Training in Leadership: Born, Made or Grown?

You’ve likely heard the quote that great leaders are “born and not made.”  The reason this quote is popular is because people do not believe that they can be a great actor, or painter, or writer, or speaker if the talent is not inborn. I’m not sure why people believe this way, but it is something we’ve all been taught. While it might be true that certain proclivities are genetic, every single one of us has a leader inside us waiting to grow and shine in some aspect. You might not shine as a singer or poet, but you could excel as a mother, or a friend, or a secretary. All of these life choices require some form of leadership.

We often think of leaders as people we see in the news, or who are in politics, or carry a certain title or position. When you think about those positions are just that, positions, and they are few and far between. No one is self made and gets to a certain place in life without some help along the way. We all rely on others in some way to lift us up when needed. We all lead in some way, at some time during our lives.

Even children can lead if given the right level of assurances and confidence. Leadership can take many forms such as:

• A child deciding which shirt to wear, the blue one or the yellow one
• A teenager deciding on a career path
• A mom making the choice to work (or not work) outside the home
• A dad choosing to spend time with a child by mowing the lawn together

These are all ways in which a person can express their leadership of themselves and others. You can guess that the child chooses blue or yellow because the mom gave him the choice, “You want to wear the blue shirt, or the yellow shirt.” The child felt powerful over his life because he got to pick something as small as what to wear.

The teenager may ultimately choose a career path that the parent does not like, or the teenager might pick a career path that the parents have lovingly guided them toward based on their personality, likes and innate ability. In both cases, the parent and the teenager are showing an important leadership quality of making choices that value the other.

As you can see, leadership is more than a job, position, or title. How you choose to express yourself is at the heart of leadership and it is something you can grow. Whether you choose to be career-centered, or family-centered, or pick something in between, if you’re making these choices in a mindful way you’re growing and expressing your true leadership.