Episode 008 - Leaders are Made

This is In Brief. Let's get to it. Hey there, and welcome back. This is the In Brief podcast where we take a few minutes each week and dive into a topic that hopefully makes your post-military transition a little bit easier, but also gives you a new perspective to take into a new week. I'm Jordana. I'm the CEO of the Recon Network. And this week on In Brief, we are talking about leadership. You've probably heard the saying that leaders are born, not made, a concept that maybe possibly arose out of the Great Man Theory in the 1840s. That theory, popularized by Thomas Carlyle, noted that leadership traits emerged in true leaders as intrinsic responses to appropriate situations. So basically what he was saying is that when they were faced with a situation that required leadership, that some would rise into that position and lead. Effectively, he's arguing that the leaders had been born. They were just waiting for their time to arise. While I'll agree that that theory has a degree of validity— we never really know what we're capable of until a situation arises that requires us to step into our given power— I still wholeheartedly disagree with that quote, based on merit alone. In fact, I really think it should be the reverse. While there may be certain personality traits or inherent skills that lend themselves well to leadership, true leaders are most definitely built. The interesting thing is that science agrees with me. A 2014 study from the University of Illinois referenced the fact that leadership is around 30% genetic and 70% learned, which means something incredible. We are all, every single one of us, capable of becoming great leaders. But wait, let's back up for a second. Like, what exactly is leadership? What are we talking about here? Okay, well, that's a little bit more nebulous. So generally, most people will see leaders as having traits like integrity or courage, respect, or empathy. They are probably also pretty self-aware so they can understand their own failings and perceptions and adjust them where necessary. And often they aren't considered with what others think of them, so they aren't really bothered much by imposter syndrome. But can still take criticism with a degree of modesty. And of course, they must also be considered brave or courageous or bold. Here's the thing. You can learn or nurture most of those traits in yourself. You can learn how to empathize with others and become more self-aware of your strengths and weaknesses. You can learn how to navigate head trash and drop imposter syndrome and step forward in boldness. And if we're being honest, it's likely that somewhere, somebody out there already looks up to you for something. So hell, you probably already are a leader to some degree. But the greater, far more important question is this: what are you leading others to? Because let's get real, the best leaders aren't those that people just fall in line behind. The best leaders are those who have the best intentions for the people that they do lead. They know where they're going and they can motivate others to join them on the way. And that, my friends, comes from knowing your purpose. And I can already hear you now. Oh my gosh, she's going to talk about purpose again. But yeah, you're right. Probably every day for the rest of my life. Because let me tell you, when you know your own purpose in this life, you know where you're headed. And even if something interrupts your journey there, you can navigate around it because you still have your purpose guiding you. You won't be concerned with what others say or think about you because you're living with a meaning that far supersedes all of that noise. And as far as motivation, well, at no time in this life will you be more passionate and more influential than when you are exactly where you belong. So if we truly believe that each of us has something important to give the world, then finding, understanding, and living in our purpose can make us some of the boldest, most courageous people on earth. So yeah, we're going to talk about purpose because I believe that the greatest leaders became great leaders when they learned how to live in meaning and how to identify and flow in their calling. And that means understanding who you are, what is important to you, and how to make it important to someone else. So this week, I'd encourage you to consider something. It's highly likely that in military service or your career, you knew a few people that were truly great leaders. What was it about them that made you think that? How did they treat others? How did they make decisions? How did they lead through their uniqueness? How did they show up with boldness? And how did they get others to follow them? What is it about their leadership that inspires you to want to lead others. It's true that everyone has the potential to be a leader, but it's the living up to that potential that separates true leaders from followers. So which one are you? Are you living up to your potential? Are you walking untouchable and unbothered in your own purpose? If you aren't, consider this: what if you're the next leader that the world needs? Will you be ready to step up when the time comes? Yes, everyone can be a leader. And yes, that means you too. And that's really, really fortunate because never in our history have we needed more true leadership than now.