What makes today's leader?

CEBU, Philippines – Is a man a leader when he is responsible for some people? Is he a leader when he is the most intelligent man in the group? Is he a leader when he is the most aggressive man in the group?  The answer to these and similar questions may be either yes or no. What factors determine the answer?

A man is a leader to the degree that he has a following, and his following is voluntary, and he demonstrates to people the best method of getting what they want, and he is the best man in the use of this method.

People see a leader as a model. His behavior shows them how to get what they want most. They see their pay as merely the means of providing necessities for living in the interval before realization of their goal. They continue to give loyalty to a leader only so long as he keeps providing without doubt that he is the superior man in the "best method."

As conditions in the world have changed, the focus of people's needs have changed with them. With the emergence of new needs, people would seek out a different kind of leader to show them how to achieve their goals. As the rate of innovation is accelerating, products and methods more often become obsolete before they are through the stage of final planning.

The man of the hour is the one who can handle the complex problems created by the increasing speed of invention. He is not the man who is strongest, craftiest, shrewdest, or most popular. He is the man of exceptional originality. He is the man who has disciplined himself to keep acquiring new knowledge and skills. He has created new ways of doing things in areas like atomic energy, the conquest of space, civic planning, education, media, international affairs etc.

In business, the transition in leadership can most readily be seen taking place in the growth industries: electronics, missiles, atomics, plastics, and the like. Those firms that have the highest quality of leadership in innovation are attracting the creative people. These people come not for the money but for the promise of association with men who excel as thinkers.

Men can be given positions. They cannot be given leadership. They take leadership by demonstrating to their followers how to get what they want most. In this age, they must demonstrate originality. It is no longer enough just to be clever; to add, for example, another head light or tail light and claim a major new automotive design. The new test for leadership demands a quantum-like leap in originality, an abandonment of the old for a concept that is vastly superior. In this sense, the man with the original idea leads, regardless of seniority, position, wealth, or training.

The most striking aspect of obsolescence today is its suddenness. Regardless of size, assets, or prestige, a company can be prospering one day and faced with ruin the next. The only insurance against this threat is creative talent.

Men of originality cannot be developed en masse. Rather, they search out for themselves the sources of knowledge and skills they need for their growth. Above all, they search for a creative leader who can coach them by his example.

The message for business is clear. The companies that survive will be those that learn quickest how to discover and encourage the growth of originators. In particular, they will be companies whose managers foster inquisitiveness and demonstrate originality in decision-making.

The message for any man who aspires to be a leader is also clear. It is no longer enough to have a college degree, to be conscientious on the job, and to work hard. To achieve and hold a position of leadership on this age of innovation, a man must spend a part of every day in self-development. He will need to add continuously to his resources of knowledge and skills. To do this, he cannot afford to be a spendthrift of time. He must learn to guard it with resolution, to handle it with precision, and to invest it with good judgment. Then he will find he has a wealth of time for leadership and development.

- From The Management of Time (Prentice Hall)