Principles of Teamwork and Project Management

Dear George
I just posted my comment on your shared reflection via the link

I recommend reading the shared article

Thanks

I think some things in leadership cant be learned, they are in us as naturally leaders. Training is training according to somebody elses opinion and ideals of what a leader should be and history has taught us that people are not always good judges of leaders.

Let us not confuse leadership with corporate hierarchy or organizational structures. Although obviously related they are not the same. Leadership takes more than authority. In the armed forces typically the best leaders rise to the top (not always) however in the corporate world and politics this is not the case. There are so many factors that influence the corporate rise that have nothing to do with leadership. Why, even in project management the team leader may not necessarily be the senior administrator or PM.

Leadership ability in my opinion is primarily learned from childhood, progression through education and into your professional career. Some of the learning is formal (training) most is through lessons learned and mentoring. The combination of attitude, upbringing, education, natural skills (plus a few more I'm sure) influences your leadership abilities. It is nor as simple as "born to lead" or "learn to lead". Like everything else, its complicated.

Thank you for your comments on the article – I know it was a long read. It’s interesting how we can find humor when we retrospectively look at our lessons learned over our careers. It would be great to hear your strategic lessons as well!