Why should anyone be led by you? At the start of the Millennium, our research, coupled with was driven by this single, simple question. It had an impact. Audiences throughout the world paused for thought. Rooms fell silent as people pondered their right to lead. An article in the Harvard Business Review with the question as its title drew a flood of communication and launched us on a five-year journey.
Since then, we have talked to hundreds of leaders and their followers within the business world and beyond -- from CEOs of multinational corporations to teachers and nurses. What we learned is that to be a leader, you need vision, purpose and energy. But, to be a great leader you need to understand your differences -- your strengths and weaknesses - and, crucially, how to adapt these qualities to context.
This is a book whose genesis was driven by a question, but it is one whose fruition, we believe, provides real answers to the leadership dilemmas we face. If you are serious about leadership, don't try to be someone else: Be yourself - more - with skill. Read more about the book
In these times of "empowered" followers, write Rob Goffee and Gareth Jones in the Harvard Business Review, executives who look beyond the most obvious qualities of leadership will find surprising characteristics that truly inspirational leaders share.
Excerpted from the article "Why Should Anyone Be Led by You?" in the Harvard Business Review, September-October 2000.
Read our latest HBR article in the December 2005 issue.
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