I’ve been thinking and thinking about leadership per my post here.  I ask myself this:

“What is it that makes people follow others?”

“Some leaders didn’t want to lead, but were “forced” into it by necessity. So, its not always desire to lead that makes a leader.”

“Some leaders are notoriously bad at management, so organizational skills are not what makes a leader.”

“Some leaders can lead in areas that they have no expertise, so skill alone does not a leader make.”

“Vested authority doesn’t make a leader either, although it helps.  I can think of many instances that people follow the will of another “non-leader” under the leader put in the top position. Just because someone else thinks you can do the job, doesn’t mean you can get people to follow.”

Ultimately I think a leader, whether we are talking about a leader of a country or a leader of a small Bible study, must posses  two traits. These two things are the common factors that divide the cheifs from the lackeys in child’s play and world politics. In fact, if that was all they had going for them, the person who exhibits these traits will have a following.

Initiative and influence.

I’ll break it down later.