Questions 56-60 are based on the following passage. The leadership puzzle has been hashed around for decades. Their abilities have been compared to orchestra conductors who can bring together a variety of sounds and instruments to create a united song. They’ve been compared to coaches who have the ability to orchestrate a group of people in joint strategy without being an actual player in the . The theories, though important, create a mystique and complexity around leadership that make it difficult to see some basic fundamentals. These basics are not highly complex. The highest level of leadership is gained when "fellowship" can be generated without force, assigned authority or positional status. True following is produced by people who want to engage--not because they have to, are conforming to the rules at hand, or seek to please the leader. When people are following because they "have to," they are not acting of their own free will, but are conforming out of fear or threat. True leadership understands that people need to own their actions and decisions and follow because they want to. A major factor that impedes many leaders is the ability to get their ego in check. Leaders who have perspective on their value don’t need to be more important than anybody else. They are not concerned about their status or visibility. Their focus is on their ability to collectively bring people together and create mass movement and action to resolve issues. These leaders have given up their need to be "right" or "on top", and they understand that no one knows better than those performing the work how best to address the problems that emerge in that process. Well-tuned leadership demonstrates the graceful balance between providing overview and perspective without interfering with the initiative taken by the team. Balance enables leaders to stay focused on leading the processes by which the team operates, solves problems and generates new directions without getting in and providing all the answers. These leaders understand that people on their team manage and solve complex problems every day in their lives and in their work. They treat the team with integrity and belief that everyone has what it takes to find the way. These leaders bring out the best in people because they ask everyone to stretch to see the implausible. |