[20094] in APO-L
Some thoughts on leadership...
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Richard Quodomine)
Mon Feb 1 19:08:34 1999
Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 18:57:03 -0500
Reply-To: ric@frontiernet.net
From: Richard Quodomine <ric@FRONTIERNET.NET>
To: APO-L@LISTSERV.IUPUI.EDU
It seems to me that some wise words on leadership are in order here.
Apoogies to all for the length of the post.
From the Boy Scout Junior Leader Training Guide (I attended in '88 and
staffed in '90).:
"A leader may delegate authority but never responsibility."
From Edmund Burke, a member of the British Parliament, circa 1775:
"A leader owes the people not only his industry, but his judgement, and
he betrays them if he sacrifices it to their opinion."
Now, why am I writing these? One, to remind people that the supreme
authority for maintaining long-term relatonships and to serve as guides
is vested in our chairs and directors on every level, but the
responsibility to decide who wields that authority rests with the active
members of this fraternity. It is they who delegate the authority to us,
and they who vote for what direction thier chapter/section/region/nation
go in. We, as staff, are there for the benefit of the chapters and their
Brothers. That being said, staff is not to simply a tool, but proud
Brothers of a fraternity they love and seek to lead long after many
actives have gone by the boards. These people who wield authority on
behalf of the active members of APO are guardians of the responsibility
which is laid at the feet of chapters and their Brothers. It is a human
resource to be guarded well, by both its own members, and those students
who invest their authority in them.
The second fact is that sometimes, a leader must make an unpopular
decision if he or she is to stand by his or her principles. That leader
may be booed, mocked, teased, and even thrown out of office.
Fortunately, I know of no circumstance in APO where a physical
confrontation has occurred. The point is that when we choose as brothers
to invest our authority in a staff member, they may make decisions
unpopular or say things that others do not like. The ability to say
something that someone won't like is perhaps the hardest duty of a
leader. It takes courage, and all true leaders have that.
I have seen recent posts where some personal conflicts have evoked some
hard feelings, and some questions as to where authority/responsibility,
and all such questions related to said, were brought tobear in the
debate. I was an active brother for most of 6 years, a member of Staff
for some time, both with Secs. 94 and 97, and I see the angle from both
ends. I serve the fraternity in a position of authority, which entails a
degree of responsibility held by the fraternity, and the authority to
carry it out invested in me. I think it would be wise that we remember
such when we are a part of either staff or an active member. Each one of
us is important, but none of us is larger than our duty to the
fraternity in whatever capacity we serve.
Respectfully Submitted,
Richard D. Quodomine
