Idea 73: Practical wisdom
Reason and calm judgement, the qualities especially belonging to a leader.
Tacitus
An effective strategic leader needs, above all else, practical wisdom. This phrase best translates the Greek word phronesis, which the Roman rendered as prudentia – hence our English word prudence. Practical wisdom is a blend of intelligence, experience and goodness.
Experience – of both the world and of the particular field or business – and moral goodness are self-explanatory. The kind of eager, alert, outreaching mental quality that marks out the leader predisposes them to use their powers in versatile ways:
- To see the point.
- To sense relationships and analogies quickly.
- To identify the essentials in a complex picture.
- To ‘put two ...
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