John maxwell says everything rises and falls on leadership. Leadership is not about
titles or position; it’s about one life influencing the other.
How does a nation get built? Robots, bricks and stones don’t build a nation.
Individuals build a nation. Therefore, the mindset of a people can impact directly
on the outcome of any nation.
The Individuals being referred to here, are not alien to us either, they come from
amongst us. They are our neighbours, friends, cousins, siblings etc. and all came
from the family unit called HOME. In other words, we can say that the first-place
leadership is shown is in the family unit.
Every parent has a leadership style, which they may or may not be aware of, this will
depend on how intentional you are as a parent. The way you communicate with one
another especially with your significant other, the decision-making processes, the
way plans are executed, these things say a lot about what kind of leader you are as
a parent.
Every home is a mini nation because the bedrock of every nation is the family unit.
As a nation has a president who has all the power to effect changes and laws so does
a parent. It is in the home that children are taught that power shouldn’t be abused
or used forcefully against another person. Power isn’t control but strength, this
strength should be given to every member of the family so they can stand firmly.
Power can be defined here as helping your family unit build capacity, competence
and courage.
Nobody likes the rigor that comes with exercising or the discipline that comes with
putting effort to a task. Our children don’t necessarily like what we make them do;
for example, not every child likes fruits or vegetables, they would also rather play
than study. But as a parent-leader you take the initiative of leading them on the right
path.
Our leaders don’t drop from sandbags in the desert; they come from homes and the
way they were raised says a lot about the kind of leader they become. If you had an
authoritative father or mother, who never dialogued with you, your pattern of
leadership will develop into a dictator.
Your children will listen to your words. But they will also listen to your life. How do
you carry yourself when things don’t go your way? Are you quick to get angry? Do
you say you’re sorry? Do you model humility? Are you gracious in your tone? Your
mini nation probably knows the answers to these questions about you.
Therefore, how responsible are you as a leader? If your home is your nation and your
constituents are your children, is this nation you are building healthy? Do they have
what it takes to go into the larger nation and impact lives without destroying the
lives of others with the decisions they make or laws they enact?
We often overlook the aspect of serving. How you carry yourself on a daily basis
communicates a lot. Yes, what you say matters, but your mini nation will also be
impacted by the integrity of your character throughout their time in your home. That
little family unit has the potential to build or destroy a nation.
We have also created an ideology that winning at all cost makes you a successful
leader. You can say how does this affect leadership… your child must get all straight
A’s; they must pick the awards or else we ask them if the person who won has several
heads. All of these subtle daggers create memory pattern in your child. This
approach often creates a damaged individual because the end game is winning;
whether it is through a legit means or not. We often sweep away the ills done to
win. We can no longer lead from a place where the metric of success is winning at
all cost and our ego takes the center stage. This process has been proven to produce
broken humans and a broken society. We can however raise leaders and champions
who will build our nation without compromising the human spirit. This is possible
and it starts from you!