On becoming a leader

[...]... Introduction to the Revised Edition, 2003 that have been charted before Compasses are helpful when you are not sure where you are and can get only a general sense of direction.” Adaptive capacity allows today’s leaders to act, and then to evaluate the results of their actions, instead of relying on the traditional decision-making model, which calls for collecting and analyzing the data, then acting Today’s leaders... America on the best-seller list, and he is much sought after as a critic of the way America has done business in recent years Time has only made him a more distinguished leader and burnished his remarkable ability to adapt and grow Timeless leadership is always about character, and it is always about authenticity Let me underscore the observation made by pioneering psychologist William James about authenticity... fulltime about leadership and change have long argued that the pace of change continues to accelerate and that we must find ways to embrace and celebrate it But some change is hard to love, and 9/11 is a prime example Since the Great Depression, the United States has been a place of growing security No war has been fought on American soil since the Civil War For all its inequality and racism, the nation has... leaders have four essential competencies First, they are able to engage others by creating shared meaning They have a vision, and they can persuade others to make that vision their own Hitler is a ghastly example of this ability, and a reminder of the under-appreciated role that rhetoric and performance play in leadership One reason that leaders are able to promulgate their vision is because they are exquisitely... business leader whose face became as recognizable as a film or rock star’s Americans have always tended to see their institutions as the lengthened shadows of great men a tendency that drove a genuinely collaborative leader like John Adams to near madness—and we have tended to reward such charismatic leaders out of proportion to their contribution But that tendency got completely out of hand in the last years... where a woman can still be stoned to death for adultery, and everyone can watch it on satellite TV The world has undergone economic transformation as well China has embraced entrepreneurism and other forms of capitalism And the European Union, once dismissed as a Utopian xv 0465014088_fm.qxd:0738208175_fm.qxd 12/2/08 2:52 PM Page xvi On Becoming a Leader pipe dream, is now a reality—so real it has eliminated... Nothing about the world today is simpler than it was or slower than it was, which makes the ability to collaborate and facilitate great collaboration more vital than ever Two recent events seem especially relevant to leadership today The first is 9/11 The terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, changed American life as profoundly as the attack on Pearl Harbor... alleged lack of leadership in America today, and the blame usually lands at the feet of the individual who hasn’t made the grade Greed, timidity, and lack of vision are rampant among the current crop of pseudo-leaders Certainly, no matter how many genuine leaders there are in this country—and I know there are many, because I’ve met them and talked with them—we could use more, particularly at the national... makes a person a healthy, fully integrated human being And it is the same process that allows one to age successfully When I think of adaptive capacity I think of such serial leaders as Arthur Levitt, Jr., former head of the Securities and Exchange Commission Arthur’s adaptive capacity has allowed him to reinvent himself time after time As I write this, he has a book about Wall Street and corporate America... fields as well—forgot that they were under scrutiny and that they could be called to account at any time They forgot that something’s being legal doesn’t mean it’s right And they forgot that what the public giveth, it can take away Just ask Martha Stewart The corporate scandals have had a devastating effect on the stock market, one that is liable to persist long after the headlines about Enron and other . class="bi x0 y0 w0 h0" alt="" More praise for On Becoming a Leader “Warren Bennis master practitioner, researcher, and theoretician all in one—has managed to create a practical primer for leaders. critically, at such vital questions as, What are the purposes of the corporation and other organizations in to- day’s world? The metaphor of the organization as a machine that creates value for stakeholders. stoned to death for adultery, and everyone can watch it on satellite TV. The world has undergone economic transformation as well. China has embraced entrepreneurism and other forms of capi- talism.