The Guru Nation Blog

At the most recent Global Athenaeum summit in New York, futurist Edie Weiner asked her audience “what is leadership?” and suggested that the answer could be found in the common threads between Mother Teresa and Adolph Hitler.  She boldly told her audience that in researching what leadership actually was, and how we could define it, she was able to answer the “what is leadership?” inquiry by studying the three things Hitler and Mother Teresa had in common.

Here are the three things Edie saw:

1.    A strong, unwavering vision and an extreme passion for that vision
2.    An ability, in words and deeds, to articulate the vision so passionately that the “dis-interested” would follow
3.    A commitment so strong that there is absolutely no embarrassment about the vision

The “what is leadership?” question is more specifically broken down into five key challenges now on the table for effective 21st century leaders.
Here is a summary of the “commandments” that Edie Weiner spoke about:

1.    Take the lead from those at all levels of the organization and outside of the organization. Leadership requires listening, and often to voices
within the organization, not just atop it. When we ask for ideas from the “trenches” we are challenging people to be more creative and find solutions.

2.    Place emphasis and value on integrity over quality. When the leader of the organization insists on integrity and fair dealings with all stakeholders, quality and commitment become the natural and desired end product.

3.     Value intangibles. When too much emphasis is put on a balance sheet, we forget to calibrate the value of ideas, reputation, knowledge, time.

4.    Move from mankind to mind-kind. Focus your organization on re-thinking opportunity, and direct your efforts from input to output.

5.    Respect the earth. Leadership will require a new focus on preserving the land and the planet, not raping it. There is no integrity in depleting the world.

As leadership continues to be the subject of books, articles, and classroom debate, the what is leadership core will circle back to A guardianship view of the world, a new view to collaboration versus top-down leadership, and an inspired vision to preserve and respect the natural resources that surround us.