leadership and authority

Before this semester if you asked me to tell you the difference between leadership and authority I’m not sure I could. I’m not sure its anything I have ever really thought about. I know that a first impression of a person usually tells you if they are a person of authority, a leader is harder to determine. You see a police officer, you understand he is a person of authority, but you don’t know what he does with his colleagues, or his community, is he a leader? We don’t know just by looking at him.

So, how can we determine a leader from an activist? To me when I think of an activist, I think of the people that try and stop you on the street and ask you if you “have time for the environment.” They do a great job of making you feel guilty if you don’t have time for the environment. But is this person a leader? Probably not, they probably found the job posted on a bulletin board at school or on craigslist. I imagine there is a very high turn over on this type of job.

I think leaders are unsung heroes. Leaders allow people to build confidence and create a sense of place. One of our reading says, “Identifying leaders requires looking for them.” I am slowly being able to quantify what personal characteristics make a person a leader and not a follower. A leader must be able to listen. “Listening means learning to attend to feelings-.” I was able to relate to that statement, as I am usually a quiet person, I keep most things to myself, but when I find someone that I consider a leader I am more willing to open up and discuss my thoughts. Which I have realized this would be great to work in an environment when I had a leader for a boss, and not just a boss. Someone who employees could look up to and feel comfortable sharing their thoughts with them..Oh in a perfect world….