What if action defined leadership? By pushing the idea of “leadership-as-action” to its logical conclusion, I hope to show that it has the potential of introducing much needed discipline to a field of research that has been built on weak conceptual foundations and as a consequence is hampered by fragmentation and diversity. With action as an organizing idea, a pivot, around which leadership revolves, leadership theory and practice can be advanced toward a more unified and coherent body of knowledge. Following a brief discussion of some of the noted difficulties and weaknesses, the paper explores the notion of “act of leadership,” the peculiar conceptual field (labeled “the fourth domain”) within which such acts take place and the distinctive attitudes, behaviors, and evaluation standards that follow.
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