Now, these recurring stories caused me to ask two questions. // Why are the leadership gaps widening / when there's so much more investment in leadership development? // And what are the great leaders doing distinctly different / to thrive and grow? // One of the things that I did, / I was so consumed by these questions / and also frustrated by those stories, // that I left my job / so that I could study this full time, // and I took a year to travel to different parts of the world / to learn about effective and ineffective leadership practices / in companies, // countries / and nonprofit organizations.// And so I did things like travel to South Africa, / where I had an opportunity to understand / how Nelson Mandela was ahead of his time / in anticipating and navigating his political, social and economic context. // I also met a number of nonprofit leaders / who, despite very limited financial resources, / were making a huge impact in the world, // often bringing together seeming adversaries. // And I spent countless hours in presidential libraries / trying to understand how the environment had shaped the leaders, / the moves that they made, // and then the impact of those moves / beyond their tenure. // And then, when I returned to work full time, // in this role, / I joined with wonderful colleagues / who were also interested in these questions.