anyone can be a leader: by robin sharma

Leadership is not about the size of your office or the prestige of your title. And it’s not just for CEOs and VPs of sales. We all can lead - in all we do. To me, true leadership is more about the depth of your commitment and the strength of your character than about the position you hold.

I write a lot about a phrase I’ve been sharing with business clients around the world. It’s a simple one that speaks to the power each of us has to craft world-class careers and remarkably successful lives: Lead without a title.

To me, leadership is a way of being. It’s about inspiring all those who surround you to realize their gifts and stand for personal greatness. It’s about taking responsibility for the way every dimension of your life looks (versus blaming others for what’s not working). It’s about devoting yourself to excellence in every pursuit and making things better - no matter how good they already are.

Leadership is also about connecting to people. Deeply. Genuinely. Passionately. Because business and life are really all about people.

As I write this, I’m reflecting on the death of a special friend of mine, Greg Brophy, founder of Shred-it, a huge Canadian success story.

His passing, from a plane crash at the age of 44, brings so many things to mind. Of how incredibly short life can be. Of how we need to dream, act and be the people we know we can be right now. Of how all that we can leave behind in the end are the great things we have done - and the kindness we have given. And of how success is powerful. But living with significance is even better. Greg lived all these elements. That’s what made him a superb leader and human being.

Any person who wants to lead - and live - a remarkable life can. Teachers can lead. Entrepreneurs can lead. Artists can lead. Students can lead. As Mark Twain once wrote, “If everybody was satisfied with himself there would be no heroes.”