Page 33 - 4- Leading_from_Within

Power has been defined as the ability to influence the actions of others,
which means that leadership can be viewed as the effective use of power.
Leaders are people who have and use power. While an individual may
35
exert power without being a leader, an individual cannot be a leader

without having some level of power.

Nearly all men can stand adversity but if you want to test a man’s
character, give him power. Abraham Lincoln

In today’s politically correct environment, organizational leaders tend to
shy away from the “power” word, often preferring to talk about

“empowerment?” Some people have a strong negative reaction when
talking about power because that word often is associated with negative
applications; for example, manipulation, abuse, or harassment. The word
“power” brings to mind someone who is riding roughshod over others.

However, “Power” is not necessarily a negative concept. Power, like
conflict, exists in all human interactions and is not always bad. It is how
power and conflict are used and managed that determines how they
should be thought of. When power is used in an ethical and purposeful
way, there is nothing evil about it. In that light, a dictionary definition of
power is the “ability to act or produce an effect”.

What a lot of research over many years has discovered is that power is
really just a capacity. It is the capacity to influence other people and the
strength and courage to accomplish something. It turns out that power,
when applied appropriately, is exactly what it takes to promote action and

make positive change happen. Continuing this thought, power, as defined
by Stephen Covey, is the vital energy to make choices and decisions.
36
Without some measure of power, a manager or leader would find it
difficult to manage the work of his or her subordinates, thereby negatively
impacting the productivity of the organization.

35 Richard Lynch. Lead! How Public and Nonprofit Managers Can Bring Out the Best in Themselves and
Their Organizations (San Francisco CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1993), p. 26.
36 Stephen Covey. Principle-Centered Leadership (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1991), p. 23.

David Kolzow 33