Leadership Comes in All Colors, Shapes, and Sizes

The following is an excerpt from Leadership Reconsidered: Engaging Higher Education in Social Change, edited by Alexander Astin and Helen Astin. The book is published by the James MacGregor Burns Academy of Leadership at the University of Maryland and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

What is leadership? We believe that leadership is a process that is ultimately concerned with fostering change. In contrast to the notion of "management," which suggests preservation or maintenance, "leadership" implies a process where there is movement — from wherever we are now to some future place or condition that is different. Leadership also implies intentionality, in the sense that the implied change is not random — "change for change’s sake" — but is rather directed toward some future end or condition that is desired or valued. Accordingly, leadership is a purposive process which is inherently value-based.

Consistent with the notion that leadership is concerned with change, we view the "leader" basically as a change agent, i.e., "one who fosters change." Leaders, then, are not necessarily those who merely hold formal "leadership" positions; on the contrary, all people are potential leaders. Furthermore, since the concepts of "leadership" and "leader" imply that there are other people involved, leadership is, by definition, a collective or group process.

In short, our (Alexander and Helen Astin, professors of higher education and directors of the Higher Education Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles) conception of leadership comprises the following basic assumptions:

• Leadership is concerned with fostering change.
• Leadership is inherently value-based.
• All people are potential leaders.
• Leadership is a group process.

This description of leadership is so applicable to my experiences and interactions with the people of Munsieville. The concept of leadership being a process where a leader serves as a change agent, fostering change through a collective process is evident in Munsieville and through the efforts of The Thoughtful Path. 

 Thus I identified many leaders in Munsieville, big and small, and had the honor of coaching and empowering them to reach the potential innately within them.

I'd like to share some of those individuals below:

Meet the women from Mayibuye in Munsieville who are interested in making a difference in the lives of orphaned and other vulnerable children by creating food gardens and developing a brick-making business to build creches and ultimately the first soup kitchen in Munsieville.

The women are hoping to stimulate economy in Munsieville with their brick-making business and raise money to conquer the hunger issue among orphans in Munsieville. 

Prayer is an important part of their business values and the women incorporate prayer into every meeting

A brick-making business plan has been completed in early 2012 with the goal being leverage this document with investors interested in supporting the initiative.

Project HOPE UK is there with these ladies encouraging, supporting, listening to their ideas, and guiding them in what they do to achieve their goals.

These women have been affectionately deemed the Entrepreneur Ladies of Mayibuye and they are doing great things in Munsieville. They are leaders within themselves.

Betty, Project Manager for The Thoughtful Path, exemplifies a strong and trusted leader within the community of Munsieville. She bridges the gaps between the community and the volunteers from Western society fostering great collaboration.

Paul is well known by Munsieville community members and has built strong relationships and trust. Paul understood the concept "sitting under the mango tree" early on in his not-for-profit career which helped him successfully infiltrate communities like Munsieville and truly foster collaboration between the not-for-profit and the community.

Continuing with the theme of "leaders big and small" the following groups of people are apparent leaders in the community and looked at as leadership figures by Munsieville residents. 

The Grannys are well respected and regarded as figures of knowledge, experience, and good values. 

The Pastors are visible leaders in the community and can be relied upon to  get involved in the initiatives of Project HOPE UK

There is collaboration with the members of Community Work Program and their involvement within the Hubs of The Thoughtful Path. Many of these CWP members demonstrate the typical leadership skills of organization and management needed for the success of initiatives within Munsieville.

The Councilors of Munsieville are quite visible in the community and their authority coupled with the trust and respect The Thoughtful Path's presence has built over time is a great example of leadership in the community.

Principal Baba is an involved, genuine, and caring leader of the community as demonstrated by the initiative he takes within Diphalane Primary School in applying to different government funds for resources and improvements for his learners. 

Of course there are more visible leaders that extend into the history of leadership in South Africa. Munsieville remains the childhood home of Archbishop "The Arch" Desmond Tutu. 
The Arch speaks of a Nguni word with no direct translation into English that describes a worldview in which people can only find fulfillment through interacting with other people. Desmond Tutu says:

“Ubuntu [...] speaks of the very essence of being human. [We] say [...] "Hey, so-and-so has ubuntu." Then you are generous, you are hospitable, you are friendly and caring and compassionate. You share what you have. It is to say, "My humanity is caught up, is inextricably bound up, in yours." We belong in a bundle of life. We say, "A person is a person through other persons."

[...] A person with ubuntu is open and available to others, affirming of others, does not feel threatened that others are able and good, for he or she has a proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that he or she belongs in a greater whole and is diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, when others are tortured or oppressed, or treated as if they were less than who they are.” 

― Desmond Tutu, No Future Without Forgiveness

Leadership has been described as “a process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task" (Wikepedia) 

This type of leadership definition is best exemplified by the following initiatives in Munsieville:

The House of Young Ambassadors are tasked with spreading the word about the work of The Thoughtful Path and are the final decision makers in which initiatives are executed in the community. Their feedback and suggestions are highly valued by Project HOPE UK because Project HOPE UK knows that any success cannot happen without the input of these Emerging Leaders

Project HOPE UK has partnered with leaders outside the community, like Shaun, a facilitator from Damelin West Rand.

Karina, from Lifeline, who has had a positive presence in Munsieville before Project HOPE UK arrived. 

The GSK Health and Safety Team came all the way from the UK and US to help integrate health and safety measures in the shacks in Munsieville

Or with members of the African Leadership Academy who welcomed us to their campus for a tour as well as a chance to meet these gifted young entrepreneurs.

and offered a workshop about resilience and keeping healthy physically, spiritually, and emotionally

Leadership is a process by which a person influences others to accomplish an objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent. This definition is similar to Northouse's (2007, p3) definition — Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a 

common goal.

Members of The First Thoughtful Path Leadership Academy

These community members were selected into the Leadership Academy based on an application and interview process. Most of these learners already demonstrate leadership skills in their current jobs or in their involvement in the community. Project HOPE UK hopes to foster these innate leadership attributes with further development through skills training.

Vuyani has a passion to see the children of his hometown of Munsieville playing organized sports. He currently has started his own NGO and networks with government officials to support his efforts

These children of Munsieville demonstrate leadership skills within the hierarchy of a team sport often exercising those attributes found in leaders during a practice or a game

Abram, Charles, and Steven are three secondary school learners that excel in their classes and are involved in the Sports Hub of The Thoughtful Path. Their focus is implementing organized sports such as soccer, rugby, netball, basketball, and tennis for learners in their schools. The hope is that one day Munsieville schools can compete against learners in schools outside the township

Throughout my six months working for The Thoughtful Path Munsieville initiative for Project HOPE UK in South Africa, the need for leadership was a recurrent theme. Being one of my main deliverables, leadership and empowerment were threaded into the many initiatives of The Thoughtful Path. The need for leadership and leadership skills training is vital for growth and sustainability in Munsieville, in South Africa, and in all of Africa. Whether you spoke to people in the townships, or in the more advantaged communities of Johannesburg, or to government officials or listened to the television or read the paper, the one common plea was the need for better leadership. 
With good, sound leadership, the children of Munsieville can grow up in a supportive community that protects and encourages the children to dream and have hope so they can grow into healthy, educated, well-rounded, and  productive members of society.