A friend sent me this idea: A true leader of the pack also helps those in the back.
I’ve identified six primary skills that most successful leaders practice. The sixth, service, is the least talked about in leadership books and training. It may well be the most overlooked and least practiced.
Perhaps there is an assumption that serving is inherent in leadership. Unfortunately it is only an assumption.
Some leaders are motivated only by personal and/or organizational gain. They sometimes view philanthropy as a means to an end rather than a worthwhile end in itself.
I suppose that this self-serving kind of leadership is a type of leadership. This non-altruistic variety of leadership falls short in my opinion. Ultimately, I believe, the highest calling of leadership is service, directly and indirectly, to others: followers, customers and the greater community.
The most radical take on this comes from my friend Charlie Jones who announced, “I’ve given up on giving!” Since Charlie is one of the most giving people I know, he got my attention. He continued, “Everything I have—my time, my talents, my life itself—it was all given to me. I did nothing to earn any of it. So my new goal in life is returning as much as I can of the good things I’ve been given.
Maybe that’s an even better concept than servant leadership: “returning” leadership.
