ABSTRACT
So far in this book leadership educators have focused on the people (ourselves and others) in our leadership courses and workshops. We have considered the environments we create or access for learning. We now expand our attention to how leaders and committed followers tackle organizational and societal challenges. This requires that not only do we school ourselves in leadership theory and research, but also recognize that participants in our workshops and courses have already been engaged in leadership and followership and are interested in how they can become more effective practitioners in specific contexts. They must become judges of what works in their own practice. As Ron Riggio notes, leadership development must provide opportunities to master the behaviors we are supporting: “How dare we talk about teaching and not practice!” We are in the business of helping people constantly interweave theory with practice in a way that improves both. I refer to this as a praxis approach to leadership development.
