Blog 18: Where Many Paths and Errands Meet – Leadership as Shared Momentum
Leadership as Shared Momentum: Lessons from Tolkien
Leadership isn’t just blazing trails, it’s widening roads for others. Learn how investing in people creates shared momentum and multiplies leadership impact.
Where Many Paths and Errands Meet
“The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with weary feet,
Until it joins some larger way,
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.”
— J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
There’s something about that stanza that gets me every time.
Maybe it’s the honesty—the way it captures the faith to keep moving even when the next step isn’t clear.
Maybe it’s because… it’s where I am now.
And that’s taught me something important about leadership: it isn’t always about blazing a trail. Sometimes it’s about walking faithfully on one someone else made possible—and making sure it’s still clear for those coming behind you.
Leadership as Multiplication, Not Addition
Years ago, I walked the road with someone just starting out. He was working maintenance and operations at a data center where I was leading. I saw potential.
I invested time.
Hired him more than once.
Mentored him through his first big roles.
Today, he’s running his own show—managing data centers, leading teams, serving as the voice between complexity and clarity. He didn’t just follow my steps. He paved his own road.
That’s what Tolkien meant, and what great leaders understand: the road doesn’t end with your success. It expands. It connects. It invites others in.
Leadership isn’t just forward motion. It’s shared momentum.
The Road That Widens
This is leadership as multiplication, not addition. When you invest in someone else’s journey, you’re not just creating a follower. You’re creating another leader who will open doors for others.
At SemitaCor, that’s what we mean when we say: “Leading with Heart. Powered by Insight.”
Because the road isn’t just yours to walk. It’s yours to widen.
Your Turn
The road goes ever on. Who are you bringing with you?
