The Many Faces of Leadership

being an student of the arts, there are many types of art that i enjoy seeing and learning from.  though i am not particularly fascinated with the impressionist period, i am drawn to Picasso's portrait of Dora Maar.  the reason has nothing to do with art, but more to do with another passion of mine, business leadership.

when Picasso painted this portrait he exquisitely expressed the personality of Dora Maar through a single image. we don't have time here to go into all the details, but i encourage you to explore Picasso's expression by reviewing a web search on the painting.

my point here is that the painting expresses well the personality of a business leader, such as the CEO of any emerging to major company.  if you will notice the painting presents a full frontal view, with Dora looking directly at you. this in my thinking is the public face of the CEO, as they represent the company brand to the broad market of customers and business partners, as well as to the board.

the painting also presents Dora in profile, looking immediately to her left.  this in my thought is the CEO presenting and living the brand, mission, vision and strategy to and with the professionals of the company.

lastly you may notice that her left eye is facing inward, in a concept of self-exploration or even contemplation. this to me represents the role of the CEO in self-examination, ego control, and checking of whether she (the CEO, not Dora)  is being true to her own nature and to the personality and competencies of the company.

CEOs are not born leaders, they are just people who understand themselves sufficiently to lead, each in their own way.  that is a leader:

• you do not have to be born with specific characteristics
• you do not have to wait for a tap on the shoulder
• you do not have to be at the top of your organization
• you do not have to be defined by your issues or your genetics

the challenge is to understand yourself well enough to discover where you can use your leadership gifts to help others -- and we all have some of those gifts.

two people can have identical experiences, yet one blossoms into leadership while the other is depleted.  it isn't your experiences that shape you, but what you make of them, particularly of inflection point people and events (inflection points, a later conversation).  it is what and how you learn every day that will make you a better leader.

                                                                 inuit symbol for a leader