Cracking the Leadership Code

Chapter 6BUILDING YOUR CREDIBILITY

I met an old lady once, almost a hundred years old, and she told me, “There are only two questions that human beings have ever fought over, all through history. How much do you love me? And who's in charge?”

—Elizabeth Gilbert

In the 2002 movie Spiderman, there's a well-known scene that any true Spidey fan can recite from memory. If you aren't familiar with the story, here's a quick refresher: Peter Parker is a high school senior from Queens with an inferiority complex. He's an orphan, being raised by his Aunt May and Uncle Ben. While on a field trip to a genetics lab at Columbia University, he's bitten by a radioactive genetically engineered spider.

The next morning, Peter awakes to find he has new skills. Incredibly strong and quick, he can now stick to walls and ceilings and spin webs from his wrists.

Though he now has superpowers, Peter's not yet a superhero. He's still the same angst-ridden teenager who doesn't know what to do with his life. He has yet to commit to working toward a mission of justice, service, and the greater good. Amid this confusion, Peter has a conversation with his Uncle Ben. In what tragically turns out to be their last conversation, Ben wisely counsels Peter, “With great power comes great responsibility.”

Uncle Ben's words aren't just for his nephew. They apply to all of us who wish to wear the mantle of leadership.

This may seem like a stretch to you. What could you and Spider Man have in common? Right now, you ...