We are in the midst of the weirdest and most leaderless season of public life in modern U.S. history. And I’m left wondering: “Where are our leaders?”
Is there a leader out there who will bring us together? Who can walk us back from the edge? I don’t mean just in national offices in Washington D.C., “Where are the leaders in our communities, council chambers, state legislatures, small businesses and non-profits, corporate boardrooms and everywhere else?”
Many are called leaders— but where are they?
Why the silence?
We, as a society, are stuck. We don’t know how to act or how to get ourselves out of this situation. It’s not just that we have bad leaders it’s that there is a total and complete vacuum of leadership in our culture. Everyone is “leading” but no one is following.
We are experiencing a leadership vacuum.
I believe a leader takes you where you cannot or will not go on your own. On our own we only seem to division division or self-interest. (or both)
The Leadership Test
Here’s what I know about leadership:
- When the fire starts
- When the earth quakes
- When the bomb goes off
- When the robber shows his gun
- When the king falls
- When you’re pinned down
- When you’re stuck in the snow
- When the doctor calls it
- When the teacher goes to the office
- When the bank says no
- When all hope is lost
That’s when you find out who the leader is. Leadership isn’t a title, it’s a trait.
And, I can’t speak for anyone else, but I think we need some of that right about now.
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