Leadership: Leaders, Followers, Environments

CHAPTER 1

PROLOGUE

Iconic saguaro cacti stand as sentries at the entrance to Tucson's Sabino Canyon, one of the most beautiful and popular spots in the southwest of the United States. The canyon is home to countless saguaros and to numerous woodpeckers, owls, bees, rattlesnakes, tortoises, bobcats, and mountain lions.

Our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future. And we are all mortal.

—John Kennedy

You cannot teach creativity—how to become a good writer. But you can help a young writer discover within himself what kind of writer he would like to be.

—Mario Vargas Llosa

Few people seem to read book prologues. Perhaps they are considered to be too long, or maybe they are just irrelevant. I will try to be both brief and relevant in this one.

A book is a two-way street of communication and acceptance, sort of like a blind date. The readers read and immediately evaluate what they have read. They either like or dislike what is in front of them. They move on to the next chapter if they like it or if their professor requires it. The author tries to be accurate, informative, and witty while avoiding too many words. In this book, I attempt to write in plain English most of the time, rather than in “academese.” I also make some assumptions about the reader as well as a few basic points about leadership.