Leaders set the tone

Two years ago I received a call from a young man asking for my help to get a job in government. It’s not the request itself that startled me, it’s the reason for asking it in the first place. He stated that he wanted a job in government so “he could get rich “.

It quickly dawned on me that he had not just come up with that reason because he was talking to me, this was the belief that my countrymen have had over their government for a long time. As Mills and Pirro note in their book “The Essence of Success”, ‘a nation draws its will principally from the examples of its leaders”.

You see, if you consider yourself a leader, regardless of the level at which you are leading , people are following your example whether you notice it or not. That’s why leadership is about influence . Each time I wear a tshirt; I like rolling the sleeves, I have come to notice that every time I go into a community, people especially women , do the same too. Imagine , something as subtle and harmless as “how to wear a tshirt” would set the tone for others. This means therefore that leaders must always watch what they do, because the reality of things is that they set the tone for people with everything about them, yes, everything . The rule there is simple , if the leader can do it , it means this is ok!