Stephen H Baum Leadership

Is our behavior in the face of challenge determined at birth or by our environment? Are leaders born rather than made?

My obsession with what makes some ordinary people become extraordinary leaders led to my interviews with dozens of CEOs which Random House published in 2007 and to the Master Class series at Pace. The thesis is that there are particular “shaping experiences” which develop leadership traits and capabilities.

Epi-genetics is the new field of study that is beginning to confirm that nurture determines a lot about us: our behavior, our illnesses and more. Work on animals and on human twins shows that no matter your genome, there is a system of markers that switch genes on and off in a way that controls your reaction to stimuli. These markers are largely from environmental factors from what happened while you were in the womb, to how you were treated in your childhood, to stressful situations to pollution. And the markers you have accumulated can go-awry as you age.

The good news is that by treatment, including drugs, these markers can be added or removed.

Together with breakthroughs in neuroscience (how our brain works during different mental and emotional conditions), we are about to glean powerful new understandings relevant to our lives as well as careers.

For an intro to the field, view the PBS Nova Science Now program on the subject:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/3411/02.html

That’s my view. What’s yours?