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Leadership

Advance Level

Unit 1: Video and Photograph

A Quote

I am more afraid of an army of one hundred sheep led by a lion than an army of one hundred lions led by a sheep.

- Charles Maurice

Idioms About Leadership

These common idioms can be heard at a meeting, in a conference or even from your own boss. See how many you can recognize.

1) Dog-eat-dog - a competitive spirit that is willing to fight to get what one wants. It's dog-eat-dog in the business world, and you have to fight to get ahead. 2) Change horses in midstream - to lay something aside and change plans that has already begun. They decided to hire a new manager, even though I advised them that changing horses in midstream isn't going to solve the company's problem.

The Origin and Meaning of Idioms The Real McCoy When the Mighty Ducks reached the semi-finals, they decided to hire an additional hockey coach. They won't be playing against amateurs anymore, they will be playing against the Real McCoys. "The Real McCoy" is a term that originated in the U.S., in 1870. It was derived from an advertising slogan for a brand of scottish whisky that was used by G. Mackay and Co. company. The original brandy was advertised in Scotland as "the real MacKay", but it was latter referred to as "the real McCoy" in the U.S.

Unit 2: Reading

How to Spot a Leader

This is a story that will help you to define and pick out a leader.

The year was 1952, a period when the two Koreans were engaged in heavy warfare. The war had been dragging on for three long years and both sides suffered heavy casualties. Not only did the North Koreans face stiff opposition from the South, they were running low on resources and soldiers.

As the war escalated, both sides continued to round up Prisoners of War (POW), which eventually became a serious problem. It took a lot of resources and manpower to build the high-security prison camps where the prisoners were kept ... and a lot more soldiers to guard them. It was a problem for both sides, but after careful scrutiny the North Koreans came up with an innovative solution.

The plan was to put newly captured POW's together into one camp, and to carefully monitor each prisoner for three days. After observing the activities of the prisoners, 2% of the men were moved to a heavily-guarded, high-security prison camp; while the rest were transferred to a large, low-security prison camp.

The plan was hailed as an ingenious solution. But how did it work?

The 98% that was transferred to the low-security prison were the soldiers, the ones who gave and followed orders.

So who were the 2%? They were not just the officers, they ranged from officers to ordinary soldiers. The 2% were the real leaders.

How could you tell a real leader? Simple, watch their behavior! Because real leaders rise up to the challenge. And because behavior reveals the true qualities of a leader - their mission, vision and values.

Vocabulary Practice

Casualties: Someone killed or injured in a war or accident.
Escalated: To increase or intensify.
scrutiny: Observing something closely.
Innovative: a creating or build something that has never been done before.
Ingenious: Something that shows inventiveness and intelligence.
Behavior: The way a thing or person acts and control themselves.
Values: the belief of a group or organization in which there is an inherent emotional attachment.

Questions

1. What is the purpose of this article?
2. Who originally shared this story?
3. What was innovative about separating the prisoners? Why did it save money?