How to Lead in this Fast Pace, Turbulent, Uncertain and Toxic Global Environment

How to lead in this fast pace, turbulent, uncertain and toxic global environment in which people especially young professionals are looking into short cuts and short term profits.

I have been scrolling in the internet yesterday and I came across more than usual to about 10 upcoming events around leadership. Moreover, reading a number of news sites I came across the word leader more than 170 times. It strikes me. I thought it was ironic.

We live in the era in which people’s dreams, span up to the next few months if they have any dreams at all and concentrate on how to cut corners and earn more money in the short term. Even businesses including global international ones often make the news for unethical practices related to people or other misconduct, even crimes.

We all witness everyday the last couple of years crimes to humanity in the name of political or other agendas. I am not taking sides here but the truth of the fact thousands of people the majority innocent or with the crime of their nationality in the name of peace. They are called collateral damage. And all this is commanded by leaders.

We live in the era of show off, taking care of the outside image rather than the core(values). This is both on the individual level as well as the corporate level and global level. We care more to impress on the social media rather than to impress ourselves and our people. We live in the distorted, manipulative digital era. In the matrix in which who you say you are is stronger than your actions and results.

I remember Batman’s saying: it’s not who you say you are but it’s your actions that define you. I am not saying the development of digitalization is not good. But like medicine is blessing in the hands of ethical doctors and a crime and curse in the hands of unethical ones, digitalization is corrupted to a large extend beyond the intended purpose.

And yet, more than ever, people, experts, institutions and corporations talk everyday about leadership and leadership development. Massive amount of corporate events, conferences are staged around leadership. Its ironic. Or not? From one hand, indeed we are in desperate need for Leaders and Leadership, on the other hand, it doesn’t seem that all this buzz around leadership improves things. On the contrary, at least on a micro level. So what’s the problem here? Is this another commercial trick? I want to believe not.

In my opinion we live in a distorted in many ways globe. Words and images travel faster than actions and results. Even worse, it seems that a lot of words are either empty or false. They are just digital images, often by digital people pursuing anything other that what they say. Furthermore, it looks like today more than ever we humans allow weak, ineffective often stupid people designated by ‘criminals’ (I can not justify it in another way, sorry) to climb the ladder of hierarchy and leadership at all levels of corporations, societies and nations.

These people are the role models of young professionals. We are trapped in a turmoil in which we feel weak to change things and surrender to the excuse that nothing can change and therefore follow the path of “leaders”.

Leadership’s cornerstone is Authenticity. That is why the results of leadership last for long. And should last for long. Leadership results should not be short term but rather long term.

I don’t mean to be pessimistic nor do I say that we don’t see glimpses of real (if I may say) leadership today, but a large part of what we see, even experience is not Leadership by long shot because it is evident by results that is not Authentic. It’s fake.

We need to go back 50 or even 100 years in leadership and success literature and remind ourselves what leadership is all about and reinvent ourselves as aspiring leaders on solid ground. The territory today is not favorable, the odds are against us, but if young generations want to rule their lives 20 or 30 years from now, they need to become more authentic than they are on instagram and X or portage events and in personal life. This will also affect positively living in a fast pace, uncertain territory.

Exercising sound leadership will allow you to dictate the pace which in many ways have been falsely created. It’s is not always, everything urgent folks. Your time is your time to live and work not others.

I still have faith in young generations.

Yiannakis Mouzouris
Strategy and Performance Management
Expert / Business Consultant / Trainer
B.Sc. Mechanical Engineering
M.Sc.Engineering Management, US