Sublime

The term servant leadership was coined by Robert K. Greenleaf, and refers to a leader who “shares power, puts the needs of others first, and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible.” This is in contrast to the traditional leadership model which focuses on the power of one at the “top of the pyramid.”

acts of leadership depend less on the magnetism and social dominance of heroic individuals and more on the capacities of individuals (who may be located in a wide variety of positions) to skillfully intervene in complex systems.

Peter Block makes the case eloquently that leadership in a learning organization is very different from the prevailing model of charismatic, strong leadership from the top. Stewardship, according to Block, is “… the willingness to be accountable for the well-being of the larger organization by operating in service, rather than in control, of those

Ireland. She is moved by his conviction that a central piece of the practice of leadership is “helping people to see the contradictions in such a way that they can discover what is in everybody’s best interest”—what Heifetz describes as “recognizing the gap that signals adaptive work.”

Thus, the multifaceted capacity to be present becomes a key factor in effective leadership: the quality of one’s capacity to be fully present, comprehend what is happening, hold steady in the field of action, and make choices regarding when and how to intervene from within the social group (from wherever you sit) in ways that help the group to make

The best behaviors one can hope for come from leaders who can weigh the benefits of cooperation, and who have long enough time frames that they can see how the gifts they give this year may bring them benefits in the future.