Much of my leadership writing and guidance centers on the importance of awareness and choice. To become the leaders we have the potential to be, we need to be aware of the leadership opportunities we face, and we must choose to act on them. Easy, right? Obviously not, or we wouldn’t be investing so much time and money on books, seminars, coaching, consulting. . . .
Dreaming and thinking big are essential to visionary leadership. All true leaders have the ability to articulate their vision for the future. Vision is the ability to see things, as they should be, not as they are. Rudyard Kipling clearly understood the importance of vision. He knew that one’s vision must compel action and drive change. The fifth couplet from his classic poem ‘If-’encourages us to dream and think.
In the fourth couplet of his poem ‘If-,’ Rudyard Kipling wrote: “Or being hated, don’t give way to hating, And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise;” Kipling is telling us that as leaders, we must be willing to put our cause or beliefs ahead of our personal gain. He is reminding us that true leadership requires a degree of selflessness. It requires us to put our cause and those we lead ahead of ourselves.
Today marks the 100th anniversary of the publication of ‘If-’ by Rudyard Kipling. His words remain relevant and his advice endures. As you read the poem, consider the power and the wisdom it conveys. Now think about how to use the lessons that it offers.
Patience is a virtue. This pearl of wisdom has been a bone in the throat of even the most patient leader. Patience is an easy thing to talk about, but it is extremely difficult to practice. Webster’s defines patience as, “the quality of being capable of bearing affliction calmly.” Patience is the third attribute Rudyard Kipling described in the poem ‘If-:’ If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies, Most of us think of patience as a construct of time, but Kipling was addressing the broader definition – enduring difficulty and hardship while awaiting the appropriate opportunity to act. He is also referring to the patience required to bear the nagging and sniping that often accompanies a decision to wait.