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Ryan McKinney

Associate Director of Campus Activities, The Catholic University of America

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Titles are essential for leadership

We have all been taught that you don't need a title to be a leader but no one I've interacted with actually believes that. We look to those with titles as the leaders.
Leadership is about relationships and titles help define the relationship you have to someone or something.
Every relationship has a title and every relationship needs leadership skills and knowledge to help it grow - thus every relationship title is a leadership title. Employee, sister, father, stranger, student, musician, cousin, roommate, pilot, supervisor, American, homeowner, etc. These are all titles and if people viewed them as leadership titles maybe we'd take more responsibility for the influence we have in those roles.

Topics: Everyday Leadership education influence leadership relationship roles titles
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    pat gilbert 50+

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    Sep 19 2012: Functions are necessary to any organization what you call those functions is not as important. These functions are not being performed currently by the POTUS which is the core problem.

    http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action.html

    • Ryan McKinney

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      Sep 19 2012: And why don't we all perform the functions of POTUS? Why are we waiting for him to perform them? ....he has the title which indicates that he should be the one to accomplish those functions. But if more of us viewed our title as Citizen differently - maybe we'd exert more influence to ensure the functions are carried out in our best interests. We have the leadership titles but we don't proactively exert the influence those title provide us.

    • John Smith 30+

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      Sep 19 2012: "These functions are not being performed currently by the POTUS which is the core problem."

      You mean you don't happen to agree with how the POTUS chooses to perform his functions. It is very arrogant to equate that to "he's not performing his functions", I may disagree with the way George Bush ruled America but I would never say he did not perform his functions.
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        pat gilbert 50+

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        Sep 19 2012: Nether performed the functions, bush was bad as well, just not as ridiculous as with the current POTUS as he WILL sink the country.

        • John Smith 30+

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          Sep 19 2012: For ruling like a European conservative? Hardly, he's not that different from Clinton or your average British prime minister.
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        pat gilbert 50+

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        Sep 19 2012: Clinton was the most conservative president we have had in the last 20 years

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