Positioning the Sheep, the Sheep Position

Looking back on the things I've done

I was trying to be someone

I played my part, kept you in the dark

Now let me show you the "sheep" of my heart

(Tweaked lyrics from Shape of My Heart, Backstreet Boys, 2000)

So you have subscribed to my newsletters here on LinkedIn, and wondering what the sheep is going on, why matters are so grey and what’s the link with leadership? Well all of this will become clearer, shade by shade as long as you hang around and see she various shades of leadership unfold.

First and foremost, it is important to introduce myself so that you know what my position is, the Sheep position. Not to worry, I am not going to advise you on yet another position to try out this evening, that is for you to decide. I am just going to share where I fit in the labyrinth of leadership literature.

My name is Sheeplu and you will be surprised to know that we existed, the Sheep clan, pretty much across all ages. But if you look here at my family album during a crucial moment in history, you will realize what our position had been.

As you can see, there is a leader being born here, the sponsor of the leader, mentor, mother whatever you fancy calling her and then you have the three wise men who came from far to witness the monumental moment and yes there you have my ancestors in that picture, onlooking with great interest what’s going on with that baby being born and wondering how the hell (or heaven?) this happened?

I am not the Leader.

This picture shows someone from your own species i.e. humans being born as the leader of a certain community. I am not the leader, so don’t get nervous. I am just enjoying the show.

I am not as wise as you lot.

In the increasingly crowded world of motivational speakers, leadership coaches and leadership gurus, my role is only to munch their quotes, chew their diagrams and listen to their TED talks going blah blah blah to ba-baa-baaa. I am not any of the wise men or women, as you can see clearly in my family album.

I will mostly gaze, graze and ask questions.

As you can see, I mostly ask questions. My first question was to the Wise Men in the picture that ‘How is it possible that the baby got born like this and whose baby is this?’, they told me to “Shut the sheep up” so I did and moved on.

But that is true, throughout the series of articles here which you have subscribed to, my role will only be to ask questions on leadership, as you might be the wise man or woman out there who knows it all. Or who knows you might be the leader who can show me what you see, your vision.

I will mostly follow my herd.

Well yes, after hearing all the wisdom and the leadership jargon, I tend to simply follow the herd, as that is what comes most naturally to me, leadersheep.

Totally scattered brained

The 50 Shades of Greyed Leadersheep will be a combination of totally disconnected topics on leadership where you will get the full credit (possibly a woollen sweater?) for establishing any links or sequence which we could not think of. I knew you are a wise owl.

So I hope I have been able to enlighten you on what to expect in the next articles in this newsletter. I am just a sheep, may behave or say things sheepishly, I am not the wisest and not the visionary leader with 99 soft skills under my soft skin. I will mostly ask questions, expect you to answer, I may give you half-baked suggestions, only to be corrected by the wise and the heavenly among you, who are native to the Leadershipland.

PS. I didn’t want to include this cheesy lyric from the Backstreet Boys in the beginning of this article, I don’t even know who these boys are in the back of the street. My editor insisted I use it, so I gave in.

PS2. Don’t worry, the articles which will follow will be on leadership only, not on any faith-based teachings or preachings.

Next article:

Shade#1 (of 50)

What is the litmus test of leadership?