So you have been promoted and now call yourself a leader because people are reporting to you? Well, in order to be a leader, you first need followers. Being a leader means so much more than simply having “subordinates”. It means being entrusted with the responsibility for the wellbeing and success of the people you lead: in the business world, this means you are now responsible for their success, not yours. In a military setting, where I come from, it means you are responsible for their lives, not yours.
Leadership is not about titles or positions: it’s about influence and responsibility. It’s about creating an environment where your team wants to do the things you ask them to do and for this to happen, you have to earn their trust, loyalty, and dedication to the common cause. Yes, all of this is your job as a leader! And whenever the team succeeds, you let them shine; when they fail, you take the blame. True leadership requires the absence of ego and the presence of self-confidence.
Take world-famous explorer Ernest Shackleton: during the ill-fated Endurance expedition to Antarctica in the winter of 1914/15, Shackleton led his crew through unimaginable hardship after their ship was crushed by ice. With no hierarchy to enforce loyalty, Shackleton’s men followed him because they trusted his judgment, felt seen and supported, and believed in his calm leadership. He brought every single one of them home alive – a testament to true leadership under extreme pressure.
And think of Satya Nadella: when he became CEO of Microsoft, he shifted the company’s culture from know-it-all to learn-it-all. He placed empathy and a growth mindset at the center of his leadership style. Employees rallied not because they had to, but because they felt heard, valued, and inspired.
I also find it irritating to hear the expression “people’s leader” that has become fashionable these days. If you are not leading people, what kind of leader are you? Leadership is inherently about people, about guiding them, supporting them, and helping them grow and succeed.
Unless you understand this fundamental truth about leadership, you have no right to call yourself a leader. Leadership is a privilege and a profound responsibility. You are a leader once people choose to follow you.
