Leadership – Create a Community Spirit

This is the final part of my Leadership series.

There is a very popular saying, and it goes like this: “It’s lonely at the top.”

To a very large extent, this is true. The scary part of this is, the higher up you go, the lonelier it gets. Can you imagine being at the top of a large organisation and being privy to all the information affecting millions of dollars? Who can you talk to about it? No one!

Yet, to be a successful leader, you need to be able to foster trust among your team members. You need to be able to build them up, and all the while, carrying your own burden which none can share. It would seem a burden too great to bear. But I would like to suggest that this might not be entirely true.

If you are able to share your vision, if you have managed to convey your values, led by example, grow your team, promote trust and share the power; if you have achieved all of these, you will never be truly alone. Your team can help you carry a large part of your load. You are no longer a company. You are not just a “boss”. You are the leader. Many people believe that team building is the answer.

At the end of all the team building, you will need to create a community spirit. Because only when you have a community, that the team, your company, can be really alive. Teams come and go as projects dictate. But a community is much larger than just a team. It encompasses all teams. It has room for many leaders. A community has followers who are leaders and leaders who are as much a member of the community as everyone else.

A community can go on functioning when “Mr Jones” goes on vacation. A community is immune to the “Smith family” leaving town for the summer. When you take a vacation, does your phone ring non-stop? Do you have to bring your laptop to the beach in case you miss an important email? Or do you have a team that is able to support you? A team that will allow you to be human and take your much needed time off?

At this point, it is no longer about me, them or “the team”. It’s not even about the project, or the results, or the efforts. At this point, it is about “us”.

Following are the previous nine articles in case you need the links:

1. Articulate Your Personal Vision As a Leader
2. Putting Action To Your Words
3. Have a Vision
4. Share the Vision
5. Learn and Grow
6. Take Risks
7. Promote Cooperation and Trust in your Team
8. Share Power
9. Show Appreciation

[tags]leadership, good leaders, build community[/tags]