SELLING YOUR DREAMS
Recently I joined a community and I was offered the role of a community leader. At first, I was sceptical about taking on the position. I am one of the few people who do not fancy the role of leadership. I like to follow and support people's dreams. We are not all born leaders. It is very convenient for me to be in the background, to be honest. I think that's where the real work is and it allows me to work in my element. However, I decided to accept the offer and help build something with my friends, who are almost passionate about this blockchain.
One of the things I try to avoid is 'responsibility' and that comes with being a leader. I don't like it because it is my reality. In other words, i am responsible by default for a lot of things and people. When Michael Jackson spoke about not having a childhood because he had to be responsible for a lot of things--especially people's entertainment at such a young age, many people cannot relate to his reality. I do understand to a certain degree because I share a similar reality. It feels so overwhelming having to be the pathfinder and leading a group of people; it is difficult having people look up to you for so many things when your knowledge and resources are limited. It is even more awkward when you don't have a clue as to where you are going yourself or have the means to cater for their needs.
The second most difficult task is selling people your dreams or vision. we are not all charismatic as Jorden Belfort--the fictional character who sold people penny stock worth nothing. We are not all born sales(two)men or pathological liars. Many of us are just armed with the truth/knowledge and that's very difficult to convey to most people. I do not like being in a position where I have convince people about anything. I have always believed that value speaks for itself but that's not always the case especially within this industry.
As a leader, you have to deal with uncertainty which is kind of contradicts the whole idea of leading a group. You're leading a group of people towards a certain goal but you don't know the outcome. When you tell people to invest their creative effort and time to build something from the scratch you're asking the impossible. It explains why there are fewer people here each year. The goals seem unrealistic to a certain degree. I bet most of you are still here because you're deeply invested, which isn't a good reason to stay invested, while some of us are here because we love the challenge. It doesn't matter why you are here for now but the fact that you are and you are saddled with the responsibility of building this blockchain (you can as well not care but why stay then?). That makes you a leader and you have to deal with the uncertainties too--the uncertainty fo this going to shit someday (maybe). Hive being a decentralised blockchain puts every one of us in a position where we have to be individually and collectively responsible.
At this point, what's more, important than achieving my goal of making this a success is the effort I am putting in right now to promote the community. Whatever the outcome would be I will be fine with it. I realise some time ago that a lot of us are clueless or speculating on events, so being afraid of failure seems absurd because it is the most likely outcome. That doesn't mean I am setting my mind for failure--I want to win, however, I do not want to be overwhelmed by the thought of failure that leads to inaction.
*Please support the hive Naija community. If you have friends who are from this part of the world and are active on the blockchain, please refer them to our community. More information about our community in the link below:
https://hive.blog/hive-105727/@hive-naija/my-hive-community-leader-application
Image Source:
https://pixabay.com/images/id-316658/