A few thoughts on leaderhip in popular media...

A few years ago a group of mothers who have been trained to facilitate a reading curriculum in their children’s elementary schools came to tell us about their work at a conference I attended. They described how they had started with just following the curriculum and it lead to them finding other needs in the classroom that they then engaged each other and other parents in meeting. When an audience member asked the mothers how it felt to be leaders for the community, they paused. Then one said, “I never have thought of myself as a leader, I was just doing what needed to be done.” Since then, I have continued to run into amazing community leaders with similar responses. Perhaps in part because of what Mark identified as “the preconception of heroic leadership…is still being powerfully reinforced in media.” Because of this, I was determined to identify a few current media examples to the contrary.

This past year, a show called “The Philanthropist” had a short run on NBC. The 60-minute drama tells the story of Teddy Rist, a billionaire vigilante, that travels the world and ends up providing financial and other support to those affected in the given locale. Steve Gunderson with the Council on Foundations commented, “It’s great entertainment. His life is exciting. His solutions arrive in sixty minutes. And he always succeeds. I wish philanthropy was really that fun and that easy. The show is a romanticized, action/adventure depiction of a powerful businessman’s efforts to find meaning in his life by applying his fortune and acumen to the problems of struggling communities in developing countries.” I found the show a bit cheesy but enjoyed each week seeing how Teddy became aware of the cause, learned more about the cause by working with people close to the issue and then found creative ways to engage his family, friends and colleagues in supporting the effort. Sometimes (ok, a lot of the time) there was the dramatic speech but he also rolled up his sleeves and became involved. In light of Kim’s prompt, I wonder if this isn’t the bridge…building from the more heroic or Great Man leadership to that of at least situational leadership. Showing that anyone can make a difference (especially those with money!).

But maybe we are as a society beginning to see the value of the shared leadership approach. Record numbers of Americans weekly tune in to watch the reality show “Extreme Home Makeover.” How can you not feel good about (and probably cry) watching someone else be helped by his or her community (and a bunch of celebrities)? Sure the celebrities on the show give what Elise referred to as the “theatrical dynamics” but I would argue that the local support especially of the builders and key volunteers instill the courage, pride, hope and determination to make the effort a reality.

THE PROMPT:
Popular texts are rife with examples of leadership in action. One model of leadership is that of the ‘heroic leader’. Although contemporary leadership theory is moving away from this model to one of distributive or shared leadership, working definitions of the singular leader still embody many of the characteristics of the heroic leader, particularly in relationship to influencing and motivating followers. Attached is a video clip from Branagh’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Henry V” (1989) of the “St. Crispin’s Day Speech”. After viewing the clip, reflect on how this piece of popular culture may or may not be relevant to contemporary leaders and followers as a means of role modeling leadership communication, vision/purpose, sense of belonging, or other leadership qualities and skills that emerge for you.