The Boss

        This week is the start of the 2014 baseball season, so I believe it is apropos to mention George Michael Steinbrenner III, also known as “The Boss,” who passed away in 2010. George Steinbrenner is remembered by the Yankees every year at the beginning of their season, as he was arguably the greatest owner in the history of the New York Yankees and perhaps the most controversial owner in the history of the sport. Under his 37 year rule, the Yankees earned seven World Series titles and 11 pennants. Steinbrenner often interfered with daily on-field decisions, such as prohibiting any of his players to have facial hair. He became famous for his temperamental hiring and firing of managers, changing managers 20 times in his first 23 seasons, and for his compulsive spending habits on valuable players that HE wanted on his team. 
George Steinbrenner isn’t the first Yankee to get such a nickname. Way back in the fifth century in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain, a yankee named Hank adopted the nickname “The Boss”. He too was great in certain respects, but his leadership came with shortcomings and controversy as did “The Boss’s” that succeeded him. He interfered with activities possibly to the extent of overstepping his boundaries. Failing miserably at the end of the novel at his attempt to rid society of the church’s control, which was what he thought was detrimental to the generation, “The Boss’s” tactics were proven to not be ideal to obtain his goals. Here is the top four ways Hank could have become a true leader, exemplified through the words of some of the leaders in our generation: 

1. Leading is not about the power one can exercise over another people, nation, or governing body, rather it is about the influence one can have on them. 

There are two forms or dimensions of leadership. One is power, the other, influence. Imagine you have total power, and then you decide to share it with nine others. You now have one-tenth of the power with which you began. Imagine, by contrast, that you have a certain measure of influence, and now you share it with nine others. How much do you have left? Not less. In fact, more. Initially there was only one of you; now there are ten. Your influence has spread. Power operates by division, influence by multiplication. With power, the more we share, the less we have. With influence, the more we share, the more we have. —Rabbi Lord Jonathan Saks in Covenant and Conversation

       Hank’s ultimate goal was to influence the people. His intentions were pure in that he believed ridding the generation of the church’s restrictions was best for them in order to promulgate freedom of thought and a better way to live. However, he attempted to spread his influence through manipulation of the power he possessed due to his advanced knowledge of technology.

2. Being a true leader requires humility and seeing the greatness in others. This does not mean not recognizing your own capabilities, however being a leader requires you to recognize other people’s greatness as well.

“If you want to save the world you have to trust it.” —Dark Knight

       Hank clearly didn’t trust the era he was in. He didn't confide in anyone about his plans of building telephone wires and military schools for example, and he most definitely did not trust in the aristocracy or the church, both of which were the crux of Camelot’s existence, and spent most of his time trying to overthrow them. 

3. A leader must be relatable. Leaders are aware of their responsibility to those in their sphere of influence. It is about who they lead, not about themselves. They must seek to understand their following so that they can best lead them.

A leader must be sensitive to the call of the hour – this hour, this generation, this chapter in the long story of a people. And because he or she is of a specific generation, even the greatest leader cannot meet the challenges of a different generation. That is not a failing. It is the existential condition of humanity. —Rabbi Lord Jonathan Saks in Covenant and Conversation

       As a result of Hank’s manipulation of the population and his lack of trust in them, he remained distant and removed from them. Instead of trying to adapt to their culture and customs, he derided the way they spoke, the way they dressed, and the way they went about most things. He tried to change everything about the fifth century that he didn’t like, leaving people confounded and frustrated, such as Sandy when he can’t understand her banter or the knight selling soap who is distraught at his failure to sell the foreign item, rather than finding a way to relate to them and their times. 

4. Taking action is fundamental in one’s success as a leader. Without action, a leader can not make a significant difference or change. 

We often go through life with the best of intentions. One day, we say to ourselves, we’re going to start going to the gym and become a great athlete. One day, we’re going to finish that book. But for whatever reason, we get distracted by the present and lose our focus on the future. We never do go the gym. We never do write that book. But nobody remembers what you meant to do. They only remember what you do. —Forbes Magazine

       One could argue Hank did a pretty good job taking action. However, without implementing the first three tips of how to be a leader, his actions turned out to be futile. “The Boss” has an intimidating connotation, while “The Leader” has a much more inspirational ring. Perhaps Hank and George’s biggest flaw was that they thought in order to make a change they needed to meddle with the status quo and conform it to their visions. They were bosses in terms of the control that they exercised over populations, but their betterment of the societies that they each belonged to did not evolve from the personal interests of the population itself, rather it came from what they thought was best for the population. As a result their ideas were void of public input and as a result more controlling.