Judge Leaders By How Their Actions Will Impact The Future
When it comes to evaluating leadership, many of us all too often look far too much at the immediate and/ or short- term impact, and rarely is there enough attention and concentration on how what a leader does today will impact his organization, perhaps for years to come.
Too many inexperienced leaders immediately enter into crisis mode when confronted by any obstacles or challenges, and focus solely on the immediate fix.
While at times a leader must concentrate most of his focus on the immediate needs of his organization, there have been far more cases of when leaders need to focus on the longer term ramifications of either the action they take or that which they try to avoid.
Nelson Henderson put it this way, "The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit.
" 1.
Those in charge often think solely of how something impacts them and their constituents, on a current basis.
This often creates a situation where, in an attempt to remedy an immediate situation, those in leadership take steps that in the long term often create far more dangerous issues that those currently at hand.
A true leader is not merely a caretaker for an organization, but must be a visionary who addresses maintaining both the relevancy and sustainability of the organization he has been entrusted to lead.
For example, when leaders focus on cutting services in order to address a fiscal challenge, the immediate impact and result may be to accomplish that goal (in the short term), but the longer term ramification is often losing followers, especially to other organizations who maintain their relevance.
True leadership requires a balancing act between addressing some very serious immediate issues, while doing so in a way that at the very least, does no harm to the future of the group.
It is for this reason that it is so very important that organizations painstakingly identify, qualify, train and develop its leaders, instilling the knowledge and understanding that can guide someone to the wisest course of action.
2.
One great example is protecting the environment, especially in the areas of air and water pollution.
While the effects of pollution at its direst form take many years to fully harm the planet, isn't a leader supposed to protect future generations by having a plan and a specific course of action? Great leaders must be immediate caretakers, while at the same time, being the defenders to assure the optimal future conditions.
Isn't that why there is such a real need for quality leaders?
Too many inexperienced leaders immediately enter into crisis mode when confronted by any obstacles or challenges, and focus solely on the immediate fix.
While at times a leader must concentrate most of his focus on the immediate needs of his organization, there have been far more cases of when leaders need to focus on the longer term ramifications of either the action they take or that which they try to avoid.
Nelson Henderson put it this way, "The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit.
" 1.
Those in charge often think solely of how something impacts them and their constituents, on a current basis.
This often creates a situation where, in an attempt to remedy an immediate situation, those in leadership take steps that in the long term often create far more dangerous issues that those currently at hand.
A true leader is not merely a caretaker for an organization, but must be a visionary who addresses maintaining both the relevancy and sustainability of the organization he has been entrusted to lead.
For example, when leaders focus on cutting services in order to address a fiscal challenge, the immediate impact and result may be to accomplish that goal (in the short term), but the longer term ramification is often losing followers, especially to other organizations who maintain their relevance.
True leadership requires a balancing act between addressing some very serious immediate issues, while doing so in a way that at the very least, does no harm to the future of the group.
It is for this reason that it is so very important that organizations painstakingly identify, qualify, train and develop its leaders, instilling the knowledge and understanding that can guide someone to the wisest course of action.
2.
One great example is protecting the environment, especially in the areas of air and water pollution.
While the effects of pollution at its direst form take many years to fully harm the planet, isn't a leader supposed to protect future generations by having a plan and a specific course of action? Great leaders must be immediate caretakers, while at the same time, being the defenders to assure the optimal future conditions.
Isn't that why there is such a real need for quality leaders?
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