The Power See-Saw

"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power."

I think this quote by Abraham Lincoln really illustrates the way I think power affects not just individuals, but groups as well.  Power is usually associated with, and even synonymous with, leadership, but the important thing to remember is that a leader does not have a monopoly on power.  In fact, depending on the type of power, a follower may have more of it than the leader!

Referent power, the power associated with the popularity of a person within a group, I believe is among the most important.  One might have legitimate power, but if he/she is not popular or is even hated, there is always a chance that their followers will not follow the leader, but instead follow the more popular choice.

A nice example for this is the conflict between Captain Jack Sparrow and Barbossa in Pirates of the Caribbean:

 

Barbossa was the first mate of Jack.  Unfortunately, Jack wasn't as popular as Barbossa was, despite him being Captain.  With Barbossa's referent power greater than Jack's, he was able to convince the crew to lead a mutiny against Jack and assume the position of leader of the crew and the Black Pearl.

Obviously, mutiny is an extreme example to illustrate the effect of referent power, but it at least shows that it's important to have a more or less nice standing with your followers.

In my leadership style, I try to balance out all of the powers.  I keep an open mind, and listen to everyone's ideas, and do not automatically assume that my thoughts are the only correct ones.  However, I try not to be a total pushover, and when it is necessary I will put my foot down.

In conclusion, this is the leader I try to be:

My Ideas of what Leadership is

Hi everyone,  my name is Stanislav and this is my first time ever doing a blog, so it might take some time for me to get used to the different tools here! 

Abraham Lincoln once said, "As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a Master."  This basically describes my view on what leadership is.  As a leader, one doesn't just order their followers around and point them to where they need to go, like a farmer would do to his sheep.  Instead, I believe that a leader is more or less an active team member in the group, and in terms of work, is an equal.  Of course, a leader is also not just another one of the crowd, but has to be a role model and at least a guide for any potential followers.

This is the kind of leadership style that I try to follow, one that strikes a middle path between the "dictator" and the "everyone's friend."

So in conclusion:

You don't want this:

You also don't want to be a complete equal:

Instead, you do want this: