In a recent class discussion, a student detailed an article that was shared on LinkedIn illustrating leadership concepts through an analogy of a traveling wolf pack. According to the original article a wolf pack is lead by the sick or elderly so that they set the pace for the rest of the group. If they were at the back of the pack they would be vulnerable to attack or risk being left behind. The strong members come next as they are able to protect those ahead and behind them. At the back of the pack is the alpha, who can see all of those ahead of them. The essence of analogy is that the alpha is the visionary, setting the course for the rest of the pack. The LinkedIn article goes on to compare the alpha to the CEO of a company, questioning if it is possible for the company or the alpha to ward off an unexpected attack from an unprotected angle. A disruption. The article ends with a question, "So do you trust your alpha?" (Lindegaard, 2016, para. 10). Although the article reveals that this analogy does not reflect actual wolf pack behaviour, it does provide a compelling vision for leadership.
This story has caused me to ponder the leadership concept as presented, but it also sparked my curiousity about the accuracy of the tale. After reading the article in detail, as noted above, along with a fact check that was done by Snopes, I was initially disheartened that it is not. That opinion quickly dissolved when I read the final paragraph of the article which reveals the true story behind the image. According to Evon (2015) "the pack is not being led by the three oldest members and trailed by an "alpha" wolf, as implied by a viral Facebook post. Instead, one of the stronger animals leads the group in order to create a path in the snow for them" (para. 8). This additional detail adds a lovely little ripple to the story. That the member of the wolf pack who leads the journey, does so to make the path that much easier for all of those behind them. What a powerful and inspiring image of leadership.
References
Evon, D. (2015, Dec. 22). Do the oldest and weakest wolves really lead the pack. Snopes. Retrieved from https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/wolf-pack-photo/.
Lindegaard, S. (2016, Jan. 6). Leadership lessons from a wolf pack. LinkedIn. Retrieved from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/leadership-lessons-from-wolf-pack-stefan-lindegaard/.
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