Let’s face it, leadership is a fun thing. Many say it’s an innate ability, one you’re born with, while others are trying to find ways to teach leadership. For the past 16 years, I have been a falconer. A falconer is an individual who, often because of his passion, takes a bird of prey, trains it to accept a hunting association, and returns to the field with that bird to hunt wild game.
How can falconry be related to leadership? Consider the first sentence in the definition above. “A falconer is an individual who, often out of passion. If managers are going to exhibit leadership, they must first have passion. Leading others is often a daunting task, and if you as a leader are not fully committed to an outcome, your ability to lead others with you will be hampered.
A key element of leadership is the ability to help those to whom you report and to whom you report excel. Excellence, vision, rapport, and compassion are skills necessary to succeed as a leader. If the passion is missing, the ability to lead is also missing. Helping those who report to you excel requires the same vision that a falconer needs to train a freshly caught bird.
Imagine taking a hawk or hawk, a bird that by its very nature is afraid of humans, following a set plan of action, and finally releasing it to fly free, chase game, and return to you at the end of the day. hunting. A true leader has a similar vision: to create an environment that allows employees to perform, but at the end of the day they are still responsible for their successes or failures.
As a leader, or student of leadership, it is key to remember that both passion and skill are the foundation of the ability to lead. We can talk about the passion of a falconer, but passion never overcomes skill. If the training skills are lacking, the day the bird is released and free, it simply will not return. Leadership is similar, if key leadership skills are missing, passion alone will not be enough.
So when you think about leadership, remember the lessons of the ancient art of falconry. Passion is vital to success, but don’t rely on that desire alone. Learn the leadership skills you need to succeed, combine them with passion or vision, and watch your leadership skills come to life.