“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education alone will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.” -Calvin Coolidge
Leaders are born. Leaders are born. Leaders are developed. Leaders are necessary. Leaders are different than managers. Leaders provide a vision and direction necessary for companies, teams, departments, individuals to move forward. Hundreds of books are written every year regarding leadership in business. We
hear about thought leaders, we
refer to them, we
listen to them, we
engage with them, we
quote them, we ask them to speak at conferences and
we often disagree with them.The purpose of a thought leader may be just that- to inspire thought, to drive discussion, and controversy. It is through debate, it is through argument that change takes place
or we work better
or relationships become stronger. I have spoken to so many individuals over the last five years that have clearly stated how they do not want to be referred to as a thought leader.
A Thought Leader Versus a Doer – can be controversial
in itself.
In our industry, there are certainly thought leaders and influencers that step out on limbs all the time with the goal to start conversations, to keep the industry evolving or innovating. And are they reallytaken seriously? And is the information dispersed even valid when the disperser is a thought leader, not a doer? Experts and Gurus abound. What is it exactly that creates these experts, is it merely because they are followed, that their words are retweeted, that the halls are packed during their presentations? Is it because they had lengthy, successful careers in the fields we reside? Is it because they can write or say pretty words?
Is it because they are persistent? Does persistence truly pay off? Is it because they are talented or possess genius? Is it because they have the alphabet soup after their names that denote years residing in academia or is their determination alone the catalyst that propels them into thought leadership?
I think that thought leaders, more than thinking, like to share, to educate, to write, to talk. They inspire thought. Successful people think before they do. There may be the random, recorded successes that occurred following a gut response or instant decision but was it really instant? Gut responses are developed as a result of experience and education, over long periods of time. So, somewhere, at some point, thought took place. What thought leaders pass along actually transmits motivation to do work better, smarter.
And the Phoenix still flies.
**The Phoenix Infection is a ten-part series written by Rayanne on leaders and why we follow them…
Rayanne Thorn, @ray_anne is the Marketing Director for the online recruiting software company, Broadbean Technology. She is also a proud mother of four residing in Laguna Beach, California, and a contributor for Blogging4Jobs. Connect with her on LinkedIn.
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