“Management is doing things
right; Leadership is doing the right things.”
I came across this quote
a few months ago and it immediately became one of my all time favorites. It
just clarifies the confusion between both roles. But, for everyone’s sake I
would elaborate more on this.
Being a manager, they
would want to get things done at the shortest time possible and with the least
errors made. They make sure that everything goes according to plan. Being a
leader on the other hand means you have to stand up and be the better man. You
have to take responsibility for your actions and be accountable for the
decisions you have come upon. So in dealing with things – homework, projects, exams,
your siblings, parents, friends, paramours, and even your enemies – always keep
this quote in mind.
If you think you aren't ready to face the challenge of exercising power over a number of followers and
subordinates yet then try practicing with yourself first. After all, change
starts in you. Now, you might be thinking “How do I do that?” well, let me give
you an example:
Let’s say it’s Friday and you have a test on a subject that you aren't very good at, and you know full well that you haven’t read a single page of
your notes yet so you tell yourself that you would study little by little the
whole week (since hypothetically you’re free the whole week, no classes and
all) so you don’t have to cram things the night before your exam. You
congratulate yourself for having such an ingenious plan cooked up. But before
your class ends you hear your classmates talking about going on a trip for the
weekends, have a beach party after that and whatnot (since well, you’re free!)
and they come up and invite you with them, and hypothetically 95% of the class
is coming with, what do you do? You know you have to study for this test or
else you’ll flunk it big time. You’re tempted so rationalize that you would
still have at least 2 days to study for it and maybe that time would be enough
for you, after all how hard can it really be? You’ll just give in 200% more
effort.
STOP RIGHT THERE!
Don’t just say yes on
a whim. Don’t let the spur of the moment throw you off your main course of
action. Think back to the quote written above… What would a manager or a leader
do? You have 2 options.
- You say yes, bring a book with you and maybe
read a few pages on your way and before you sleep every night. And let’s say,
hypothetically you succeed in doing this 50% of the time.
- You
say no, and stay at home. Study a couple of pages a day and eventually get the
hang of the subject.
At the day of the test,
all you hear inside your class is how the trip turned out to be a total success
and how much everyone enjoyed it. Now, you would either be included in the
conversation or not and just feel miserable and out of place in a corner (but
hey, at least you studied well right?).
Basically, what I’m
saying is everything works differently among people. Some may ace the test even
if they went to that certain vacation and others still may fail the test if
they stayed at home anyway. So it’s really important to know yourself first –
know your strengths and weaknesses and start there. If you think you can pass
even if you party first, then by all means go! On the other hand, if you know
you can’t take the pressure of having fun and studying at the same time – skip the
party stay at home and get to work. Either way, at the end of the day you are
the only one who can really tell if your decision was worth it. Just remember to
man up and take the credit whether you succeed or not.
So, what did you choose?
Does that make you a leader or manager in your own little way?
