It's one of the most perplexing problems of life in the new economy: With so much change and turbulence taking place, people need leaders more than ever. Yet, with so many acquisitions, spin-offs, and launches around each corner, people insist on maintaining their independence. And with so much decentralization and delayering of companies taking place, people struggle even to know what leadership is more than ever.

This much is certain: The old-economy model of leadership is obsolete. Gone are the days when Fortune magazine would feature its lineup of the "toughest bosses" -- a salute to the top-down, hard-nosed, kick-ass-and-take-names-later CEOs of big corporations. ( Memo to Fast Company talent pool: Remind us again why anybody would want to work for one of those jerks? )

Equally obsolete are the old images of the charismatic leader, that jut-jawed hero on a white horse, or of the know-it-all leader, that genius at the top of a corporate pyramid who is always the smartest person in the room -- any room. Work is changing. Organizations are changing. Careers are changing. Competition is changing. Leaders have to change. The question is, What does it mean to be a leader today?

Be a name, a person, a question, a part of the discussion, a part of the solution.