Let's be honest. At least once everyone aspired to be recognized as an undisputed leader in a group of individuals.
No matter we are at work or we are playing a sport, all of us tend to scan people around and put our own skills under the spotlight. It happens by instict. As part of this same natural mechanism, all of us needs guidance. Someone to follow in order to learn something or to have protection, in order to increase our abilities or be told how to overcome an issue.
There's nothing bad or contradictory in that. For millions of years humans have been living together and have been strongly competing to be the best.