It is rather naive to refer to leadership as if it may be the same in every kind of situation. There are so many definitions and so many ways of looking at this topic – one way to get a good overview of all the perpectives on leadership is to understand the “Leadership Cube”..

This cube represents 20 different perspectives on leadership as follows:

1) five arenas of leadership
2) two contexts of leadership
3) two orientations of leadership

thus providing 20 perpectives ( 5 x 2 x 2 )

Five Arenas of Leadership

Leading yourself – skills needed are time management, stress management, assertiveness..
Leading other individuals – skills needed are coaching, mentoring, delegating…
Leading groups – skills needed are meeting management, facilitation skills, listening..
Leading organizations – skills needed are strategic planning, social skills..
Leading communities – community organizing, political skills, local knowledge..

This is why you may find someone who can lead a district in a provincial area in Pakistan successfully yet would not have the skills to lead a small business organization

Two Contexts of Leadership

Functional Context – for example executive officer, board member, program leader..
Attributes Context – charismatic, ethical, influential…

Two Orientations of Leadership

Results-orientation – focus on timeliness, efficiency, work direction, authority…
Relationship-orientation – focus on participation, empowerment, relationships..

It is possible that a leader will traverse across various perspectives in different ways depending on the situation but usually there will be some kind of a dominant style for each person that will be evident most of the time.

Now when you talk about leadership or hear someone else talk about it, you will have a better understanding of the term.