This commentary examines the question: Are academicians creating meaning about leadership for society, or are they creating, with research and theories, an even greater distance and disconnect? In a thought-provoking essay that raises as many questions as it answers, Cindy Blackwell challenges academics in particular to critically examine what is happening in the larger context, and how their work integrates with organizational and community practice, the social problems they purport to address, and popular perception. As Blackwell sums, "We need the common understanding in society that leadership is a process, not just a word."