Have you ever noticed the tiny distance between polar opposites?

We’ve all heard a few of the clichés.

There’s a fine line between:

Love and hate;

Genius and madness;

Peace and war.

And, lots of struggling school students will confirm the example applies between passing and failing, too.

Sports stars will tell you the same thing, too. The difference between success and failure on the field of play is often measured in fractions of an inch or blinks of an eye.

A few years ago author Jim Collins managed to get this lesson down on paper and published a wonderful business book, “Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap … And Others Don’t.”

Collins detailed several companies that went from being moderately successful to greatly successful and attempted to explain the concepts at play.

While his book focused on businesses, the same concepts apply to virtually any organization — including cities or counties.

The trip from mediocre to great isn’t long; it just takes lots of persistence and communication — and that starts at the top.

Apparently, new Natchez Mayor Jake Middleton understands this concept and he seems to be headed in the right direction.

This was evident last week as Middleton rallied the city’s department heads for their first meeting under his watch.

“We’re a team here and that’s how we operate, as a team,” the mayor told his players. “If you’re not a team player, you’re going to have a hard time working under my administration.”

Middleton seems to be doing a much, much better job of rallying the troops. Allegedly, the previous administration rarely had meetings with department leaders. Middleton promises to have them at least monthly.

The mayor would be wise to take some clues from author Collins’ book as he begins to take the next steps in organizing his team.

One of the first things Collins identifies in the organizations that went from good to great is the kind of leaders each had.

Despite what you might think, the most effective leaders are not the ones like New York real estate magnate Donald Trump or former General Electric CEO Jack Welch — both of whom are known for having overly large personal egos.

Collins says the most effective leaders are the ones who can turn their own egos away from their own personal need for credit into the larger goal of building the team up.

Collins refers to it as “Level 5 Leadership.”

People who aren’t really that well known, and who don’t have larger-than-life personalities, often run great organizations.

Middleton has the potential to be a great Level 5 leader.

His next challenges will be in figuring out if he has the right players on the team — and chances are there need to be a few changes here and there on the roster.

Once that team is in place, then — and only then — can Middleton truly figure out where he’s driving the city’s “bus.”

Another principle that author Collins touts is what he deems the “Hedgehog Concept,” which focuses on the hedgehog’s ability to see the world — and its place in it very simply.

In applying the concept to organizations, the concept is an understanding of what you can be best at, and not focusing on the things that you cannot.

Imagine what would happen if the City of Natchez’s team started focusing completely and passionately on making the city the best place to live in the world, focusing on quality of life issues for residents. If that happened, our good city would truly become great and Middleton’s team would go down in history as the one who got things moving.

Kevin Cooper is publisher of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 445-3539 or kevin.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.