Five Modern Management Myths and What to Do About Them - Myth Four

A fourth myth that resembles a pineapple upside-down cake: leadership is all it takes

HL Menken says: “The main business of the nation as a nation is mainly the establishment of fake heroes.” The main business of the organization is the establishment of leaders, mainly fake. The leaders themselves are not fake, but focus on leadership as a solution.

Everywhere you go, you will be praised for leadership and the wonders it can do. We pay a lot of attention and money for leadership and books and training, but attention, money and the underlying myth are misguided. Leadership is important, but it is only a small part of what is needed to make a business competitive. You need a good strategy, good execution, and a motivated individual to increase the overall competitiveness of your company.

Please consider your own experience. Is a successful organization strictly the result of a leader? Most people recognize the impact on an individual team basis and can say “no” throughout the organization. Many people need personal initiatives and actions to succeed. Leadership can make it easier or harder, but it is by no means the magic key.

Initiatives that allow individuals to exercise their shared goals and see them in a common metric are important. Again, consider your own experience when you were an initiator. You made a difference, right?

Initiators find problems, solve problems, leverage their efforts, and make changes. Unfortunately, the myth of leadership as salvation shines a spotlight on the responsible leader, but overlooks all who make a difference. This individual can be anyone who sees and must do what they need to do. Magic bullet leadership means that others don't want and are not ready to act, big or small. This unfortunately places too little awareness or confidence that most people in most organizations can move the organization forward, spotlighting leaders who lead the organization to a bog.

In reality, leadership often causes sadness, not growth. Working together is not a sadness but an engine of growth.