Neculai Fantanaru
Everything Depends On The Leader
Everything Depends On The Leader
While crossing the sea, has sparked such a powerful storm, with thunders and lightning, that all the people from the ship’s board, including Alonso, the king of Napoli, were seized by fear. Alonso still tried to encourage the sailors and handle the boat as well as possible. The fact was that nobody paid attention at him, because he was not at all familiar with handling such boats.
The captain of the crew, aware that the presence of the king on board of the ship, would only confuse things, shouted at him:
- Get out of here ! Silence ! Get down to the cabins, otherwise, you will give a helping hand to the storm ! If you cannot stop the storm, please leave ! Don't hinder things here.
- Well, well, buddy, slow down. Don't forget who's on board, Gonzalo, the old and the faithful counselor of the king, warned the captain of the crew.
Hearing this, the chief of the crew replied:
- I don't care about anybody more than about myself. I will slow down only when the sea slows down, as well. Go away ! Like the waves would care about the word of the "king" ! To the cabins ! Silence ! Stop molesting us !
If you read "The Tempest" by Shakespeare, you know that the king was forced to get down to his cabin. In the end, the ship has stranded on a desert island, but all the crew survived. The chief of the crew has shown a strong determination in that decisive moment, and an outstanding professional attitude. He unleashed his potential of leading by giving clear, precise and useful orders to sailors, with a great determination and efficiency.
In leadership, experience is irreplaceable. The king of Napoli was not able to command the ship because he did not have any kind of experience in this area. How could he appease the furious and unbridled sea, when seeing the thunderbolts, he was the first who lost his hope? Believing that any effort is futile and fearing for his own life, King Alonso listened to the advice of the captain and quickly retreated to his cabin, leaving him at the helm.
A true captain always remains with his crew, leading all actions in accordance with the situations arising. The ship can be veiled by the storm, can be carried by the waves in all directions, with no mercy, but the duty of the captain is to remain on board, and to make everything he can to avoid the sinking of the ship.
If you want to pass the bridge of the flow of events in the forefront of reality and the perception of a role for which you were born, it is more important to help create a pretext/context of intervention from "outside" the area of influence of the King (the supreme leader).
In leadership, we must see the development of the intelligence to use the material substance of events, conjunctions, and advantages of contradictory soul movements that cross the echoes of a struggle of orientation, survival, and domination instincts. But, more importantly, we must allow a radical reconfiguration of feelings in favor of a logic that aims to create personal value.
The chief of the crew has raised to the height of his reputation of a leader being able to face danger with that inner enthusiasm, lively and uplifting, with that impetuous enthusiasm that only really determined people have it, while the king remained in the shadows.
Just as a painter possesses that complex of psycho-physical characteristics due to which he is able to perceive the difference between what he does and what he feels, so do you, in order to bring your leadership to the strongest form, you must possess that objective and fair spirit of self-assessment in order to be able to perceive the difference between what you imagine that you are and what you really are - a leader, a hero, or a just poor lonely?
By taking part in a large-scale action that you do not know how to end, you serve the reason to deny the guarantee of a long-awaited result from which derives an impeccable character. If you penetrate into the future of a positive outcome, quite different from your expectations, as a measure of your leadership potential, it still does not mean that this future will meet your demand and will give you what you asked to live with the true value you feel you have.
But it means that you have seen that there is no way out of a situation with great consequences, just as there is no way out of indecision. The only thing that remains to be checked is an overvalued concept in the experiences of life: the concordance between beliefs and behavior, without letting us subdue the dangerous form of illusion that the man in whom the majesty of a king mirrors.
Do you possess a potential for leadership, even if you were not appointed to a very high leadership position - as a crew chief? Or, are you a leader known as King Alonso, but without clear guidance and sense of responsibility? Are you are a servant in the realm of others’ proficiency?
Think better on you. What is the reality?
Conclusion: Just like a captain leaving the ship last, after he gave all of his interest to avoid its sinking, so do you, as a leader, must be able to cope with dangers, which can occur at any time – to face it, meaning to give precise and firm orders, to hide your fear, which can seize you, and to know how to take risks. And especially, not to spare any effort, because you are often "the lord of the destinies", the one who decides the success or defeat, life or death.
Focus on the essential of your leadership, to be able to perceive the difference between what you imagine that you are and what you really are.
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.
