Leadership and Literature

Dr. Earl R. Smith II
Managing Partner, The Federal Circle
DrSmith@Dr-Smith.com
Dr-Smith.com

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There are lots of discussions about what makes a good leader. Many focus on character issues like integrity, honesty, openness or charisma. Others talk about skill sets like communication, literacy, technical capabilities or understanding of finance. Some use words like visionary. Almost all of these discussions focus on the person; who they are and what they do. Yesterday I pulled one of my favorite books off the shelf and settled down to read it for the umpteenth time. As I started the first chapter, I began to think about why I was so looking forward to reading the same words in the same order describing the same characters and actions. It dawned on me that none of that mattered; I was entering a world that I found worth living in.

The core of the idea is this; a good writer (or film director, for that matter) creates a world that you want to live in; at least for a short while. The really good ones create an extended world and populate it with characters that you want to get to know. Sometimes that world is very comfortable and warming. At others, it is hostile and challenging. Characters may be supportive, nurturing or sympathetic. Alternatively, they can be hostile, threatening and diabolical. But the author has created this world and it draws you in.

I think that the same could be said of the very good leaders. They are authors of a world that their followers want to inhabit. In eastern philosophy there is the idea that the world is generated by a dreaming god. When the god awakens, the world disappears. Falling back to sleep; the god dreams a new world that lasts just as long as the dream. It seems to me that leaders have something in common with that dreaming god; something that separates them from managers and other executive types. They have the ability to dream worlds that people want to live in.

In thinking about this, I realized that the boundaries of the dream are frequently extended far beyond the boundaries of the company or organization. Dreams, the potent ones, are extended things. They spread beyond the dreamer to followers and then from followers to the broader society. The dreams of Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Einstein, Woodrow Wilson and the Buddha come to mind.

But the key idea here is that leaders are the author of a world that people want to inhabit. This is a very human tendency. How many of you have a favorite movie or a favorite book that creates a world and characters that you like to spend time with? How many of you would follow a real-life leader who creates such a world? For better or worse, it is a human tendency.

© Dr. Earl R. Smith II

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Contact Dr. Smith

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The Federal Circle provides advisory services to companies working in the federal contracting space. Its core team and network of advisers has a deep understanding of the government contracting space. Together they represent a rich resource for companies trying to generate traction in these very competitive markets. Contact us for a free initial consultation.