How to grow the leaders inferno

When explaining basic firefighting to beginners, we teach them that the "fire triangle" represents the three core elements of a fire, namely; oxygen, heat and fuel. If you effectively remove one of these three elements, you will extinguish the fire.

 Similarly, a developing leader has a "fire triangle" with three core elements: Value, mission and engagement. Remove just one of these elements and the developing leader will be extinguished.

 The first "leader triangle" element is value, which talks to the value perceived by all the role players around the leader's vision. In other words, if people believe in your vision and see the need, they will invest in it. If people benefitting from your vision have the need, they will gladly receive it.

 There is no point in selling your vision to an audience that doesn't recognise the need that your vision addresses. Weak or random needs will not attract a talented team nor inspire "customers" about your vision.

 A leader's healthy development is directly proportional to the healthy growth of his or her mission, the second element in the "leader triangle." Many a great and important vision has been undermined and brought down to nothing by a weak mission.

  This is the single most misunderstood element in leader growth, yet it holds the power to produce infinite significance or absolute failure.

 The third element in the "leader triangle", and probably the hardest to master, is engagement. The leader must skillfully engage both role players and beneficiaries of the vision, in a meaningful and sustainable manner that allows rewards and validation for everyone involved.

  In a nutshell, the leaders development consists of establishing a vision of value, on a foundation of mission, in a manner that benefits everyone involved.

  The three legs of a gypsy table allows it to stand on uneven ground, but removing any one leg results in the leaders utter failure. The fire triangle shows us how to effectively extinguish a blaze, but the leader triangle shows us how to grow the leaders inferno.