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I hate to be the one that brings this up, but my brain immediately went to everything going on with Penn St. while reading this article.  Everyone is a leader.  Leadership is everyone's business. So how do you use that leadership?  When given power, how do you react?  Do you act with integrity or do you abuse your power? Do you do good for others or make their lives more difficult?
These are the questions that are important to ask when you are in different positions of leadership, whether that be President, Secretary, or a General Member.  Despite popular belief, you can make an impact.

In the case of the unfortunate scandals at PSU, every person was given the power and accountability to be a leader.  However, the execution of their responsibilities to others and their university was lost in translation.  Integrity plays a huge role in the balance of leadership and power.  Acting for the well-being of your constituents should be the main goal, however many people get greedy or power hungry. Sometimes this is because of the structure of the organization.  Other times, it is how the person came to receive "power."

So how do I personally relate to the idea that "Leadership is everyone's business?" It probably depends on what setting or situation I'm in, but usually I buy into this idea I just sometimes have trouble putting it into action.  When I think of this phrase, the word "followership" comes to mind.  Just because you aren't necessarily in a position of power doesn't mean you can't lead from within.  From experience, I appreciate so much the person in the group who is walking the walk.  They are attentive, dependable, and ready for anything.  Those are the people that I trust because they are truly exemplifying this idea. 
Taking this phrase to another level is adding the concept of "power" onto it.

So, why is leadership everyone's business?  In a democratic sense, leadership literally is everyone's business.  People vote on who will get the power and represent them.  In a more corporate or business sense, the person chosen to lead the company is representing a brand, employees, customers, trustees, and more. 

Now we have chosen our leader, whether they were appointed, elected, etc.  People have given this person total trust on their skills and ability to make decisions.  One of my favorite ideas from the article is the type of leader you will be by how you use your power.  Do you coerce people and make them feel pressured to do things or else they will get in trouble? Hopefully not! But if so, don't worry! You can change that environment if you so wish! The leader I strive most to be is one with Referent power, who has a mutual respect for others.  They do work because they respect this person, but because they are scared.  Culture also plays a large role in this as well, while some have more respect for a more authoritative personality.

While you hope that every person in a leadership and powerful role will keep the best interest of others at heart, this is not always the case.  Corrupt leaders may not have started with an intent to be "corrupt" and sometimes the hierarchy of an organization feeds that.  However, those that don't know where to stop have crossed a line of integrity. Whether it be devaluing others (such as customers or employees) or breaking laws, corruption can have many faces.  Spotting this in a leader can lead to unrest and ultimately a change in power.

So, you may ask, why is this relevant? Well if you haven't picked up on this yet, leadership and power go hand and hand.  This stuff is everywhere! From your pastor at church, to your boss at work, or even your football coach.  What matters is finding these wrongdoings and actually doing something about them.  Like I said earlier, Leadership is EVERYONE'S business.  Not just the person with the power.