The essence of true leadership

We all remember the names of great leaders in this world like Abraham Lincoln, Gandhiji, Mother Teresa, Subhash Chand Bose, and others. But do we remember the names of any great managers? Probably not.

A manager is a person who manages a task or a team while a leader leads the team.

John C. Maxwell said, “A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” A Successful manager finds the right place for themselves, while a successful leader finds the right place for others.

Toastmasters is an organization that believes that every one of us is a leader and that we all can lead others and show them the right path in life.

According to Harvard Business Review, the qualities of a leader should include the following:

Authenticity – A leader must be genuine. Competence is not enough for a leader; people must trust your character and connect with you. “Friends, do any one of us believe that if Gandhiji or Subhash Chandra Bose were not authentic then so many people would have blindly followed them? People sacrificed their own lives because they believed in their leader. Remember the famous slogan of Netaji – “Give me your blood and I will give you freedom.”

Another essential quality of a leader is Empathy or Care. A leader must be caring by nature. S/He must care for his team, for only then can he think of their growth and development.

Other qualities of a leader include resilience, creativity, analytical power, and more.

As Gautam Buddha said, “If you light a lamp for someone else, it will also brighten your path.”

Always believe in the fact that you are a leader and continuously work on improving your leadership skills.

I would like to refer to a short but very inspiring speech about life by Coca-Cola’s former CEO Brian G. Dyson.

“Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling five balls in the air. You name them — work, family, health, friends, and spirit — and you’re keeping all of these in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls — family, health, friends, and spirit — are made of glass. If you drop one of these, it will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged, or even shattered. They will never be the same.”

The essence of this speech is to remind us that while work can recover from setbacks, our relationships, well-being, and inner peace are fragile and need more careful handling. It is a powerful metaphor for finding balance and making sure we protect the most important aspects of life.