Volume 50 Issue 8 - August 2012 : Mokanoki

 Let me conclude my study on mentoring by looking at good leaders in this country. I am talking about people who have set good examples for us.  Before talking about mentoring anybody, you must have answers for the following questions. That is a good starting point. To what do you succeed?  That is as important as who succeeds you.  Some leaders have thought this through. 

Perhaps as African historians, we are aware that ancient and contemporary history is replete with leaders who became so possessed by their own sense of importance, power, and influence that they wanted to be buried in their offices, have their title as their tombstones and the accolades of their admirers as their wreaths. Nothing is as addictive and intoxicating as power, authority, and influence.  One of the difficult decisions most leaders have to make is to surrender the reins of power to another. 

True leaders must be secure enough to leave and fearless enough to face their own future. Knowing when to leave a position is essential and critical to leadership, and any mismanagement of delicate process can dismantle and destroy years of hard work and investment of resources and human capital. This principle is so vital to the success of the organization that it is better for the leader to leave too early than to stay too late.

Imagine a basketball or football player extending play on the team well after retirement age, attempting to run the court or field with young firebrands itching for fame and glory!  That champion would become the source of ridicule and disgrace for the whole organisation. This is why great players leave at the height of their game.  Great CEOs depart at the apex of their success. Great spiritual leaders leave when they are celebrated, not merely tolerated. 

True leaders do not wait for death to remove them from their positions, but know when they have done their part in contributing to the ongoing advancement of a vision bigger and nobler than their own existence. One of the greatest examples we have of knowing when to leave is that of two former presidents of Botswana, Rre Masire le Rre Mogae. After achieving the highest position and reaching a goal they had desired for decades – one that demanded the sacrifice of their personal freedom - they decided to let go before their terms ended. Their sense of transitional leadership and the need to mentor a successor was stronger than their desire for power, influence, and control. Borre ba rona are the prototype of the true leadership spirit.  They handed their successors all the power and influence of more than 30 years of struggle in a 30-minute ceremony.

Do not overstay your time. Leaders who stay in a position too long do more damage than those who leave too soon. It is better to leave early than to stay too late and retard the development of the next generation of leaders. ENDS

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