consultants on any major decision, a point of view is not only
rare, but valuable. Establishing a pattern that would survive
his own demise, the late Morton Downey, Jr., became rich and
famous almost overnight by becoming the Archie Bunker of
late–twentieth-century talk show hosts. It’s not so much that
people liked his biased, rude, macho act (although some obvi-
ously did), it’s that they responded to the fact that he had a
point of view and that he expressed it without apology. Like
the steady stream of bigoted but confident radio and TV pun-
dits that followed him, Downey was admired not so much for
what he said, but that he said anything at all.
I am not for a moment suggesting that you emulate televi-
sion and talk radio’s narrow-minded big mouths. In fact, I’d
rather you didn’t—we have more than enough already. I am
suggesting that anyone who wants to express him- or herself
fully and truly must have a point of view. Leadership without
perspective and point of view isn’t leadership—and of course it
must be your own perspective, your own point of view. You
cannot borrow a point of view any more than you can borrow
someone else’s eyes. It must be authentic, and if it is, it will be
original, because you are an original.
Once you master the arts of reflection, understanding, and
resolution, perspective and point of view will follow. Your next
task is to figure out what to do with all that.
TESTS AND MEASURES
Some people are born knowing what they want to do, and even
how to do it. The rest of us aren’t so lucky. We have to spend
some time figuring out what to do with our lives. Vague goals,
On Becoming a Leader