The linking of leadership with a position, whether atop a government or a corporation, is so well established that it is easy for us to overlook U.S. President Carter as a leader because he was such a micromanager while in office. Carter’s steady leadership by example, and thus by acting as a symbol, began after he had lost re-election. Nelson Mandela of South Africa had led as a symbol in civil rights
before he was elected president, and Gandhi effectively exercised
ethical political, moral and religious leadership without holding any office.
The reductionism or, at the very least, the mere association of leadership with
holding an office biases how we evaluate leaders, as distinct from governors.
The full essay is at "Jimmy Carter."
