In an odd conversation with some random old guy about my bathrobe, I came to the realization that authority and leadership are completely different things, and that authority truely exists to be challenged. If no one challenged authority, it need not exist.
Authority is somewhat of a place holder for leadership. If you don't have certain leadership skills, you are given authority to make up for it. If one were a perfect leader, authority would not be necessary, because one would be compelled to follow or respect that leader. The best leaders do not actually make you do anything, they make you want to do things. A good leader will clarify situations that require leadership in such a way that the leader's desired action is the same as the desired action of those being lead. This can be construed as manipulation, but it does not require the leader to have any level of authority bestowed upon him or her by an outside power.
An authority figure will dictate what must be done in the situation. The reasons why this must be done are irrelevant, for the figure of authority has been granted power by some real or percieved source. At the same time, those subordinate must have the power to challenge the authority for the authority to have purpose. Without the power of authority, those subordinate to the person who holds it would have no reason to obey. And yet, without the possibility of insubordination, the power of authority is pointless. Power over something unable to challenge is not power at all; one might as well boast of one's ability to turn a machine on and off. Authority does not exist for those who would submit to it, but for those who would challenge it.
More on this later, as I develop my point.
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2 comments:
Ooh! This is very good and insightful... I might make use of it later. It makes one think. You're right about natural-born leaders, and we've often seen them described exactly that way in many works of literature. Look at Carrot, Ender, anyone who ever held the last name "Skywalker" (pre-dark side in one particular case).
PS My lj is updated. I'm gong to go watch the Clone Wars cartoon now.
You may well be onto something there. Are there even cases where undo authority can actually act against leadership? Like a person who, if left to his own devices, would be a good leader is given a level of authority that prospective followers think is unfair, they might refuse to follow him in order to challenge his authority, and completely ignore his leadership. It's interesting.
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