Every successful leader wants to be a “game-changer.” If you’ve ever watched a televised sports event, you’ve no doubt heard commentators banter back-and-forth about key points in the game where “momentum shifted” in favor of the winner.

Regardless of what caused an unplanned momentum shift, it’s safe to say it usually occurs among the competitors themselves who are directly engaged on the “field of play.”

Why do leaders exist? This is perhaps one of the most simple yet profound questions we can ask about leadership. Oddly, I am not sure I have ever heard anyone address it specifically.

But until we answer this foundational question, leadership tips and techniques won’t make much sense.

The TSA is suffering a backlash in the court of public opinion. The agency recently changed its airport security procedures without warning. This surprised travelers, forcing them with a choice between submitting to a full body scan or an individual “pat down.” Privacy advocates and the media are up in arms.

Though I wrote a book on privacy in 2001, I don’t have anything new to offer to the debate. I’ll leave that to the pundits who are weighing in on talk radio, cable TV, and the blogosphere. There is certainly no lack of opinion.

This morning as I was running, I listened to Episode 99 of the Catalyst Podcast. It was an interview that Brad Lomenick did with Charlene Li, author of the new book, Open Leadership.

One thing in particular grabbed my attention. Brad asked her what has changed in the last two to three years in terms of social media. She said,

I have a confession to make. Until about eight years ago, I didn’t floss. In fact, I hadn’t been to the dentist in a decade. My last experience had been so negative, that I just kept finding excuses to procrastinate.

Change is difficult for most organizations. It is made even more difficult when leaders resist it. It is my observation that leaders have either one of two postures when it comes to change. They either lean into it or lean away from it. This makes all the difference in terms of the outcome.

Why is it is so difficult to change? Whether it is our personal lives, our organizations, or our communities, real and lasting change is difficult. According to Chip and Dan Heath, the primary obstacle is a conflict that’s built into our brains. In their new book, Switch, they explain this conflict and, more importantly, how to overcome it to create the outcomes you want.

I have been thinking for some time about writing a book on leadership. I initially wanted to call it Leadership 2.0, based on a popular blog post I had written. In fact, I often speak on this topic. The basic thesis is that the Web 2.0 has changed the expectations of those who are led. As a result, leaders cannot lead in quite the same way that they did, say, twenty years ago.

Last weekend, I ran across a new version of “Did You Know?” (4.0). It is a video produced for the Economist’s Third Annual Media Convergence Forum in New York City on October 20–21, 2009. I was so impressed by the video, that I embedded a high-res version of it in my Leadership 2.0 Seminar, which I presented on Tuesday in San Diego.