Five Levels of Leadership
The book by John C. Maxwell separated leadership into five distinctive levels. The first level he calls “Position.” (Maxwell, 2011) The position level of leadership is the lowest and entry level for a leader. A positional leader was given a position. For example, a college graduate joins the Marine Corp and is given the position of Second Lieutenant. Another way to become a positional leader is to be given a promotion because someone in authority recognizes a talent, trait, or potential they consider to be consistent with a leader (Maxwell, 2011). At the position level of leadership, it is about power and position. Mr. Maxwell uses a great analogy to make this point. He refers to characters on the Andy Griffith Show. He describes the Sheriff, Andy Taylor as a laid back people person. Everyone knew he was in charge. He did not even carry a gun. He would talk with people and use his influence to lead. On the other hand was Deputy Barney Fife. Deputy Fife carried a gun and a single bullet but only because Andy allowed him to do so. When Barney was in charge everyone knew it. He had to tell everyone that he held the “position” of leadership while Andy was away. He often pulled his gun, unnecessarily, to show that he had the power to take control of anyone who might question his position. He was not about influencing people but about forcing his position of power upon them. According to the John Maxwell, these leaders are lonely because of the way they act. They get people’s least, not their best performance and when they ask their subordinates for something extra, they may get compliance but they rarely get commitment. Ironically, positional leaders are also usually just doing enough to get and stay in their position. They act mostly out of fear of some negative consequence related to their position. This level is