There is a lot of talk about leadership, be it in organizations, personal life, political context, etc. If we went to a bookstore and asked to see what they have on this subject, we would see that the number of publications is huge and also continues to grow every year. It seems that leadership is one of those topics that summons us, either because we understand that it is necessary for life, or because we feel that much is lacking in people. Regardless of the reason, this widely used term tends to lead us to think about certain models that may not really be the leadership we need.
One of the things that strikes me in the work I do as a trainer and coach of people is the constant search to develop leadership skills, those that enable people to better lead others. Usually leadership has focused on the external, on the impact one has on others, on the ability to persuade, guide, inspire, and motivate to certain expected behaviors.
It is true that, at least in the world of work, bosses are in short supply and leaders are scarce. However, it seems to me that it is also true that both are more outwardly focused than inwardly focused. How can I lead others if I have not been able to lead myself? How can I inspire if what I do not inspire me? How can I ask for clarity and leadership if I have not been able to control my most basic impulses? For some years now we have been talking (and studying) about relationship and the need for leaders to cultivate themselves internally, and all because it is understood that a better leader is, in the first instance, a better person.
But when I say “a better person,” what I mean is a more integrated, internally coherent person, able to manage his impulses and emotions to put them at the service of a purpose (not a result, but a purpose), spreading a meaning, a clear vision of a horizon that others also want to join.
This is why if you want to be a better leader, if you seek to train leaders in your organization, or simply want to achieve those qualities that you may want to incorporate in your life, keep in mind that the first thing is to lead our inner self, and this means that we must begin to know ourselves, accept ourselves, continuously improve, be more consistent in our lives, more integral in our actions. To be true leaders means to grow, to evolve, and not in the eyes of others, but in the first instance in the intimate and deep evaluation of our inner self. If this is the necessary path, I would like all of us to work to be true leaders.