Nineteen years ago, in Leadership: Texas Hold'em Style, I defined leadership as the art of influencing people toward organizational goals. At the time, I intentionally chose the word influence because it encompassed the broadest range of leadership behaviors. Leaders influence through encouragement, coaching, mentoring, persuasion, example, discipline, and, when necessary, corrective action. Every leadership action is ultimately an attempt to influence human behavior toward a desired outcome. While I recognized that trust was an essential component of influence, my understanding of leadership was primarily centered on the leader's ability to move people and organizations toward meaningful objectives. After completing this course, I realize that my original definition remains largely intact, but my understanding of how influence is created, sustained, and exercised has become significantly more sophisticated.
One of the most significant concepts reinforced during this course was trustworthiness. As I am currently working on another book, Leadership in the Age of Sail, I have devoted an entire chapter to the subject of trust. Consequently, our group work and discussions surrounding trustworthiness were particularly relevant to my current research and writing. What I found most valuable was the emphasis on competence as a foundational component of trust. While integrity, honesty, and ethical behavior are essential, they are not sufficient by themselves. Followers must also believe that a leader possesses the knowledge, skills, judgment, and experience necessary to navigate challenges successfully.
This concept resonated with me because it aligned closely with conclusions I had already begun developing in my writing. A leader may have excellent intentions, but if followers doubt the leader's competence, trust will eventually erode. Conversely, highly competent leaders who lack integrity may achieve short-term success but ultimately undermine trust through their actions. The research examined during our group project demonstrated that trustworthiness rests upon both character and competence. This understanding expanded my original definition of influence by helping me recognize that influence is not simply a product of authority or personality. Sustainable influence is earned through demonstrated competence and reinforced through trustworthy behavior.
The course also expanded my understanding of followership and its relationship to influence. The video commonly known as The Dancing Guy has been one of my favorite leadership teaching tools for years. I have used it repeatedly in presentations, training sessions, and discussions about leadership. However, this course encouraged me to look beyond the obvious lesson of the lone leader and focus instead on the role of the first follower.
In many of the community organizations where I serve, I often find myself acting as the first follower rather than the person introducing a new idea. Community leadership differs from many traditional organizational settings because success frequently depends on recognizing good ideas developed by others and helping them gain momentum. The ability to identify a worthwhile vision and become its champion may be just as valuable as originating the vision itself. The first follower transforms an individual's action into a movement. Reflecting on this concept caused me to reconsider influence as something that does not belong exclusively to formal leaders. Influence can also be exercised by those who recognize potential, support others, and encourage collective action around a worthwhile goal.
Another important contribution of this course came through Adam Grant's Think Again. Grant argues that effective leaders must remain open to new information and willing to reconsider their assumptions. I found this perspective useful because it reflects a lesson I have learned repeatedly throughout my professional and volunteer experiences. Some of the most valuable people in any organization are those willing to challenge prevailing assumptions and ask difficult questions.
Throughout my career, I have intentionally sought out individuals who are willing to challenge my thinking. In environments where decisions carry significant consequences, mistakes can have far-reaching effects. Whether in law enforcement, community service, or organizational leadership, leaders benefit from people who are willing to identify flaws, question assumptions, and propose alternatives. At the same time, I believe leadership requires balance. There are situations involving ethics, safety, public trust, and organizational liability where leaders must firmly defend core principles. Openness to new ideas should not become indecision. Intellectual humility requires leaders to remain teachable while maintaining the courage to stand firm when circumstances demand it.
Several leadership theories explored during this course support my longstanding belief that leadership is fundamentally about influence. Servant leadership, in particular, aligns closely with my philosophy because it suggests that influence grows when leaders focus on helping others succeed. Rather than viewing leadership as a means of exercising power, servant leadership views leadership as a responsibility to develop people and help them reach their potential. This perspective mirrors my own experiences in volunteer organizations, community service, and professional leadership roles.
Authentic leadership also resonates strongly with my understanding of influence. Authentic leaders create influence by aligning their actions with their values and demonstrating consistency over time. Followers are more likely to trust and follow leaders whose actions match their words. Similarly, transformational leadership focuses on inspiring individuals toward a shared vision and motivating them to accomplish more than they believed possible. While these theories approach leadership from different directions, they all reinforce the central idea that leadership occurs through influence rather than authority.
As I reflect upon this course, I find that my original definition of leadership remains valid. Leadership is still the art of influencing people toward organizational goals. However, I now possess a deeper appreciation for the factors that create and sustain influence. Trustworthiness, competence, followership, intellectual humility, and service to others all contribute to a leader's ability to influence effectively. The course did not replace my understanding of leadership; rather, it provided academic support and theoretical frameworks for ideas I had largely developed through experience.
The most significant impact of this course was helping me better understand the foundations of influence. Nineteen years ago, I focused primarily on the outcome—the ability of leaders to influence people toward worthwhile objectives. This course encouraged me to look more closely at the underlying mechanisms that make influence possible. Trust must be earned. Competence must be demonstrated. Followers must choose to participate. Leaders must remain humble enough to learn while possessing the confidence to act. Together, these lessons strengthened my leadership philosophy and provided new insights that I will apply in my professional work, community service, and ongoing writing projects. Whether serving as a leader or as the first follower, my objective remains unchanged: to help people move toward meaningful goals while becoming better versions of themselves along the way.
References
Grant, A. (2021). Think again: The power of knowing what you don't know. Viking.
Mayer, R. C., Davis, J. H., & Schoorman, F. D. (1995). An integrative model of organizational trust. Academy of Management Review, 20(3), 709–734.
Van Dierendonck, D. (2011). Servant leadership: A review and synthesis. Journal of Management, 37(4), 1228–1261.
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