We expect to see CEO’s of major companies or genius global entrepreneurs tell us how we might be more successful in our business or life.
What if the new frontier for leadership isn’t to be found in a hallowed hall of a university, or Fortune 500 companies? What if it is found in the actions of people we don’t typically look toward for lessons in leadership?
This is the concept of Unlikely Leadership.
What has moved me over the years of my work across villages in Africa and South Asia have been tales of extraordinary courage and human brilliance that in conventional terms is so unexpected. We so often see the hungry and poor as helpless victims that we need to fix or save.
Instead:
Resilience is inspired from a non-literate woman who navigated ridicule and threats of violence to bring water to her village.
The power of a bold vision is demonstrated by a woman who acted on her belief that every girl in her remote village had a right to education.
Persistence is shown by a woman who taught herself to read and write by using a large rock as her paper and a sharp stone as her pen. She then used her new literacy to get widows onto the government pension so they had the ability to buy food.
Through meeting so many unlikely leaders, I learned how to live a bigger life, how to negotiate differing views, and change the system.
I learned that anyone can chart a new course for their life – independent of circumstances or societal expectations and I am passionate about sharing all this with you.We live at a critical time in human history. Challenges confront us every day. These may be personal, professional or global.
I believe every single person is equipped with the fundamental and innate power for extraordinary transformative change. Furthermore, I believe the capacity we all have for leadership is often not expressed or acknowledged. For all our education and wealth, many of us still have an attitude of ‘Who, me?’ and deny the power we each have to take action. Many of us are Unlikely Leaders in hiding.
This is exciting. If leadership is available to us all, who are we going to be about it? How can we step out from the shadows and live our truest life?Owning our Unlikely Leadership can empower us to change our world.
