We all want to become leaders. In becoming a leader, the deeper reason is not just to rule others, but to escape from being ruled by others. More by stupids and idiots at that.

We all have struggled to be leaders at some place and we know that it is not easy. And when learning to become one, we are told that a leader should be courageous, caring and strong.

How do these qualities — courage, care, and strength — grow in us? Does merely forcing these good qualities make us a better leader?

As I tried to study and experiment with the psychology of leadership, I found that this question — How to become a leader — is absurd. There is another question we all must ask ourselves, which makes us leaders NOW.

I will reveal it in a bit. Before that, let us take three important instances in our life, where a good leadership becomes necessary.

Firstly, let us consider politics. How do you become a political leader? First, you choose a constituency to work for, you find the biggest problem the region is facing, and you work to solve it by consolidating people’s support, isn’t it?

Let us take some examples of the world’s greatest leaders. Mahatma Gandhi, the Indian face of freedom struggle, did never strive to be a leader. For him, the biggest issue was India being colonized by the British. He started the freedom movement, and people followed him.

Lenin, who freed Russians from the clutches of Czars, or Mao who brought communism to China or Martin Luther King Jr., who fought for the Black Americans — all these people had issues to fight against. They did not strive to become leaders, but people, whose problems they worked to solve, made them.

Now tell me, whom do you respect the most — the ones who fight for a cause or for the power?

Let us take the second point — You are an employee of a company and working on a project. If your aim is to become a team-leader, observe the current team-leaders. Probably they know more about the projects than all other members, they work harder, and they are more responsible.

Of course, there are leaders who don’t know much about their projects or make efforts at learning, and those who are arrogant and abusive.

Now, answer this question — Who do you want to become? The responsible one or the arrogant and abusive?

Thirdly, as the head of a family, you need to treat everyone equally. As a head, you must know that your own needs are less important than those of your family members. If you cannot take this responsibility, you lose their respect.

Considering all this, let us break down the important traits of a leader:

1. A leader will select an area to work for and try to solve the most pressing problems.
2. He is ready to spend time in studying and understanding a problem completely.
3. He is ready to devote himself to solving a problem.
4. For him, the safety and happiness of his people are more important than his own.

Now, you might have realized that any of the mentioned leaders did not try to attain some absurd qualities of braveness, humility, and strength. They just did one thing. So, Your Easy Step to leadership is this:

Take an issue, and take responsibility to solve it.

There is no need to strive at acquiring good qualities because you already have all of them within you. Give them a vent by choosing to be responsible for something.

If you can take a responsibility now, you become a leader NOW. The bigger the responsibilities you take, the bigger a leader you become. The bigger a leader, the bigger risks you need to face. So, it is always good to take small responsibilities, experience and grow.

Thank you for reading. If you have any questions, write in the comments section below: