I\u2019ve heard these statements throughout my life. They do have validity, however, based mostly on the view of a \u201cdoer-leader.\u201d The \u201cdoer-leader\u201d are those who would say, \u201clead, follow or get out of the way!\u201d That actually might not be leadership but bullying. But I digress. Getting back to my main thought, I do suspect that everyone wants to lead. At least they want to lead their own life. Why would we have the phrase \u201che has control issues?\u201d Why would people state, \u201cI want to be left alone to do what I want to do?\u201d Or what about the statement, \u201cYou can\u2019t tell me what to do, I make my own decisions for my life.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If you read between the lines, each statement is a cry to be a leader. Making decisions\u2014good and bad\u2014is the heart of leadership. I do believe that God has placed in each of us not only the desire to lead but the ability to lead. We are all born to lead.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Organizationally speaking, some will lead at the top, some will lead at the middle and others will lead at other levels. However, in life, everyone must lead. We all know what happens when people refuse to take leadership in their own life. I only need refer to the many cults that are able to exist because people allow others to lead their lives. The Deep Change Field Guide<\/i>,[1] it is the one book that I have come across, so far, this helps a person understand first that they are leaders, second that leadership can be developed and then show you how.<\/p>\n For staunch leadershipites (is that a word?) this books can seem rather reductive. The \u201cThink About It\u201d sections may be a little too much for some who don\u2019t want to think about it, they just want to do it: the doer-leader. But, leadership takes thoughtful reflection; ergo the Journaling and Memo sections. Even the film suggestions have a reflective component. Quinn points out that whether someone is leading an organization or their own life, thinking and reflection are critical to good leadership.<\/p>\n However, it is the topic of failure in leadership that most demonstrates the transformational aspect of this book and informs us of the need for thinking and reflection. For example, when I read Bill\u2019s description of the pine tree that he drew, the tree looked familiar to me too. Upon reflecting on his work, he said, \u201cI realized that I was that dying old pine tree and that I was denying my need for nourishment for self.\u201d As Quinn so aptly explains, the harder we work, the less we accomplish. The more we push, the less forward we move. [2] Consider the following statement.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cPsychologists tell us that as our stress level increases, our attention span tends to diminish. We seek to solve new problems with the same methods by which we solved old problems. Instead of responding creatively, we increase our commitment to old patterns. At the very moment when innovative action is most needed, we implement our most ingrained response.\u201d [3]<\/p>\n
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<\/a>My initial reaction to that statement is the same response that Bob gave to Dr. Leo Marvin in the movie What About Bob?<\/i>. Bob responded to the Dr\u2019s analysis by saying,