In recent years we have seen and continue to see a much-needed transformation as a lot of young people now are given opportunities to occupy leadership and strategic positions, even with no proper formal education or experience in leadership. Do you believe that leaders are born not made?
Personally, I don't think so. However, evidently there are individuals who are natural-born leaders but I believe effective leadership can be taught, or rather can be learned even by those who are deemed not born leaders.
If you find yourself in a position of leadership and have no experience in leadership, how would you then deal with all the challenges, and situations you've never faced before, and you have people behind you waiting for you to make the perfect decision and lead them to greater heights?
Being a leader means you are going to face all kinds of situations you've never seen before, you'll face problems which have no easy solutions. The good thing is that no matter what kind of situation you may face, you are far away from being the first to experience it. And reading relevant books is one of the most effective ways to learn how to deal with different situations through learning from great leaders who have gone through that same path you may be walking through.
Reading books can elevate you quicker and give you skills that no formal education can give you. Books are written by leaders who have personally experienced different types of situations and conditions. The benefit of that is that you can easily learn how to manage and deal with certain challenges way before you even personally encounter them.
Let's look at Harry S. Truman for example. He became the US president after the shocking death of his predecessor Franklin D. Roosevelt. Within months of being the President, he faced the dawn of atomic age and Cold War. These were new problems the presidency has never faced, and as the head of state, he had to be the one who leads the nation in this trying time.
Truman was able to deal with these problems because he has always been a reader from a very young age. The information he got from all the reading he did, served not only him but the entire nation of the USA. In an interview Truman said:
“Our public library in Independence had about three or four thousand volumes, including the encyclopedias, believe it or not, I read ’em all… Maybe I was a damn fool, but it served me well when my terrible trial came.”
Reading helps leaders to not just be leaders but be EFFECTIVE LEADERS, hence I say it is the short-cut to effective leadership. As a leader, you do not have to experience a situation yourself to find ways to deal with and make critical decisions.
Imagine if Truman had not acquired the knowledge he acquired from all the reading he made from his earlier years. His nation could've experienced worse. But the thought patterns, strategies, tactics, resolutions, and decision-making skills he acquired from all the reading he did made him an effective leader in those trying times.
Leaders are readers. Harry Truman says, "Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers", the greatest leaders who have walked on this planet are all readers. If you seriously lack the motivation and dedication to read, what happens when you find yourself in situations such as the one Truman faced after being President?
How would you deal with such when no one close to you or your predecessors have never experienced what you are going through, and you have millions of people following you? And you are very well aware that one bad decision can cost people's lives?
Warren Buffet, one of the richest men on earth, reads four hours a day. What would be your excuse for not to spare time for your personal development and growth through reading from experts and experienced people who have gone through the same road you are at?
To be an effective leader it is of utmost importance to be an avid reader. It helps you be a good communicator, a critical thinker, it makes you a great negotiator, it challenges you and expands your perspective. Very importantly, you can never be dogmatic.
Every follower wants to follow a leader which they can learn from, a leader that has vast knowledge, a leader that can be a coach, a leader that is informative, a leader that can be trusted and reading is the only way you can be that kind of leader apart from having extensive real-world experience in leadership.
Binge-watching sports, soapies, and series does not provide any quality value to an individual, even if you think are not a leader, you are. You lead in your family, you lead your siblings, you are a leader in some way or the other, and reading and self-educating yourself will provide enormous value not only to your life but to the people around you as well.
Remember, all great leaders are readers and reading is the best short-cut to truly be an effective leader that can be worth following, trusted, and genuinely respected.
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