I hope this conversation has illuminated both our readers and ourselves... on questions about leadership. Hopefully too - inspiring and encouraging new, deeper questions. And not just questions about leadership, but also questions about who we are and what we do (right or wrong). Or not do.

Martin Luther King, Jr., I Have a Dream Speech
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smEqnnklfYs

MLK, Jr. did not hold the "patent" on the dream and vision of Freedom; he was not alone in the hunger and thirst for freedom, justice and dignity. It is a hunger and thirst that is in the human spirit; it is a hope expressed again and again in the course of human history; it is a vision and a longing written into the founding and destiny of a nation AND it was a cry and prayer in the hearts of the African American community. But, yes, MLK,Jr. felt it's urgency like few others. "Now is the time," he called out to a nation. "Now is the time!"

The vision was not MLK's vision. It belonged to us; it belongs to us; it belongs to humanity. Nor did this cause promise/guarantee to pay his bills, feed his children, or offer him a gentle and comfortable retirement. Nor was this cause easy, fun, or pleasant. It was hard; it hurt; it was hell. MLK, Jr. was beaten, humiliated and, eventually, killed. And, yes, his courageous words and this cause spoke to the hearts of his generation, a nation, the world and to us today. Because his truth was a truth that is also our truth. And by these signs, wonders and terrors, we know that MLK, Jr. was a leader, a hero and a teacher.

Was it clarity or great virtue or God that allowed MLK,Jr. to succeed in his service and ministry?

Please believe me that my own intention is not to question whether or not vision and clarity are components of leadership and management, but to inspire our understanding of leadership to its full dimensions. To inspire questions that will help each of us unlock the keys of leadership and human destiny. Because I worry that too often we mistake a supervisor or manager for a leader and such mistake is very dangerous. Not just for you and me. But perilous for us and humanity.