Monumental Leadership

This seems to be the season of tagging. I have been tagged by John W. McKenna at The Leadership Epidemic to take part in the “Does Most Leadership Suck Challenge.”

At first I thought to myself, “This blog is not really about leadership.” Then I thought of it differently. On a deeper level it is all about leadership. Not in the usual, “dictator to minion way,” but in a real life defining way. Leadership is guidance and guidance is discovery.

Life is about leadership. Life comes from seeds and seeds come from life. We lead by example. Something inside us sparks the initial thought, which leads to action, fueled by passion and wrought with desire, determination and a willingness to fail.

Most great leaders won’t tell you that they have had plenty of failures on their journeys to greatness. Abraham Lincoln being one of the most famous failures. He has had enough failures to fill an ocean. That’s one reason motivational speakers use him as an example. Failure is a tool to success.

When you look at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. you don’t think, “Oh, what a failure.” You think, “Oh, what a monument.” That’s what leadership is - - monumental thinking - - monumental action - - monumental passion. Monumental movement moves mountains. Monumentality instills purpose.

The memorial stands 190 feet long, 119 feet wide, and almost 100 feet high. That’s how we have to stand in our vision. Looking at the Colorado Yule marble exterior and Massachusetts granite and Potomac River stone walkway reminds us to be resolute in our decisions.

The Indiana limestone interior walls, the Tennessee Pink marble floor, and the Alabama marble ceiling soaked in paraffin to make them translucent urges us to be the shining example and not to crack under pressure.

Surrounded by 38 fluted Doric columns, the statue of Lincoln is 19 feet high and weighs 175 tons. A good leader standards are as high and worth their weight in gold.

A leader is bigger than life -- monumental.

We are the architects of our own destiny. Purveyors of decree, not once questioning our raison d'etre. We lay the groundwork, build pillars, and construct beams across uncharted blue skies - - eagle-eyeing the azure, indigo and cobalt that leads to the twilight of stars.

I think that there is a misconception about leadership. Most people think of it as leading others when it is really navigating the longitude and latitude of ourselves, emerging from the dark cloud while the luminescent hues of humanity paint the heavens with reason and rhyme.

A notable leader is someone who sees the road ahead when it is still dirt. If you want to be a great leader, then be a great person. The ultimate leadership is whatever and whoever leads you to yourself -- and that’s the true discovery.

A true master does not look behind to see who is following, they just lead the way. At the end of the day, all roads lead to God.