Leaders lead first and foremost by leading themselves. While it is true that leaders need followers and a problem or situation to resolve in order to enact leadership, this does not preclude, leadership of oneself. All leadership starts with self. It is only through leadership of oneself that leaders earn the right (read- have the influence) to lead others. I’ve read in a book on my coffee table the maxim “If I cannot see the log in my eye, how can I see the speck in yours? Looking to help others always starts with looking at oneself. Self-leadership is the foundation of organizational leadership and it is essential to leading others successfully. The truism is:

Lead YOU before you lead ME!

How leaders lead is as old as our Greek Ancestors. The Greek philosopher Aristotle 384-322 BC taught this simple model: Ethos, Pathos, Logos and Sophos. He learned this model from Plato 427 – 347 BC and taught it to Alexander the Great 356–323 BC. This model framed his work on Rhetoric and lays the foundation for leadership. Aristotle’s model of Ethos, Pathos, Logos and Sophos is easily remembered with the mnemonic, Every Person Leads Someone (E P L S). The E P L S ‘Linked–Domain Leadership Model’ guides leaders on their journey from self-leadership (the first and most difficult) to leadership of others; this is the journey from success to significance.

The first domain is Ethos (me) your Character. This is understanding and applying attitude, values and integrity while demonstrating to people the four components of trust (covered in a later Article)!  This is personal success found in the Intrapersonal domain.                                                              

The second domain is Pathos (we) your Connections. This is understanding and applying influence, communicating expectations and understanding relationship strategies. When leaders connect in relationship with others they discover who they really are. This is people success found in the Interpersonal domain.                                        

The third domain is Logos (Us) your Competence. This is the leader’s responsibility to know what to do and gather the skills and abilities to do it!  The leader must know the required core competencies for producing organizational results. This is professional success found in the KSA Impact domain.                                                                   

The fourth domain is Sophos (THEM) your Commitment to Change and Growth, this higher order thinking domain requires: analyzing, evaluating, and creating change.  Sophos is an iterative domain which promotes personal and organizational growth and improvement.  It is having the discipline and courage to do what doesn’t come easy! It is moving your comfort zone, raising your expectations and facing the fear of failure to lead through change. This is progressive success found in the Iterative Learning domain.

How leaders lead, is mastery of the four E P L S linked-domains. Like all wisdom, understanding and applying the four domains of E P L S is simple, but not easy. Mastery requires trials, testing and perseverance through failure to produce maturity and completeness. Leaders mature through the leadership progression of me, we, us and finally to the end state of them. Leadership starts with me and ends with them!