Neculai Fantanaru
Everything Depends On The Leader
Everything Depends On The Leader
Put your leadership on the line, leaning up to the greatness of the world and your own being.
The hall resounded like an echo of the battle call from the day before, on the Valmy battlefield. Georges Jacques Danton, one of the leaders of the revolution, stood up. Silence spread all over.
- There can be no other constitution than the one that will be truthfully, word for word accepted by most of the simple assemblies. Let’s scatter those unnecessarily ghosts that want to frighten people, let’s say there is no other constitution than the one accepted by the people.
In other words, Danton wanted to promote two ideas:
Leadership: Can the ideas you want to turn into reality give you a deep awareness of the phenomena around you, which will allow you to impartially assess the goals of another dimension of dignity?
Destiny deals the cards, a great writer once said. And a man with experience accepts the cards that destiny gave him, he carefully considers and appreciates them, then he alone decides whether to play or not. But be careful ! You alone cannot distribute your books once you accept with dignity the fatality of destiny regarding the decisions you must make to restore order in your life or the lives of others, or to ensure that you do not get lost in oblivion and anonymity like other leaders who have experienced illusions of power.
Danton was one of the people whose dangerous, yet deadly mission, gave them the opportunity to change the course of events, turning them into leaders with defining qualities (such as the ability to think strategically and to predict), and, finally, transforming them into heroes. He valued his dignity through his moral sense, his moral discernment, and his moral tenacity to bring about important change, standing in the face of the obstacles of the society in which he lived. At the same time, he expressed his freedom to make decisions about his own life and to be respected for this right (up to a point).
But, to become “a great man”, Danton had to engage in a game in which he had little chance of success, because his enemies and those of the people put many obstacles in his way. He alone put his life in great danger. This is another dimension of dignity: knowing how to sacrifice yourself for an ideal. And Danton impartially assessed the goals of this dimension, putting himself as a guarantor of the realization of full freedom, as a judge prepared and able to ignore preconceived ideas about guilt that could arise as a result of adverse reactions from those not involved in change.
Dignity is the resistance you oppose to events that can trigger a social crisis, stating that all that strengthens you morally and spiritually is the ability to abandon yourself in favor of a higher goal.
According to Wikipedia: “Georges Jacques Danton was bold and determined, a brilliant speaker, but at the same time he had a somewhat unbalanced nature. His ideals were freedom and property. Imprisoned in Luxembourg prison, Danton did not bow his head to dictator Robespierre. His famous phrases: “…12 months ago I proposed the establishment of this revolutionary tribunal. Now I apologize for it to God and to the people” and “Robespierre will follow me” , show despair, but also the strength of character of the “giant” of the French Revolution.”
Leadership is an extraordinary stake, it is the most precious thing that a man can risk. For once with the high position you gain, any previous chapter of your life ends. You must bow to the greatness of the world, to destroy that talisman the magic power of which is able to empty all of your emotions, positive energies and all the best in you, and close your way to performance, efficiency and success.
If you don’t prove to be a successful player, you will go to smash, just as poorly constructed boats sink at the first storm. Just like a picture is able to capture a particular state, a certain attitude, so the leadership that you gain can freeze your conscience and destroy the values that support your relationship with people, make you indifferent and even hostile towards the noble goals that you’ve originally proposed to achieve, and push you to the biggest failure.
Someone said: “He who occupies an important position owes account for all of his actions, for every one of his moments, because he is no longer his own person, but has become public property; every one of his new rights changes, in fact, into a new duty.” In order to win in leadership, you must use the best strategies, know the partners’ and adversaries’ cards, play yours at the right moment and gain the stake with the spirit of wisdom.
Leadership is not the way to oppose a war caused by anticipation of change, but it is your exposure to the events that write history, stating that what can stop you from achieving your goals is nothing but the fear of “what others could say” (And this fear might just be in your mind.)
Danton’s Game Of Cards emphasizes the leader’s extraordinary ability to show himself off, choosing his path toward the goal to be achieved and “financing” his evolution by choosing the most effective practices through the most appropriate means of promoting a high ideal.
Danton didn’t wait for destiny to give him “a good hand”. He involved himself in the events of the game, taking part in them body and soul, with pride and a sense of accomplishment, with honor and understanding, without having cards of the same value, meaning excellent. It was his will and desire, but also had the honor to fight to the last chance. He put his leadership on the line, leaning up to the greatness of the world and of his own being.
Be great with yourself, but with others, as well. Be great in your practice, belief, conception, so you will be able to finally direct the evolution of the “leadership game” for your own benefit and evolution, but also for the benefit of others.
Conclusion: If you were elected as leader, it means that you have consented to occupy this position. Therefore, you must assess your ability, availability and forces in order to accomplish what people expect from you. It is a “place” of honor, but also involves many responsibilities. You were invested with trust and must strive hard for it not to diminish. It is an exciting “game”, in which you should enter only if you know you own the necessary trumps in order to win.
* Note: Alexandre Dumas - The Marquis' daughter
Why read this book? Because it is critical to optimizing your performance. Because it reveals the main coordinates after that are build the character and skills of the leaders, highlighting what it is important for them to increase their influence.
The essential characteristic of this book in comparison with others on the market in the same domain is that it describes through examples the ideal competences of a leader. I never claimed that it's easy to become a good leader, but if people will...
For some leaders, "leading" resembles more to a chess game, a game of cleverness and perspicacity; for others it means a game of chance, a game they think they can win every time risking and betting everything on a single card.
I wrote this book that conjoins in a simple way personal development with leadership, just like a puzzle, where you have to match all the given pieces in order to recompose the general image.
The aim of this book is to offer you information through concrete examples and to show you how to obtain the capacity to make others see things from the same angle as you.
Without considering it a concord, the book is representing the try of an ordinary man - the author - who through simple words, facts and usual examples instills to the ordinary man courage and optimism in his own quest to be his own master and who knows... maybe even a leader.
