5 Common Myths about Leadership

VOLTAIRE HAD ONCE SAID, Common sense is not so common!” In our experience, Common Understanding of Leadership is not so common either”!

- K. A. Narayan Sunandan Bhanja Chaudhary

Having worked for various corporations and having met hundreds of leaders, we have observed some strange myths leaders wear on their sleeves. These myths aren't necessarily in the conscious space of leaders but play out in their interactions with the rest of the system. How do we conclude that these are the myths” leaders carry? Our answer to this question is: when we see them behave and contrast them with many tall leaders in the world.

We all draw inspiration from great leaders who stood the test of time like J. R. D. Tata, J.J. Irani, N. R. Narayana Murthy Infosys), T. Thomas Hindustan Unilever), Varghese Kurien AMUL), Ramesh Chauhan Parle), A.M. Naik L&T), and their like who are all institution builders in our country.

Myth# 1: When I deliver results, I become a leader!”

Does simply delivering results make one a leader? No doubt, leaders need to deliver results but the means to the delivery is the key. There are various situations where one may miss targets for various genuine reasons. Real leaders accept failures and learn from them. They have a sharp business acumen with an ability to recover from temporary setbacks and build credibility through authenticity. Hence, all stakeholders stand by them in times of adversity.

Perhaps, the most striking example of this common myth is when we observed one leader who claimed that he had never missed a target for the last many decades, only to lead the company to the brink of a disaster, by misrepresenting sales and not booking expenses! Classic case of equating results with Leadership!

Myth#2 Iam entitled to leadership because of my pedigree!”