To Lead or Not to Lead, That is the Question

Niyati Vyas

Imagine you a sailor, lost in the middle of the ocean with your crew and captain. Would

you blindly follow them into a dangerous situation, trusting them to get you out safely? In the

Odyssey, Odysseus had to journey through the sea with his crew to get home to his family.

Although he got into some tough situations, he almost always found a way out for himself and

his men. He learned to master temptation and control his emotions, which got him back home. In

the end, his crew let their temptation cloud their judgement, despite Odysseus’ warnings, and

they died because of it. But it was Odysseus’ compassion, honesty, and cleverness that made him

a good leader.

Odysseus was compassionate and selfless when it come to his crew. He did everything he

could in order to keep them alive and get them back home to their loved ones. Every reward they

earned was split evenly amongst them all, with Odysseus never taking more than his men. When

a few of his men are trapped with the Lotus Eaters, he himself goes to haul them back. He knew

there was a chance that his temptation could get the better of him and he would be trapped too,

but refused to leave them. Also, when his men are turned into pigs by the sorceress Circe, he

does everything he can to free them. Even when he is offered comforts, he chooses his men first.

“Circe – how could any man in his right mind endure the taste of food and drink before he’d

freed his comrades-in-arms and looked them in the eyes? If you, you really want me to eat and

drink, set them free, all my beloved comrades – let me feast my eyes.”- Odysseus to Circe. If it is

true that selflessness and compassion make a good leader, then Odysseus must be a one, for he

showed both. He would risk his life for the good of the team and that shows leadership. Jeff
Harmon, author of ​The Anatomy of the Principled Leader​ and founder of Brilliance Within

Coaching and Consulting says, ​“Repeat the words, 'It's not about me!' every day, multiple times a

day. Don't make your leadership about being in charge, being right, getting promoted, or looking

the best. Make leadership about the cause of the organization, serving the legitimate needs of

those you're leading, and not taking yourself so darn seriously. You'll have people lining up to

work for and with you and the results will follow.” If you believe this, then you must agree that

Odysseus was a good leader because he didn’t think it was about himself or glory. He only cared

about the safety of his men.

Odysseus’ honesty with his men was commendable. He told the men about the prophecy

from Tiresias and about all the dangers they were bound to face. He didn’t hide anything or lie to

them about what they had to do. Yes, he didn’t tell them about the Scylla, but that was for their

own good and safety. ​This proves he was an especially good leader at sea because honesty is the

best policy. “In a survey of over 100,000 people...the most valued leadership quality is by far

honesty,” said Michael Bunting, a specialist in mindfulness. This basically says that it is evident

that for people to be willing to follow you into any hardship, you must first make yourself

apparent as someone worthy of their trust. This proves my overall point because a leader who is

not honest is no leader at all. No one would trust someone who constantly withheld information

from them, especially when it came to their life. Of course there are times for confidentiality and

Odysseus knew that too. ​Some would say that because he didn’t tell the men about the Scylla,

that makes him a bad leader, but they are wrong because he knew they would have a better shot

at surviving if he kept that information to himself. He suffered the pain of knowing what they
were facing while giving the crew the bliss of ignorance. He made the hard choice of when to tell

the whole truth and when not to​ for the benefit of his men.

The cleverness that was custom of Odysseus made him an excellent leader. The goddess

Athena herself admired him for his wit and strategic thinking. When he and his men were

trapped in the home of the cyclops, Polyphemus, Odysseus’ ingenuity got them out. “My name is

Nohbdy: mother, father, and friends/ everybody calls me Nohbdy.” - Odysseus to Polyphemus.

Using the name Nohbdy, he was able to get his men and himself out of the cyclops den without

the others coming to aid Polyphemus. Odysseus’ hubris, or pride, was the only element that

ruined the strategy, but he learned from that mistake and didn’t let it interfere again. When he got

back to Ithaca, he knew that he wouldn’t be welcomed back with open arms, so he made an

ingenious plan, with the help of Athena. If he had just walked in stating he was King Odysseus

of Ithaca, the suitors would have killed him right away. His intelligence was the only thing that

kept him alive throughout the journey home. “In the world of business and politics, adaptive

leaders must not only be intelligent, but also clever.”- David Chan, director of the Behavioural

Sciences Institute and professor of psychology at Southern Methodist University. If one believes

that cleverness and intelligence are very important qualities for leaders, then they must also agree

that Odysseus’s leadership was laudable because he showed his astuteness not only during the

Odyssey, but also during the Trojan War with the Trojan horse. In 2002, Daniel Kahneman won

the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his research in decision making. He found

out that humans make decisions first for emotional reason and secondly for rational reasons.

Basically this is saying that not only regular intelligence, but also emotional intelligence is very

important for a leader. Therefore, Odysseus was a good leader, since he had both. Also, the fact
that the goddess of wisdom believes his acumen makes him a worthy leader shows that it is true.

Some might say that being intelligent makes you a less competent leader due to more complex

language usage and failing to understand why others would find something more challenging or

difficult. To them I say, an intelligent leader knows how to simplify thing and when to teach or

help those who need it. Being intelligent does not make one blind to those with less smarts.

We have seen that the compassion and selflessness Odysseus shows at sea made him a

successful leader. His hubris was a weakness of his, and it got in the way, but he learned from

the mistake and grew as a leader and person. His honesty with his men made them trust him and

have his back during their journey. They believed in him and admired is candor. Athena herself

admired his cleverness and intelligence. It is important that you are compassionate, honest, and

clever when dealing with a group of people. You should not show too much hubris or let your

temptations steer you away from your goals, as it did with Odysseus’s men. Odysseus shows a

perfect example of what you can achieve if you show good leadership and emotional control.
Directions:​ ​Respond to one of these prompts in a formal essay. Look at the rubric for
requirements. Be sure to use​ 1 direct quote, 1 expert quote, & summary evidence ​(see below).

3b. ​“ Lead, follow, or…” ​Read two contemporary articles on ​leadership (​article 1​, ​article 2​).
What kind of a leader is Odysseus​? What are his ​strengths and weaknesses as a leader​? Compare
his leadership at sea (in which he loses every man under his command) with his leadership on
Ithaca (in which he loses no one). ​Optional​: Choose a book on leadership or your own two
articles from a trustworthy source.

Timeline of Major Events in ​The Odyssey

1. The hero’s name is Odysseus, which translates into Latin as Ulysses.

2. His wife’s name is Penelope.
3. He is journeying home to Ithaca after the Trojan War but is constantly prevented by various
obstacles.
4. Penelope waits patiently but is beset by persistent suitors who demand she choose a new husband.
5. Odysseus is known for his cunning and his lying; the goddess Athena calls him “a crooked shifty
rogue”.
6. The Lotus Eaters live in blissful happiness, and any traveller who eats of the lotus petals never
wants to go home.
7. The Cyclops - Polyphemus, a one-eyed giant - captures Odysseus and 12 of his men; he keeps them
imprisoned in a cave, and starts to eat them one by one. They escape by blinding his one eye, and
then clinging to the underside of his sheep, so they can get past him.
8. The enchantress Circe turns many of Odysseus’s men into pigs. Odysseus persuades her to lift the
enchantment.
9. Odysseus goes into the underworld to seek out the blind seer, Tiresias, who alone can tell him how
to get home. Tiresias tells Odysseus that he will get home safely.
10. They have to sail past the island of the Sirens, who sing so sweetly that men are lured to their
deaths. Odysseus has the sailors put wax in their ears so they cannot hear the songs, and he is tied
to the mast so he can hear them but not be seduced by their songs.
11. They have to sail between Scylla, a huge monster, and Charybdis, a giant whirlpool.
12. On the Island of the Sun, Odysseus’s men kill some of the oxen sacred to the sun god Helios. The
ship is destroyed and all drown except Odysseus who clings to the wrecked keel until he is washed
up on the island of the nymph Calypso.
13. Calypso keeps him as a “love prisoner” on her island for many years.
14. When he gets off her island, his raft is destroyed and he has to swim for his life.
15. He lands on shore and is helped by Nausicaä, the daughter of the king, who is doing laundry. He
tells his story to her family who provide him with a ship to get home.
16. Odysseus lands on Ithaca, where he disguises himself as a beggar.
17. He arrives at his palace and is recognised by his dog.
18. He is mocked by Penelope’s suitors.
19. He proves his identity by completing a feat no-one else can – stringing his giant bow and firing it
through seven rings - and then he kills all the suitors.
20. The only one Odysseus spares is the bard because he sings so sweetly.
21. Penelope is slow to believe that Odysseus has finally come home; his son Telemachus accepts him
readily.

Step 1: ​Brainstorming:

● Returning home
● Lotus eaters
● Cyclops
● Circe
● Tiresias
● Sirens
● Scylla and charybdis
● Helios
● Calypso
● Returning home
● Odysseus was a good leader
● Honest
● Cares about safety of men
● Thinks of himself as an equal
● Clever
● “Circe – how could any man in his right mind endure the taste of food and drink before
he’d freed his comrades-in-arms and looked them in the eyes? If you, you really want me
to eat and drink, set them free, all my beloved comrades – let me feast my eyes.”-
Odysseus (P. 242, L. 421.)

Step 2:​ Grouping

● Cares about men’s safety
○ “Circe – how could any man in his right mind endure the taste of food and drink
before he’d freed his comrades-in-arms and looked them in the eyes? If you, you
really want me to eat and drink, set them free, all my beloved comrades – let me
feast my eyes.”- Odysseus (P. 242, L. 421.)
○ With the lotus eaters he himself drags men back unwilling to leave anyone behind
○ Takes all men with him when escaping cyclops when he could have easily
escaped himself
○ Circe turns men into pigs and he risks turning into a pig himself to free them and
sleeps with her to save them
 ○ Elpenor, the crewman who broke his neck falling from Circe’s roof begs
Odysseus to return to Circe’s island and give his body a proper burial. He does
○ He divided work, women, food, and rewards equally between his men and didn’t
take more for himself
● Honest with men
○ Told them of tiresias’ warning
○ Didn’t tell about scylla and charybdis but that was so they would get scared and
run away
● Clever
○ Nohbdy
○ Showed up as beggar not as king

Step 3: ​Thesis
Odysseus’s honesty, cleverness, and compassion for his crew made him a good leader. Though
he got into some tough situations, he almost always found a way out for himself and crew. In
Ithaca, he was not as good of a leader as he was at sea, but he still managed to get himself out of
any bad situation one way or another.

Step 4: ​Check Thesis

D: 8
I: 6
C: 7
C: 8

Step 5: ​Body Paragraphs

Odysseus is compassionate and selfless when it come to his crew. He did everything he
could in order to keep them alive and every reward they earned was split evenly amongst them
all. He never took more for himself. When a few of his men are trapped on the island with the
Lotus Eaters, he himself goes to haul them back. He refused to leave without every single one,
even if that meant risking his own life to get them back. Also, when his men are turned into pigs
by the sorceress Circe, he goes does everything he can to free them. ​“Circe – how could any man
in his right mind endure the taste of food and drink before he’d freed his comrades-in-arms and
looked them in the eyes? If you, you really want me to eat and drink, set them free, all my
beloved comrades – let me feast my eyes.”- Odysseus to Circe. He even sleeps with her to gain
her favor. Once he finally escapes her clutch, he encounters Elpenor, the crewman who broke his
neck falling from Circe’s roof, who begs Odysseus to return to Circe’s island and give his body a
proper burial. He does, risking himself again. Selflessness and compassion are very important
qualities for a leader, and he had both. If a leader is not selfless, how could a crew follow him
into dangerous situations and trust him to bring them out alive? He would risk himself for the
good of the team and that shows leadership.
Odysseus showed a laudable amount of leadership at sea. His honesty with his men was
commendable. He told the men about the prophecy from Tiresias and about all the dangers they
were bound to face. They chose not to heed his warnings, which was the fault of their inability to
turn away from temptation. Although he didn’t tell them about Scylla, he did it for their own
good. If he had told them, they would have been too frightened and might have given up. He
made the right choice of when to tell the whole truth and when not to​ for the benefit of the entire
crew. This proves he was an especially good leader at sea because honesty is the best policy. “In
a survey of over 100,000 people...the most valued leadership quality is by far honesty,” said
Michael Bunting, a specialist in mindfulness. It is evident that for people to be willing to follow
you into battle, you must first make yourself apparent as someone worthy of their trust.
The cleverness that was custom of Odysseus made him an excellent leader. The goddess
Athena herself admired him for his wit and strategic thinking. When he and his men were
trapped in the home of Polyphemus, the cyclops, Odysseus’ ingenuity got them out. “Nobody is
my name. My father and mother call me Nobody, as do all the others who are my companions.” -
Odysseus, Book 9. Using the name Nobody, he was able to get his men and himself out of the
cyclops den without others coming to aid Polyphemus. Odysseus’ hubris-or pride-was the only
element that ruined the strategy, but he learned from that mistake and didn’t let it interfere again.
When he got back to Ithaca, he knew that he wouldn’t be welcomed back with open arms, so he
made a plan and with Athena’s help, he disguised himself as a beggar. If he wasn’t that clever
and had just walked in stating he was Odysseus, the suitors would have killed him in seconds.
His intelligence was the only thing that kept him alive throughout the journey home and back at
Ithaca. Cleverness and intelligence are very important qualities for leaders because it means they
can think on their feet, and respond to time pressures well. “In the world of business and politics,
adaptive leaders must not only be intelligent, but also clever.”- David Chan, director of the
Behavioural Sciences Institute and professor of psychology at SMU.

Step 6: ​Introduction
Imagine if you were stranded in the middle of the ocean with your crew and captain.
Would you blindly follow them into a dangerous situation, trusting them to you out safely? In the
Odyssey, Odysseus had to journey through the sea with his crew and keep them all alive.
Odysseus’s honesty, cleverness, and compassion for his crew made him a good leader. Though
he got into some tough situations, he almost always found a way out for himself and his men. In
Ithaca, he was not as good of a leader as he was at sea, but he still managed to get himself out of
any bad situation one way or another.

Step 7: ​Conclusion
So we have seen that the compassion and selflessness Odysseus shows at sea made him a
successful leader. His hubris was a weakness of his, and it got in the way, but he learned from
the mistake and grew as a leader and person. His honesty with his men made them trust him and
have his back during their journey. Athena herself admired his cleverness and intelligence. In life
there are times when you must lead a group of people. It is important that you are compassionate,
honest, and clever when dealing with a group of people. You should not show too much hubris
or let your temptations steer you away from your goal.
Step 8 & 9: ​Revision and Editing
Imagine you a sailor, lost in the middle of the ocean with your crew and captain. Would
you blindly follow them into a dangerous situation, trusting them to you out safely? In the
Odyssey, Odysseus had to journey through the sea with his crew to get home to his family. His
honesty, cleverness, and compassion for his crew is what made him a good leader. Although he
got into some tough situations, he almost always found a way out for himself and his men. He
learned to master temptation and control his emotions, which go him back home. In the end, his
crew let their temptation hinder their judgement despite Odysseus’ warnings and they died
because of it.
Odysseus was compassionate and selfless when it come to his crew. He did everything he
could in order to keep them alive and get them back home to their loved ones. Every reward they
earned was split evenly amongst them all, with Odysseus never taking more than his men. When
a few of his men are trapped with the Lotus Eaters, he himself goes to haul them back. He knew
there was a chance that his temptation could get the better of him and he would be trapped too,
but refused to leave them. Also, when his men are turned into pigs by the sorceress Circe, he
goes does everything he can to free them. ​“Circe – how could any man in his right mind endure
the taste of food and drink before he’d freed his comrades-in-arms and looked them in the eyes?
If you, you really want me to eat and drink, set them free, all my beloved comrades – let me feast
my eyes.”- Odysseus to Circe. She lets them go and they stay on the island for a year. Once he
finally escapes her clutch, he encounters Elpenor, the crewman who broke his neck falling from
Circe’s roof, who begs Odysseus to return to Circe’s island and give his body a proper burial. He
does, knowing the temptation he will face again and the risks because of it. If a leader is not
selfless, how could a crew follow him into dangerous situations and trust him to bring them out
alive? If it is true that selflessness and compassion make a good leader then Odysseus must be a
good leader, for he showed both. He would risk his life for the good of the team and that shows
leadership.
Odysseus honesty with his men was commendable. He told the men about the prophecy
from Tiresias and about all the dangers they were bound to face. He didn’t hide anything or lie to
them about what they had to do. Yes, he didn’t tell them about the Scylla, but that was for their
own good and safety. ​This proves he was an especially good leader at sea because honesty is the
best policy. “In a survey of over 100,000 people...the most valued leadership quality is by far
honesty,” said Michael Bunting, a specialist in mindfulness. It is evident that for people to be
willing to follow you into any hardship, you must first make yourself apparent as someone
worthy of their trust. ​Some would say that because he didn’t tell the men about the Scylla, that
makes him a bad leader, but they are wrong, because he knew they would have a better shot at
surviving if he withheld that information. He made the hard choice of when to tell the whole
truth and when not to​ for the benefit of the crew.
The cleverness that was custom of Odysseus made him an excellent leader. The goddess
Athena herself admired him for his wit and strategic thinking. When he and his men were
trapped in the home of the cyclops, Polyphemus, Odysseus’ ingenuity got them out. “My name is
Nohbdy: mother, father, and friends,/ everybody calls me Nohbdy.” - Odysseus to Polyphemus.
Using the name Nohbdy, he was able to get his men and himself out of the cyclops den without
the others coming to aid Polyphemus. Odysseus’ hubris-or pride-was the only element that
ruined the strategy, but he learned from that mistake and didn’t let it interfere again. When he got
back to Ithaca, he knew that he wouldn’t be welcomed back with open arms, so he made a plan
and with Athena’s help, he disguised himself as a beggar. If he wasn’t that clever and had just
walked in stating he was Odysseus, the suitors would have killed him in seconds. His
intelligence was the only thing that kept him alive throughout the journey home and back at
Ithaca. “In the world of business and politics, adaptive leaders must not only be intelligent, but
also clever.”- David Chan, director of the Behavioural Sciences Institute and professor of
psychology at SMU. If one believes that cleverness and intelligence are very important qualities
for leaders, then they must also agree that Odysseus’s leadership was laudable because he
showed his astuteness not only during the Odyssey, but also during the Trojan War with the
Trojan horse. Also, the fact that they goddess of wisdom believes his acumen makes him a
worthy leader shows that it is true.
We have seen that the compassion and selflessness Odysseus shows at sea made him a
successful leader. His hubris was a weakness of his, and it got in the way, but he learned from
the mistake and grew as a leader and person. His honesty with his men made them trust him and
have his back during their journey. They believed in him and admired is candor. Athena herself
admired his cleverness and intelligence. It is important that you are compassionate, honest, and
clever when dealing with a group of people. You should not show too much hubris or let your
temptations steer you away from your goals, as it did with Odysseus’s men. Odysseus shows a
perfect example of what you can achieve if you show good leadership and emotional control.