Leadership came into being when our ancient ancestors first realized they needed to form groups for defense and survival. It must have been a conflicting time for those who survived the care and protection of their mothers until they found themselves on their own.
I believe that family units eventually became defense and survival groups. Leaders naturally emerged, whether it was the best hunter, the strongest, or the brightest. Leadership is a natural result of two or more humans living together.
My long experience has taught me that “good leadership” is a rarity among people. There is no reason to believe this would have been much different in the lives of our ancestors. Then, as today, leadership was a valued prize, one that a host of people would kill for.
Obviously, I believe leadership is an essential part of human existence. While good leadership profits the group and the individual, bad leadership can potentially destroy the individual and the very world we live in. Our history is filled with good and bad leaders, one dynasty after another over thousands of years, continuing to this day. Assuming that we can readily recognize the difference between good and bad leaders, the question remains: What can we do about it? Will we ever learn to reject bad leadership? Maybe not. After all, what does the evidence say?
Leadership is rare—When has it not been like this? —I can only hope
Sy
Sy, you put leadership in an evolutionary perspective, showing how it was necessary for early human groups to coordinate themselves, be prepared for all natural and human obstacles ancient peoples had to deal with. Some must have sought leadership for self-aggrandizement, but the good leaders sought the safety and progress of the group, and must have been willing to sacrifice their own egos (and even their lives) at times for the group they led.