5 TRAITS OF CREATIVE LEADERS (AND HOW TO BECOME ONE)

BECOMING A LEADER TAKES COURAGE AS WELL AS CREATIVITY. AND CREATIVITY TAKES PRACTICE.

BY ERIK WAHL

Being a leader is difficult. That’s why most of us end up taking direction from others in our professional lives. But the ranks of the self-employed are swelling, hinting that more people are getting comfortable taking the reins in their own hands. And in fact, becoming a leader (even if it's just of yourself) is something anyone who's committed to the task can master. There's no inborn quality that leaders possess. They're ordinary people who decide at one point or another to do extraordinary things.

當一名領導者是非常困難的，這也就是為什麼我們最後都會想從他人獲得指示。但是自由工作者的數量卻越來越多，代表說更多人喜歡把權力都控制在自己的手中．事實上，要變成一名領導者要能夠在被賦予任何事都能勝任，沒有一種能力是領導就與生俱來的，都是經由平凡人在某些點去做出和其他人不一樣的事而來的．
the ranks of the self-employed =the self-employed
swelling(a) (力量、數量、程度等)漸增的、逐漸壯大的
reins (n)控制(權)

That doesn't just take courage, it demands creativity—the kind you need to actively nurture and practice. I'm an artist, so I like to think about leadership as an art form. And I’ve found that in order to become a leader, you need to develop similar qualities to an artist—to tap into your creative intelligence in order to keep ahead of the crowd, stay nimble, and inspire those around you to push themselves, too.

領導者不能只有勇氣，他也必須具備創意--必須要經過積極和實踐而來．我是一名藝術家，所以我喜歡用藝術家的模式去想領導力，然後我發現為了變成一名領導者，你需要去發展相同的能力去變成一名藝術家，且為了要能領先其他群眾，要能去深入了解你的創意才能，保持敏捷的思路並取去激勵那些在你身邊的人一起前進．
nimble(a) 敏捷
tap into(v) 深入了解

Here are five traits the most creative driven leaders—and therefore the best leaders, generally speaking—all possess.

這裏是五種成為創意領者的特質，也可以說是最好的領導者都擁有的特質

1. THEY RATTLE CAGES

Change is a constant. In the natural world, in politics, in business, the only thing that stays the same is the fact that nothing stays the same. Some people wait until they're propelled into leadership positions by forces around them. But the best leaders—from Joan of Arc to Martin Luther King, Jr. to Steve Jobs—first provoke themselves into action, then the people around them. They're constantly imagining new possibilities. They instigate change that they envision even when others don't.
propelled (v) 驅使=drive, push,provoke
instigate(n)使開始、使發生=bring about, prompt
envision (v)想像=imagine

改變是持續的，不管是在自然的世界裡｀政治｀商業，唯一相同的事就是沒有一件事是相同的．有一些人在等待直到他們被迫推到了領導者的位置，但是從聖女貞德｀馬丁路德到賈伯斯，他們都是第一個去引領行動的人，而後有一群人追隨他們．他們直敘的去想像新的可能性．當其他人不敢追逐他們理想時，他們讓改變成真，讓想像不再只是想像．

TO RISE TO YOUR TRUE LEADERSHIP POTENTIAL, CHANCES ARE YOU'LL NEED TO RATTLE A FEW CAGES . . . STARTING WITH YOUR OWN.

要去激發你的領袖特質，有聰明才能卻沒有直覺的人就會傾向於聰明的人卻沒有影響力，靠直覺卻沒有聰明才智的人就會變成什麼都靠自發性卻沒有方向．

機會是需要自己去創造的

Yet perhaps the only major difference between these great leaders and the average person is that they're willing to do something rather than let circumstances dictate life for them. That typically means rattling cages and shaking up long-standing beliefs and institutions—which is never easy or universally well-received. But that's precisely what makes them great. To rise to your true leadership potential, chances are you'll need to rattle a few cages as well, starting with your own.

也許這些好的領袖和平常人最大的不同是他們願意去作出改變，而不是讓環境去支配他們．這些典型上來說是指自己要能夠去創造機會並且去重組以往以來的信仰和組織，這些通常不是簡單或者普遍被大家接受的事，但是精確地說也是因為這樣讓他們變得更好．要去激發你的領袖特質，機會是需要自己去創造的
dictate (v) 支配、擺佈

2. THEY LISTEN TO INTUITION

他們傾聽內心的直覺

There are things we know to be true and things we feel to be true. Thanks to our education, most of us tend to lean on our existing knowledge base to solve problems and make decisions. But the best leaders are those who realize that the things they sense—those possibilities that lie just beyond the realm of the known—hold a special value, too. Listening to them is how real breakthroughs happen.

我們通常去做那些我們知道是對的或者我們感覺是對的事．幸虧有了某種程度的教育，大部份我們都能倚靠我們現存的知識去解決問題和做決定．但是真正的領袖是那些理解到那些可能性--那些超過我們已知領域的可能性，也就是懂得去抓住特別的價值．傾聽他們的意見理解到他們是如何真正的有所突破．

INTUITION(n) 直覺、instinct

Most of us have problems balancing logic with intuition. But the truth is that those faculties aren't opposed to one another. In fact, you need to figure out how to get them working together if you're to become a truly creative leader. Intellect without intuition makes for a smart person without impact. Intuition without intellect makes a spontaneous person without direction.

大部份我們在直覺上都有邏輯平衡的問題，但是事實是那些才能其實不會互相抵觸．事實上，如果你要變成一名創意領袖，你需要去解決的是如何去妥善運用這些才能．
faculties (n) 才能=capacibility
3. THEY MOVE FAST

他們的速度非常快

One of the biggest stumbling blocks for anyone trying to accomplish something is perfectionism—the need to get it exactly right before taking the next step. But the best leaders realize that perfection is impossible, and pursuing perfection often stands in the way of what's most important: progress. Leadership requires making consistent strides, no matter how big. And the quicker the stride, the greater the progress.
stumbling block(n) 絆腳石＝obstacle, obstruction
stands in the way 妨礙
stride（n) 步伐＝pace, step,

對任何一個想要完成事情的人來說，其中一個最容易成為的阻礙是完美主義--這樣的人通常都需要達到非常確實才進行到下一步，但是最棒的領導者明白完美是一件不可能的事，而且追求完美通常會阻礙最重要的一件事--進步．領導者魅力需要做持續的進展，無論多大都好．而且進展越快，進步越好．

INTELLECT WITHOUT INTUITION MAKES FOR A SMART PERSON WITHOUT IMPACT. INTUITION WITHOUT INTELLECT MAKES A SPONTANEOUS PERSON WITHOUT DIRECTION.

有聰明才能卻沒有直覺的人就會傾向於聰明的人卻沒有影響力，靠直覺卻沒有聰明才智的人就會變成什麼都靠自發性卻沒有方向．

Don’t buy into the notion that you can take a giant leap if you spend enough time carefully mapping it out. By the time you get done planning, others will have lapped you twice and already taken that leap you spent months mulling over. Opt instead to "just go" and let the sparks fly. You will make mistakes. But in the process, you'll learn quickly and keep moving—refining your skills and igniting new levels of creativity you didn’t know you had.

不要相信一種想法是你如果你花了足夠的時間去佈局一件事，就可以得到很大的進步．當你已經都計畫好了，其他人可能會遙遙領先你而且進步幅度更大．做決定不是只是一昧地前進以及創造微弱的火光．你會犯錯，但是在過程中，你會學得更快速而且會持續的進步，重新定義你的技能以及點燃你的從不曾想過的創造力．
buy into(v) believe
notion(v) 想法＝idea, belief
map out (v) 安排＝plan, arrange
mull over(v) 仔細考慮＝consider, contemplate, ponder
ignite(v) 點燃＝kindle

4. THEY HAVE CONVICTIONS AND STICK TO THEM

他們有信念而且堅持

"Don’t ask what the world needs," the great civil rights leader Howard Thurman once said. "Ask yourself what makes you come alive and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." There’s something compelling about a person with conviction, whether or not you agree with everything he or she represents. But conviction is rare, because in our longing for stability and security, we often make the mistake of looking outside ourselves for direction when we should be looking inside. And over time we can lose sight of who we truly are and what's really important to us.

「不要問這個世界需要什麼」Howard Thurman曾經說「問你自己你要怎麼活然後去做，因為這個世界需要的是有活力的人們，一個有信念的人是非常引人注目的，不管你是否同意他所支持的理念，但是信念是稀有的，因為我們對穩定和安全感的渴望，我們常會犯了錯誤在當我們應該看著我們所擁有時，卻常常在遙望外面的世界找方向，久而久之我們就迷失自我而且也不知道什麼對我們而言比較重要」
compelling(a) 引人入勝的，令人信服的，不可抗拒的

Conviction can be cultivated, though—and it starts with you individually. While those who live with great conviction can always inspire you, they don't know your passions and beliefs. Only you can ask, "What makes me come alive?" From there, the gaps between who you are and who you can still be will become clear. You might find you need something dramatic like a career change, or the exercise of answering that question might help propel you down the path you’re already on. The key is to find something that you feel you’re meant to do and give yourself to it.

信念是可以被栽培的，雖然他也是開始於個人．當那些擁有信念的人總是可以激勵你，即使他們不知道你的熱情和信念．只有妳可以問自己說「我是為了什麼而活」從這句話中，你就能知道你是誰和你可以是誰的落差就會明朗化，你也許會發現你需要一些具的改變像是改變職業，或者練習回答一些問題可以幫助你推進正確的道路．關鍵是在於你要去找到你注定要做的事．

5. THEY DON'T (ONLY) DO WHAT'S EXPECTED OF THEM

他們不做

The ability to come up with new ideas is a defining characteristic of great leaders. They're able to step out of the common view and imagine new possibilities that set the course for others to follow. Each of us has a tremendous capacity for originality—we're each unique, after all—but activating it can be difficult. Why? Because our lives are full of other demands—our jobs, our families—and we spend most of our precious time and energy just trying to keep up.

想出新點子的能力是定義一個好的領袖的特質，他們能夠跳脫出普通的觀點以及想出新的可能性，讓後人可以去跟隨．我們每個人都擁有很巨大的創造力，畢竟我們每個人都是獨一無二的，但是要去啟發他卻非常困難，為什麼？因為我們的生命裡都充滿了很多需求--我們的工作｀我們的家人，而且我們花很多寶貴的時間和精力在維持他們．

THE REAL DIFFERENCE BETWEEN YOU AND THE CREATIVE LEADERS WHO INSPIRE YOU IS ACTION.

你和創意領就最大的不同在於行動

In order to free your own originality, you need to be willing to stop doing only what’s required and expected of you and start doing the things that only you can do—those ideas and projects you keep shelving until you've got time for them. But the truth is there's never a convenient moment to tackle them. There's never going to come a time when you'll be 100% certain you'll succeed if you do. Get started on those things today and work on them every day thereafter.

為了要去解放你的創造力，你需要願意去停止做你只是需要和你的期待，開始去做那些只有你能做的事—那些被你擱置在哪邊的想法和計劃，直到你撥時間開始實行．但是事實上是絕不會有一個便利的時刻是可以去處理他們的，從來沒有一個時段是你可以百分百確定你會成功的，從今天開始做起而且在未來的每一天持續的做．

Ultimately, the real difference between you and the creative leaders who inspire you is action. You have the innate capacity to develop all the qualities they possess. The key is to start. Start today. Start now. Don’t wait around until life demands something of you—it always will. That’s not what leaders do.

最後，你和創意領袖的最大的不同在於行動．你有本能的能力去發展他們所擁有的特質，關鍵在於開始去做，從今天開始，從現在開始．不要再等待徘徊了直到生活有了需求才去做，需求一直都有，所以那不是一個領袖會做的事．
innate(a)與生俱來的=inborn