Throughout my various careers and work places, I’ve noticed something that has permeated nearly every organization. I’ve seen it in government, educational institutions, profit and nonprofit. The leadership often doesn’t seem to be, or need to be, very smart. This doesn’t mean that they are mentally challenged; it more likely means that they don’t see “the big picture.” So how do these people get to be leaders? Some of them even have advanced degrees in whatever discipline that is related to the organization’s primary function. There seems to be a difference, however, in a person’s ability to “regurgitate” information taken from a textbook, and their true ability to react to real-life situations. Some people “test” well, and some don’t. Some people can function at a high level in daily challenges, and others don’t. In addition to this observation, I’ve come to the conclusion that it is often much more important how things appear, than the true reality of the situation; i.e. what it loo...