Leadership vs. Power

Written by Jason Gray, a 10th grader at Hueneme High School.

Leadership doesn’t have a single meaning. Throughout my experiences with leadership, I’ve found it to be a very complex word. Sometimes you can lead others through talking, sometimes through examples, or sometimes just by believing in them. The one thing that I see all too often though, is confusing leadership with power.

Dictating others is an example of power. Guiding others is an example of leadership. They’d both be very similar in context, but they’re also very different. If you’re told that you aren’t giving consideration to those you lead, or those you lead aren’t learning anything, then you’ve gotta take a second and look around. There’s no need to rush and make others feel as though they’re subservient to you.

For me, I’ve seen this example commonly with people who believe they’re more important than they are. Maybe it’s narcissism, or more than likely, they’re just insecure. That’s okay. Getting those kinds of people the help they need to become self-aware is the responsible thing to do. The one thing I’d like you to take from this post, if anything, is that you mustn't confuse the two. If you feel like you’re overstepping, then dial it back; I’ve had to deal with that many times myself the hard way. If you feel like those you are leading are becoming more robots than human beings, you’ve done something wrong. Just remember to keep yourself in check, and make sure that you’re leading, not overpowering. You can lead with power, but just power cannot lead.