The Loner

I remember being told a story a few years ago; this story takes place many centuries ago and is about 10 young men who wanted to become strong, respected leaders. They were told about a leadership guru who lived far away in a distant land and that it would take many months to travel there. The young men set off on their journey hoping to learn the ways of the leadership master and along the way they come across a loner. They told the loner about the guru and that they were on their way and invited the loner to join them. The loner accepted their offer and accompanied them for the rest of the journey.

Throughout their travels, the loner took on all the unpleasant chores such as tending to all the camels, cooking meals, and disposing of everyone’s waste. The long trip took its toll on the men and often the loner would tend to the men’s injuries and listen to their troubles and then persuaded them to continue forward and not to quit because the juice will be worth the squeeze; after all he was in the same position they were and if he could hack it so could they. He encouraged them to stick together and lean on each other for support. Over time, everyone started helping out the loner with the unpleasant chores and became a very close group. One morning the group noticed something on the horizon; they had finally arrived at the gate of the home of the guru.

Upon arrival the travelers were invigorated with excitement and rushed the gate and were greeted by a guard. They told the guard about their journey and asked if they could meet the guru. The guard looked over the men in the group; smiled and said “men you have already met the guru, in fact he has been traveling with you the whole time” as he pointed to the loner. The men didn’t believe the guard and were shocked that he would take them to be fools. They stated “he can’t possibly be the guru he doesn’t know anything about leadership, he hasn’t given out one order”. The guru smiled and said “I have not given any orders this is true; however, this is the power of servant leadership. I influenced you to achieve your goals by displaying empathy, persuasion, foresight, and listening abilities. I lead you not only to my gate but I led you closer to each other. Leadership isn’t about what people can do for you; it’s about what you can do for people”. The men were shocked, embarrassed and in awe of the clout this loner had over them throughout their trip. They thanked the guru and took the lesson home.

                In our minds, leaders get things done. Leadership in the business or sports world is measured by a bottom line. That bottom line may consist of profits generated or games won over the course of the year. On the surface, the business or sports world doesn’t publicize the development of people within the organization as leadership. I believe this benefit of leadership is overlooked due to the fact that people like factual statistics, and the development of people isn’t something that is as easy to measure and track like profits and wins. Leadership is more than just getting an organization from point A to B it is about making an impact in the lives of those around you. As a leader you have an obligation to serve your follows by developing them and preparing them for life. The above story is an example of how you can achieve that.

References

Northouse, P. G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and Practice (Sixth ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Penn State World Campus. (2014). Lesson 11: Servant Leadership. Retrieved from Psych 485:Leadership in Work Settings: https://courses.worldcampus.psu.edu/su14/psych485/002/content/11_lesson/printlesson.html