Management Is Not True Leadership

Many young leaders get management and leadership confused. They can fall into the trap of thinking they’re the same. They are not the same.

It can be a dangerous thought pattern to fall into.

Management and leadership have similar qualities. Both require results, action, and growth. But management and leadership achieve these results in different ways.

“You do not lead by hitting people over the head — that’s assault, not leadership.”
— Dwight D. Eisenhower

Here are 10 ways that management and leadership differ.

Management longs for control.
Leadership wants to give control to the individual team members.

Management wants to be right.
Leadership requires finding a middle ground.

Management doesn’t require ongoing education.
Leadership demands you keep learning.

Management tries to hold onto the title.
Leadership is looking for ways to promote others to your level.

Management looks for ways to get employees to do the task.
Leadership finds a way to get employees to want to do the task.

“Leadership is not so much about technique and methods as it is about opening the heart. Leadership is about inspiration—of oneself and of others. Great leadership is about human experiences, not processes. Leadership is not a formula or a program, it is a human activity that comes from the heart and considers the hearts of others. It is an attitude, not a routine.”
— Lance Secretan

Management controls the direction.
Leadership wants to set a new vision that the team wants to follow.

Management requires monitoring of employees to ensure they’re doing their jobs.
Leadership is training up employees so you don’t have to continuously monitor their performance.

Management focuses on results.
Leadership focuses on development.

Management does good things.
Leadership does the right things.

Management demands.
Leadership influences.

While it may seem that I am knocking management, I’m not. Management has it’s place.

There are times when results, good things, and direction need to be the focus. Yet true leaders know you must go beyond that.

True leadership requires influence, relationships, and trust as the foundation. Upon that you must build the organization that will benefit humanity.

Are you managing or are you leading?

“Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success; leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall.”
— Stephen R. Covey

Question: How do you think management and true leadership differ? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

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