The leader/manager paradox:

Good leaders are gold, they are accepted by everyone and prevail among them. However, there is a common belief that a leader is liked, appreciated, and followed unlike the manager who is hated, and nobody wants to work with him or her.

In addition to that, you may hear some criticism of someone being a manager and not a leader due to using their legitimate powers and bureaucracy or following the organization’s regulations and standard operating procedures.

The traditional theory:

The issue of management and leadership is not new, and there are many works of literature in this regard since the fifties of the last century, clarifying the difference between the manager and the leader, that the manager says (me) and the leader says (we) or that the leader is always at the front of the team, unlike the manager who is sitting behind his desk while the work team carries out the tasks.

What management and leadership really are?

If you support that theory, let me show you the bigger picture or look at the issue from another angle. But let’s first know who the manager is? Is it just called “Boss”? In fact, I prefer to call it “Manager”.

The first word relates more to the personality of the manager rather than his vital job. A manager is defined in the Oxford Dictionary as “a person responsible for managing and controlling an organization or group of people.”

As for a leader, a leader is defined in the same reference as “a person who directs individuals in a state, organization, or group.”

From this point of view, let us find out the difference between (management) and (leadership):

Management is planning, organizing, Selecting and qualifying human resources, monitoring, and follow-up, and finally evaluating performance yet leadership is motivating, encouraging and influencing others, setting an example of dedication, proficiency, and promoting desirable qualities at work, as well as keeping pace with the aspirations of individuals, unifying their efforts, and achieving harmony among them to reach the goal.

*Learn more about leadership through the following links:

Can You Really Learn Leadership? Here’s How to Find Out – SKILLTECS

Can Effective Leadership Actually Be Taught? Four Myths About Leadership – SKILLTECS

5 Proven Ways to Lead with Charisma and Make Influence on Others – SKILLTECS

The bottom line:

The bottom line is that the relationship between management and leadership is the relationship of the body to the soul. Management without leadership will not produce much and will not last in the long run while Leadership without management will inevitably lead to failure.

How many individuals with distinguished leadership skills failed miserably when they held a real responsibility because they did not practice management? And how many managers lost their best team members for not taking into account the human aspects or their inability to influence them.

A message for leaders and managers:

We need an efficient manager as much as we need an inspiring leader. This is a call for every manager to try to be that person they wished to be their manager one day, and every leader to prepare themselves with knowledge and continuous learning to be successful leaders.

Final thoughts:

Finally, I remember the words of (Mahatma Gandhi) “Be the change you want to see in the world”.