that the whole concept of “leadership” and “being a leader” has been completely butchered. Today, the meaning of “being a leader” is diluted and corrupted to the point where calling someone a leader means nothing more than being friendly and outgoing. It has become a very vague and easy-to-manipulate concept, so much so that everyone can claim to have “leadership skills.” This, of course, is impossible by definition. “Leaders” and “leadership skills” are meant to be rare and exclusive. By its pure, original meaning, “being a leader” or having “leadership skills” approximately refers to the ability to bring change while leading others through challenges. This will be the definition we will stick with.
The dominant modern image of a “leader” is based on a mutated Western prototype. It originates from a place of safety since most of those leaders never really face major dangers or risks. The worst things most leaders in the West will face, both in politics and the private sector, are non-physical harassment and financial difficulties. Naturally, they or their families won’t get harmed when they stand up for something or fail in their duties. This position of extreme shelter has granted them the luxury to be the stereotypical smiling, friendly, and harmless “leaders” we know today. That already mutilated understanding has been further mangled by the business culture boosted by social media. This infantilized understanding of the world and leadership is only limiting the potential of the candidates to the role of a “leader.” This image of a leader has bled out into the rest of the world and become the norm. Because of this trend, we can witness that many of those who are described as “leaders” or possess “leadership skills” are more akin to entertainers, showmen, and mascots.
Numerous educators, universities, and organizations claim to create and nurture leaders. If that were true, we would have millions of talented leaders all around. The reality, of course, proves otherwise. The truth is that they do not and can not possibly create leaders or teach leadership skills; instead, all they can teach are accessible things such as speaking, presentation, and other skills from the realm of communication. Any organization that claims to produce leaders is at best wrong, or worse – lying.
Actual leaders cannot be brought up or taught. That will go against the very idea of it. The whole concept of a leader, or anyone who brings changes, orbits around the fact that they have to face hostile environments. Actual leaders and “bringers of change” don’t appear when they are encouraged and supported. Quite the opposite; they arise when they are discouraged and opposed. Leaders in their raw purity, can only exist in a hostile environment.
For leaders to exist, they need a crisis and a distinct separation of “allies” and “enemies.” After all, they have to lead someone. A leader needs a group (team); and for that group to require a leader, it has to have a crisis; and any group that stands for something or wants something will have “enemies” (competitors). The aforementioned sterilized mainstream version of a “leader” does not fit into this reality. That type is only functional in safe environments with no challenges. That type is reserved for groups that need a mundane decision-maker and a responsibility-taker. In the face of an actual threat and a dangerous conflict, this type of fake leadership is nearly useless.
We all try to pretend that anyone who is a “leader” or has “leadership skills” has to be optimistic, harmless, and only do good. Such leaders are extremely unproductive in real-life scenarios. As it often happens, anyone who wants to be a “leader” has to be ready to cause harm, make morally grey decisions, and negatively affect some people. As stated before, a leader belongs to a group, and every group has enemies (competitors); so, when conflict arises, it is the leader’s responsibility to “harm” the opposing group. Naturally, we are not talking about physical harm; but rather economic, financial, reputational, logistical, political, etc. Additionally, any leadership position entails making difficult decisions, many of which involve sacrifices and morally questionable acts, which the leader has to do for the benefit of their group.
There is only one way the organizations that “promote leadership” could create leaders. It is when someone there would fight against that very organization as well as its values and establishment. If that opposition person would withstand the organization’s relentless oppression while gathering its own group, then they would indeed have “leadership skills.” This, of course, will never be welcomed.
All these factors prove that “teaching people leadership,” or “nurturing leaders” is impossible, as such a welcoming environment of nurture and support only creates the opposite. Anyone who was taught to be a leader is not one; everyone who was encouraged by the system to be a leader is not one; and everyone who was welcomed by the status quo to be a leader is not one. A leader emerges as an opposition to one group and as a protector of another. That is the very definition of a “bringer of change.” If your changes to the status quo are welcomed by the establishment, then you are not bringing anything new, but simply executing the will of the majority: a bureaucrat – the very opposite of a leader. If the values that you promote are already globally considered “good” then you are not a hero for promoting them.
All these variables lead us to the conclusion that most conversations about “learning to be a leader” are misguided or fraudulent. It is a skill that can be learned but not taught. Leaders arise not thanks to support but despite the pressure.
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