Leadership U

Leadership is never solitary. It concerns and depends on other people.

In 1969, when astronaut Neil Armstrong assumed manual command of the lunar lander, he was separated by hundreds of thousands of miles from all other human beings except for the two members of the Apollo 11 crew. His decision to take command of the Eagle lunar lander might seem like a dramatic example of solitary leadership. It was all that – and more. Armstrong had an entire organization supporting him and helping with the landing. Leaders cannot achieve their goals alone.

Ultimately, leadership is about other people. By communicating and elevating an organization’s purpose – its reason to exist – leaders inspire others to believe in and follow them. When a leader’s followers rally behind their organization’s “why,” their self-interest transforms into an inspired, shared purpose. Followers want to belong to something larger than themselves. This shift from the personal to the organizational gets everyone working together toward a common goal. This “me-to-we” shift is essential because a leader can’t go it alone ...