This is a great article. I think your point about the roles being different not "better" is very important. In my experience one of the defining characteristics of great people "leaders" is that they get SATISFACTION FROM THE RESULTS OF OTHERS. This isn't about them being better or more talented than the people around them - it is about psychology. If you don't believe that it is more important to make your team better than it is to be good at something yourself it's really hard to be a great manager. This holds true all the way "up". Directors are good at solving different types of problems than leads are - and often part of that comes from what they fundamentally are drawn to rather than where they sit in the hierarchy.