Because I believe that the requirements of leadership speaking are changing, I have based my analyses on contemporary examples. Although some of the speakers quoted may not be familiar to you, all are quite successful in their fields, and I felt that it was important to provide representative samples from business as well as the public sector. The requirements of leadership in the modern world are daunting. As people move toward a recognition of interconnectedness and as information becomes a widely available commodity, the realization of the relative nature of all things will continue to affect our world. Leaders simply must reconnect with that which is unchanging, that which will confirm a basis of common reality.
Authenticity can reopen the door to common ground and a sense of stability.
Leading Out Loud has been written to contribute to that possibility. I've suggested in these pages that the practice of real self-expression is becoming obsolete, and with its demise, trust in our leaders continues to erode. We have become used to judging appearance rather than substance, yet as the world continues to change, our need for grounding in reality becomes greater and our frustration with imitations more profound. To effectively speak as a leader in this new interdependent world will require a reversal of this trend, a defying of convention that has snared us in fantasy. Leading is about inspiring others to make change, and organizational leaders who foster joint commitment to meaningful endeavor will excel.