For centuries, these seemingly larger-than-life birds have fascinated and inspired us with brilliant leadership characteristics. When eagles come to mind, people commonly imagine some enormous hunter soaring above wide-open spaces on outsized wings. Indeed, eagles are among the world’s largest birds of prey. We venerate them as living symbols of power, freedom, and transcendence. In some religions, high-soaring eagles are believed to touch the face of God. Legend holds that Mexico’s Aztecs so revered the birds that they built Tenochtitlan, their capital, at the spot where an eagle perched on a cactus.
Man for many years has taken Eagles as a symbol of beauty, bravery, courage, honour, pride, determination and grace. What makes this bird so important and symbolic to humanity is its characteristics. Six important characteristics of the eagle has been closely associated to leadership and is widely researched and the facts accepted globally.
If you ever happen to see an eagle sitting high above the tree or cliff of a stiff mountain, watch closely and see how attentive the bird is. The body sits still and the head tilts side to side; to observe what is happening below, around and above it. Even if its flying close by, you can observe how keen its eyes are looking for its prey. Eagles have a keen vision. Their eyes are specially designed for long distance focus and clarity. They can spot another eagle soaring from 50 miles away.
Positive Trait # 2: Eagles Are Fearless
An eagle will never surrender to the size or strength of its prey. It will always give a fight to win its prey, regain its territory or to protect its young ones.
Successful leaders are fearless. They face problems heard on.
Positive Trait # 3. Eagles are Tenacious
Watch an eagle when a storm comes. When other birds fly away from the storm with fear, an eagle spreads its mighty wings and uses the current to soar to greater heights. The eagle takes advantage of the very storm that lesser birds fear and head for cover.
Challenges in the life of a leader are many. These are the storms we must face as leaders to rise to greater heights. Like an eagle, a leader can only rise to greater heights if he takes up the challenges head on without running away from it. Yet, another leadership characteristics
Positive Trait # 4. Eagles are High Flyers
Eagles can fly up to an altitude of 10,000 feet, but they are able to swiftly land on the ground. At 10, 000 feet (an altitude at which most aircrafts fly), you will never find another bird. If you find a bird at that height, it has to be an eagle.
An eagle doesn't mingle around with the pigeons. Pigeons scavenge on the ground and grumble and complain all day long. Eagles do neither . They fly and and make less noise waiting for opportunties to strike their next prey or glide with the current of the storm.
Great leaders are problem solvers. They don't complain like the pigeons do. They love to take challenges as the eagle does when the storm comes.
Positive Trait # 5. Eagles possess Vitality
Eagles are full of life and are visionaries, but they find time to look back at their life and re-energise themselves. When eagles reach mid-life, their physical body condition deteriorates fast making it difficult for them to survive. Their beaks and talons, have grown so long and curved that they can no longer hunt and kill prey. This happens between the age of 30 - 40.
What is really interesting is that the eagle never gives up living. Instead the eagle retreats to a mountaintop and over a five month period goes through a metamorphosis. It knocks off its own beak by banging it against a rock, plucks out its talons and then feathers. Each stage produces a regrowth of the removed body parts, allowing the eagle to live for another 30 - 40 years.
Eagles are known for their aggression. What is most astonishing with this bird is its ability to nurture their young ones. Research has shown that no member of the bird family is more gentle and attentive to its young ones than the Eagles.
When the mother eagle sees that time has come for it to teach the eaglets to fly, she gathers an eaglet onto her back, and spreading her wings, flies high. Suddenly she swoops out from under the eaglet and allows it to fall. As it falls, it gradually learns what its wings are for until the mother catches it once again. The process is repeated. If the young is slow to learn or cowardly, she returns it to the nest, and begins to tear it apart, until there is nothing left for the eaglet to cling to. Then she nudges him off the cliff.
True leaders are not bosses. They teach and guide. They never stop giving challenges but never give-up empowering and directing.
WATCH THE GRACE & GRANDEUR OF EAGLES SOARING IN THE SKY
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