The Groove 149 - Why You Should Nurture These 3 Leadership Traits
WHY YOU SHOULD NURTURE THESE 3 LEADERSHIP SKILLS
There’s so much talk about leaders and leadership these days, from government officials to powerful CEOs, that the term can now seem meaningless.
Being a true leader is less about power and control and more about guiding others and opening doors where none existed. I bet you remember a teacher (or a pastor or a rabbi or a friend or someone you don’t even know in person) who showed you what was possible, who inspired and motivated you beyond what you thought you were capable of. That’s leadership. Effective leaders don’t have to be seated on thrones; on the contrary, the closer they are to the problems around them and the people who need solutions, the more they can move their teams, promote collaboration, and leave a legacy that matters.
Born in 1892 in Green Cove Springs, Florida, Augusta Christine Fells, later known as Augusta Savage, was the embodiment of leadership. She was not only a remarkable sculptor but also a trailblazing teacher and activist whose tenacity and creative vision left her mark in history, and more importantly, in the life of her students.
Perseverance Is Always in Fashion
Augusta Savage in New York in the late 1930s.
Victor Hugo, the celebrated 19th century French Romantic, loved and lived by the motto: “Perseverance, secret of all triumphs.” This is one of those traits that will never fall out of fashion. In fact, it’ll never stop producing results.
But we live in times where people are looking for safety, immediate gratification, and hacks. They give up when things don’t turn out right at the first attempt.
For Augusta Savage, perseverance was the name of the game. First, her dad was adamantly opposed to her becoming a sculptor and according to her, “almost whipped all the art out of me". She didn’t give up, and eventually her dad acquiesced, marveling at her attitude and her natural abilities to transform clay and other materials in her hands.
After a year at the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical College (now Florida A&M University) in Tallahassee, Savage got a recommendation to study art in New York. This took her to the prestigious Cooper Union, which offered her tuition-free education and a stipend to help support herself
Augusta Savage, Gamin, ca. 1929, painted plaster.
After graduating in three-and-a-half years, she got another scholarship to the Fontainebleau School of the Arts in Paris. But when the American selection committee found out she was Black, they rescinded the offer, fearing objections from Southern white women. Savage was reasonably outraged, and she took to the press, writing several letters that were published in newspapers of high circulation. But it was to no avail.
Albeit disappointed, the artist pressed on and kept producing her best work. In the late 1920s, Savage's luck changed when a photo of one of her latest works –a sculpture of a small black youth–made the cover of Opportunity Magazine. Entitled Gamin (a popular French word for boy or teenager) and modeled after her nephew, the cover caught the attention of the Julius Rosenwald Fund, which granted Savage a scholarship of $1,800 to study in Paris. She spent three years there — learning, working, exhibiting, and winning awards.
True leadership is forged in the crucible of perseverance, where unwavering determination and resilience pave the way for inspiring others to overcome obstacles and achieve greatness.
If It Doesn’t Exist, Invent It
Augusta Savage with her sculpture “Realization”, ca. 1938.
One reason why great leaders are also immensely creative is because they have to come up with solutions that may not be so obvious. And many times, that means stepping into the unknown and inventing something new.
When she returned to the U.S. in 1931, Savage encountered the Great Depression with all its miseries. She struggled to find work as a sculptor and turned her focus on education instead of making art.
There was no space in which Black artists could thrive in America, so she created one. As a co-founder of the Harlem Artists' Guild and the Savage School of Arts and Crafts, Augusta Savage showcased unprecedented entrepreneurial and leadership skills, especially given the challenges as an African American woman. She fostered a sense of community and encouraged collaboration among Black artists during a time when they faced marginalization.
She had no role models. No Black person had ventured into such an enterprise. But she got it done and her studio became the foundation for some of the most well-known figures of the Harlem Renaissance. Savage taught artists such as abstract painter Norman Lewis, figurative painter Jacob Lawrence and portrait artist Gwendolyn Knight. Eleanor Roosevelt was so impressed with Savage’s work that she used it as a model for other art centers across the country.
Like a good CEO who sees their company growing and continuing beyond themselves and their egos, Savage insisted her legacy was in the work of her students. “I know much I was put down and denied, so if I can teach these kids anything, I’m going to teach it to them.”
Do Big Things with What You’ve Got
“The Harp” by Augusta Savage at the 1939 New York World’s Fair in Queens.
In 1937, Savage won her last significant commission, a sculpture for the 1939 World's Fair. This was a spectacular opportunity. Her work would be showcased alongside Salvador Dali and Willem de Kooning. She spent a serious amount of time thinking how to overcome the problem of not having the money to cast her sculpture in bronze.
That didn’t deter her, and she made the 16-foot tall “Lift Every Voice and Sing” (the committee then changed its title to “The Harp”), cast in plaster and painted with shoe polish to imitate the appearance of bronze.
“The Harp” was a mega-success displayed in the courtyard of the Pavilion of Contemporary Art in Flushing Meadows. It was the most popular and most photographed work at the fair, boasting five million visitors. Hundreds of small metal souvenir copies were sold, and thousands of postcards of the piece were purchased.
Savage’s leadership introduced something completely different to 20th Century sculpture; the conviction that Black people’s lives and artistic voices are of equal beauty and importance to everyone else’s.
How many times do people stop themselves from pursuing great opportunities thinking that they don’t have what it takes? “I’ll be ready to launch when I have $1 million” or “They chose me but this is above my head, so I better not.” It’s actually the opposite attitude that gets rewarded. Momentum comes from saying yes and then figuring out how to do it. The minute we take a chance on ourselves and others, we are greeted with the energy and resources to finish what we started. Even if sometimes we may doubt it, we are always equipped to do so.
JUMPSTART: IGNITE YOUR CREATIVITY FOR PROFIT, INNOVATION, AND REINVENTION
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HOW CREATIVITY RULES THE WORLD
If you enjoy The Groove, you will love my book.
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TEDX TALK
Have you already watched my TEDx Talk: “NFTs, Graffiti and Sedition: How Artists Invent The Future”?
I share three lessons I have learned from artists that always work for anyone in their careers. Watch it here.