08. Lead from the Rear

All through history, leaders have sought to persuade or compel communities to change their ways. The more drastic the change desired, the less likely the success. The “Great Leap Forward” of China’s Communist leader Mao Zedong, for example, imposed a whole new political structure on his people in his rush to industrialize. It was a major disaster: Millions died of starvation, and the economy was devastated. Fifty years later, Mao’s folly remains a cautionary tale for anyone who hopes to control the attitudes and actions of a group of independent people.

image

As we have argued throughout this book, wikinomic communities can often ...

Get We are Smarter Than Me: How to Unleash the Power of Crowds in Your Business now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.