Why a Partisan Leader can’t be a Good Leader
There’s a passage from the Bible that I do much esteem. It states and I quote, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” It doesn’t matter if you’re dealing with national politics, local politics, office politics or matters in your household, a leader must be able to bring people together and on one accord to achieve a common mission.
A good leader cares about all of those who follow. They are not only concerned with those who believe what they believe or who see things the way that they do. When you fight for issues that are important to your party, you inevitably leave out representing a large group to which you are also responsible. A good leader must be “for the people, by the people,” which means you have to consider and serve the best interests of everyone.
A leader must be able to get buy-in from those who follow. In order to do that, you must be able to appeal to their sense of reason. While you may have the power to mandate, it means nothing if you can’t get followers to participate. That’s why I always urge leaders to educate over mandate. Through education, a person can make an informed choice rather than being forced into an uncomfortable situation. When followers feel they had and made a choice, you’ll find far greater success in carrying out your mission.
When people don’t feel that they are being represented, it will be difficult to get them to follow. They will ultimately rebel in some form, be it passive or aggressive. You see it all of the time. When there’s a republican president, the democrats complain for 4 years straight. When there’s a democrat in office, the republicans are up in arms. Each side tries to create as much ruckus as they can to ensure that the new leader does not accomplish his or her mission.
It’s true! You may not be able to get everyone to see and follow a vision, but if you are only representing half the house, you are sure to have a much larger number of those who oppose you. Therefore, a good leader must be neutral and not have a preset agenda that doesn’t consider the needs and desires of all whom it affects. If such a leader should arise, he or she will have the makings of a great leader indeed.
Eric L. Lipsey
www.TheLink.biz
Hello There. I found your blog using msn. This is a really well written article. I will be sure to bookmark it and come back to read more of your useful info. Thanks for the post. I will definitely comeback.
I’m really impressed with your writing skills and also with the layout on your blog. Is this a paid theme or did you modify it yourself? Either way keep up the nice quality writing, it is rare to see a great blog like this one today.