You may not be in a managerial position and may not want to be, but you can show leadership anyway by standing up for what you believe.
Have you ever argued for a better way of doing something at work? Can you think of times when you convinced your colleagues or your boss to do something different? This is showing leadership. It is just a matter of having something worthwhile to say and the courage to say it. That's all that leadership is. If you can think of a new product, how to improve a service, cut costs, improve quality or simplify a bureaucratic process, you just have to convince the powers that be to adopt your idea and you have shown leadership. I refer to 'showing leadership' rather than 'being a leader' because leadership is simply an occasional act like creativity, not a role. You may think of your boss as a leader but if he or she just focuses on making things happen and never promotes anything new, then this is just being a good manager, not showing leadership. See my articles on leadership and management for more on this way of viewing leadership.
