Management Versus
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The concept of management versus leadership has been confused by many; most people believe that being a manager automatically makes you a leader.
Are you managing inventories or are you leading your people?
While managers are important in an organization, leaders are absolutely essential.
In the words of Bennis and Nanus,
‘People don’t want to be managed. They want to be led. Whoever heard of a ‘world manager’? World leader, yes. Educational leader. Political leader. Religious leader. Scout leader. Community leader. Business leader. They lead. They don’t manage. The carrot always wins over the stick. Ask your horse. You can lead your horse to water but you can’t manage him to drink. If you want to manage somebody, manage yourself. Do that well and you’ll be ready to stop managing. And start leading.'
I absolutely agree with that statement.
While managers are important, but remember that people are not managed. It is things that are managed. Issues, events and situations. But not people.
People are not to be managed, they are to be led.
Key Differences of
Management versus Leadership
A leader innovates while a manager administrates the innovation.
It is the leader that comes up with the new direction or new idea and puts the team in that direction, while the manager will be the one who performs the administrative and planning tasks that see it come to pass.
A leader focuses on people while managers tend to focus on controls.
A leader sees the potential in every individual and seeks to bring out that potential in people. They see people as important individuals with their needs, aspirations and dreams.
Managers tend to be more focused on completing the tasks assigned to them, and people are generally view as tools for them to complete their tasks.
A leader challenges the status quo while managers accept it.
George Bernard Shaw once said,
’People see things and ask why. I dream of many things that has never been seen before and ask why not?’
As a leader you must have this attitude of asking ‘why not?’. Why can’t things be done better? Why do things have to be done this way?
A leader constantly challenge what is, and shows his team what could be.
A leader is real and he does not conform to culture.
A leader is clear about his/her own values and beliefs and he does not waver at a culture’s pressure to conform. He is his own person and he knows himself the best: his fears, his dreams, his hopes, his desires.
He does not believe that he has to change his dreams or adjust to society’s norms.
Managers generally do as they’re told.
Management is important to big and small organizations alike. You always need people to execute the vision that has been set forth, but at the helm of every great organization is an effective, visionary person who is called: a leader.
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