As one is developing their abilities for future use, in relation to having that true sense of purpose in life; helps determine if it is a natural or ingrained talent. The reason why it is important to know which one is good to know is because; you will rarely lead one if you do not have a fundamental conceptualization of your own behavior; intellectually, emotionally and psychologically. As I have indicated in other writings, it is more the exception than the rule when you can lead and know very little about your own personal makeup. The curiosity of academics in the field of personal and leadership development has been discussed and debated for decades, the reason stems from the curiosity of what makes one tick. Also, it’s good to know how some people can lead, put yourself in a role where people’s lives are on the line, and because we know very little about any particular leader, the result could be total disaster; Hitler case.

People who start taking leadership roles without fully understanding the consequences involved are in for a rude awakening; if there is not a solid foundation within your own personal traits and characteristics. People who lead need to know their limitations, they need to know their skill level, and they need to have some insight into their ethics. In order for people to follow the leader, there must be a certain level of humility on the part of the leader and a perception by the leader that he or she is a noble person who cares and wants to lead because they want to help people.

The problems of knowing whether or not one is a born leader versus a developed leader will be based on numerous variables; For example, we are all born smart or are taught to be “smart.” How can you lead if you don’t have any kind of intellectual foundation? People who follow leaders are people who have accepted the leader’s message and are willing to sacrifice to move forward without compromising leadership talent. If one wishes to be in a position of uncompromising progress, then the newly crowned leader’s effectiveness will suffer and organizational mistakes will be inevitable.

Often people are placed in top leadership roles; roles that are very sensitive in nature, and yet fail to see the big picture because they failed to do a meaningful reflective review of themselves about how they got there in the first place. Therefore, as they evolve into important roles; Mistakes are made and a lack of integrity begins to play a role in positions that require the highest ethical standards. That’s why it remains to have some perspective of importance, as not having full disclosure of one’s character could pose a problem down the road.

The Los Angeles Lakers recently won the National Basketball Association (NBA) Championship, one of their key players Kobe Bryant has been working hard to be the leader most knew he had the potential to be. Now, Kobe is a phenomenal basketball player, however, as a team leader, he works cohesively as a team; his leadership skills had yet to materialize. While talking to his coach about leading the team, Kobe told his coach that he could lead this team to another championship; making it fifteen for the Lakers; which he is also quite impressive. His coach, another phenomenal individual with ten NBA champions, told his young, phenomenal basketball star that if he didn’t change his playing style, his basketball peers “wouldn’t follow.” Kobe needed to change the style of his basketball performance by involving others, becoming inclusive and the team working together towards the goal they so desired. Kobe, in my opinion, is a born basketball player with a God-given talent. Although he works very hard in his profession, probably putting in more time than most and always working hard to perfect his craft, Kobe still wasn’t where he aspired to be; he wanted to do better and he wanted another championship. Therefore, he needed to go beyond the execution of basketball, as he knew he needed to create a new style of play that a team could buy. He became a good listener, studying the game even though he already had three champions. Kobe listened to his coach and was open to being taught more than he already knew to become a champion. In this case, Kobe Bryant was born and taught leadership development and also developed more personally as an individual, so people highly respect him as a top-tier professional.