"Before you become a leader success is all about growing yourself. Once you become a leader success is all about growing others." Jack Welch (1935- ) Former Chairman & CEO, General Electric"

In my opinion this sums up leadership 100% correctly, and also explains why some people can be very good at what they do, and why they will never become a true leader. Leadership is all about self-sacrifice, not worrying about who gets the credit for what idea, and is not about how good the leader looks to the person they report to.

By focusing on the people served, and not being self-serving, someone can quickly grow in leadership, though his/her formal title may not change.

If you want to continue to serve yourself, don't fool yourself into thinking you can lead others to action, though you might be able to lead them in competition.

An open question for all leaders, and want to be leaders: How are you helping those around you learn, grow and do more?

Follow-up question: What are you doing that is holding back those who report to you from growing and learning more?

As Zig Ziglar says, If you help enough people get what they want, eventually you'll get what you want.