Long ago, during my summer internship at Girijan Co-operative ( a firm involved in improving the living conditions of tribals in Andhra Pradesh by enhancing their agricultural produce and providing access to fair price shops) in Visakhapatnam, as part of the PGDM program, i was made to visit the tribal habitats in Andhra Pradesh. It involved travel by bus for several hours deep into the hilly regions and then by foot for an hour to reach the designated place. The place where i was expected to spend a fortnight was a small village. The room that was given to me was a tiny hut covered by palm leaves as a roof - In hot summer the room was unbelievably cool - with friendly rodents for company who were disciplined not come to the ground level all through my stay (they did freak me out in the first two days though). I was asked to eat whatever the villagers gave me, which was usually rice with tamarind based liquid and a small portion of boiled vegetables. The entire village used the tube well and its surrounding area for a bath.
I was instructed to meet and be with this very nice and humble gentleman (around 28 years of age and part of the cooperative) , who had passed out of a premier social institute and had chosen to work in the tribal habitat to help better their lives. He was smart, very knowledgable, exceedingly sharp and could have walked through any large corporate if he wanted to. I was bewildered initially and failed to understand why he chose this life and profession....till i came to the end of my two weeks in the hilly region. 
He didn't speak much about his activities and just asked me to tag along with him wherever he went over the next two weeks. The typical morning used to start at 6 am to beat the heat and be back by noon to the village and set off at 4 pm once again till 8 pm in the evening. A typical day would start through a long walk to neighbouring villages - pineapple and vegetable plants would line up the path stretching several kilometres. Every village we went to, would have a small gathering discussing farming, market dates and some local issues. The gentleman would be welcomed with folded hands and he would hear, intervene make a few suggestions and move on. The evenings would be spent in a local school - some games for children, loads of singing, some general lessons but i only saw a smile on kids faces when they met him, many would just cling on to him. 
He wasn't a part of the panchayat, he wasn't any local leader but he made a difference to all the meetings because he earned their respect through his intent and hard work. People genuinely sought him out. I learnt that he took pains to understand their issues,  he would take the matters to the local collector and ensure he brings change. The farmers and villagers saw their lives improving under him - they received better compensation for their produce, they received certain tips that helped them produce better, he helped them adopt Vermiculture (a technique of producing compost by rearing earthworms) that reduced their dependence on pesticides and fertilisers thus reducing their expenses, the children were motivated to come to school for the games he organised and ensuring the quality of the mid day meal was of standard quality. I was even told that naxalites from the region respected him too.
While the cooperative helped him live, the villagers took care of his needs because he 'touched their lives' and positively so. He was humble enough not to realise how important he had become; his cool demeanour  and being focused towards change helped him with a sense of fulfilment.
The invisible leader
  • Understands issues at the grass root level and builds solutions ground upwards to bring change
  • He encourages people to think about change and helps realise thepotential they have in them
  • Walks the talk, with integrity and honesty that helps earn respect
  • It is the goal that they focus on and their power, position is secondary. 
  • They measure their own growth by witnessing the growth in the peoplethey work for.

Just an experience that learnt from early on in life. I am sure there are millions of invisible leaders out there who are catalysing change. They don't come under media glare and may never ever come into the limelight. They choose to stay 'invisible'