eSpot™ Blog

Blog post by : Cheryl Santa Maria

"It's uncomfortable to stand up in front of strangers.
It's uncomfortable to propose an idea that might fail.

It's uncomfortable to challenge the status quo.

It's uncomfortable to resist the urge to settle.

...When you identify the discomfort, you've found the place where a leader is needed."

-Seth Godin

When we think of business moguls, like the late Steve Jobs for example, we tend to visualize them riding around in expensive cars or rubbing shoulders with the world's elite.  It's easy to forget that there's more to leadership than fancy boardrooms and televised shareholder's meetings.  I love the above quote because it puts the role into perspective.  Sure, leaders enjoy more time, freedom, authority and power than the general public, but those liberties come at a price.  In fact, many leaders will tell you that their jobs can be downright unglamorous.

Leaders are continually forced to work late nights and weekend shifts.  They miss out on family gatherings and undertake a lot of menial tasks.  A true business leader will stand up for his or her beliefs while maintaining the humility to ask for help.

Trailblazers don't set out to make friends.  They set out to be hard working, diplomatic and strategic.  A leaders understands that his or her business goals are worth some discomfort.

The e-Spot® manifesto says that the 'greatest reward comes from leaping into the unknown", and that's exactly what a leader does, regardless of how terrified he or she may be.  The combination of courage, creativity and vision that make up a leader is a rare one, but worth every ounce of effort.

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