There are many people who see Leadership as a Path to Power, or an Easy Life.
However, those who end up in Leadership Positions soon discover that they become Miserable if these were their Goals.
The Truth is that Leaders have very Little to No True Power.
The Title of "Leader" means Nothing to People.
Just look at the Return-to-Office "Mandates" that Leaders have been making, Unsuccessfully.
Dell just had 50% of their US Workforce (Unsurprisingly) Completely Ignore the "Mandates".
Or go a bit further back and look at Grindr who had 45% of their Workforce Quit instead of going back into the Office.
No matter what "Title" you hold, or how large of an Organization you are in charge of, you have No Power when the Workforce decides they Do Not like Your Choices.
Then, if you thought that Leadership would make your Life easier, you'll be Terribly Surprised when you discover that "Everyone" else's Stress is now "Your" Responsibility.
So, instead of Life becoming Easier, it has now become Exponentially more Difficult.
The Reality of Leadership is that it is often a Thankless Job that requires you to Continually Show Up, Day In and Day Out, No Questions.
So my question for You is Simple.
Are you Willing to Step Up Consistently as a Leader?
This isn't a trick question or anything, it is a simple Reality of what it means to be a Leader.
When people on your Team don't Show Up, regardless of the Reason, are You willing to get the Work Done?
When No One Recognizes You for the Effort that you always put in, Will You Still Give it Your All?
When people begin to say how they Hate your Ideas, tell you Everything you do is Wrong, and how Awful you are, Will You "Both" Honestly Listen to Them "And" Do Your Best to make things Better for Those who Spit in your Face?
Will you show up Day, after Day, after Monotonous Day to make sure that things go smoothly?
This is one of the Important Pieces for Leaders.
Will you Show Up Consistently?
There are a lot of People who want to be Leaders who Fail to Show Up Consistently.
The Truth is that if you Can Not Consistently Show Up, then People will Not Follow.
Period.
A part of the Reason People "Choose" to Follow a Leader is "Because" of their Consistency.
In the Chaos that is Life, people are Desperate for someone or something that is There, that they can Always Count On, who allows them to Believe that Not Everything is Burning.
Can you Provide that for Others?
If you Can Not, then all you are Showing to Others is that You are Unable to Handle the Chaos.
When you have Revealed that to others, then they have No Reason to Follow You.
The Tragic thing about this is that if you set your mind to doing something Consistently, it Is Not Difficult to Stand Out as a Leader.
I just discovered today an Athlete who has been Standing Out as a Leader who Runs Consistently.
His name is Hellah Sidibe, and he has been Running Every Day since May 15th, 2017 which is over 2,500 Days straight.
Consistency.
In my own work, though not nearly as Impressive as Hellah's Streak, I have written an Article Daily for over 550 Days Straight.
That Consistency has led to 20 Nominations and Awards for my Work Last Year, and I am currently at 31 for this Year, so far.
When people see Consistency, they are Attracted to it.
Amid the Chaos of Life, that Consistency becomes a Beacon of Light and a Breath of Fresh Air.
People are "Desperate" for that, and if you are Willing to Stay Consistent, you will be given an Opportunity to Lead.
However, once you "Do" Step into the Role of a Leader, that is only the "Beginning" of where Consistency is Needed.
If you Truly want to Lead and Change the World, you Must be Willing to Step Up Consistently.
Today, and Every Day Forward.