Great leaders are defined less by enduring traits and more by their ability to recognize and adapt to the opportunities created by a particular moment. They can sense the zeitgeist—the spirit, ideas and beliefs that define a period—and seize it.
The zeitgeist, according to research by my Harvard Business School colleague and I, is shaped by six factors: global events, government intervention, labour relations, demographics, social mores and the technology landscape. Today, we are experiencing a zeitgeist shift, and individuals who can recognize shifts in these six factors
