Posts tagged character
How to Get Along With an Enemy
Aug 26th
Thank you for dropping by! Thursdays are Servant Hearts day. Gracious leaders around the world guest post to NorthFork’s blog, A Servant’s Heart, sharing their fabulous insights regarding the serving nature of leadership. We’re delighted you’ve joined us. Be prepared for a variety of experience!
Today, I am especially DELIGHTED to introduce you to Mark McKinney. Mark is a young emerging leader endeavoring to share what he learns on his journey to encourage other young people to develop their leadership ability and make a difference in whatever they are doing. Mark helps us better understand we can learn to serve the world around us by learning how to use our gifts. Mark blogs and he is developing an awesome leadership web site for young people called Leader: Me! You can read Mark’s original post, and comments, here. Mark’s bio reads, “Love the outdoors, reading, building things, languages, HTML, Krav Maga, learning anything, spying, codes and ciphers, leadership.” Friends, Mark inspires me. I’m sure he will inspire you, too!
How to Get Along With an Enemy
by Mark McKinney (California)
We always want to avoid making enemies, but it will certainly happen. It may be the opposite of what you would want to do, but the first step to try to turn enemies into friends is to get to know the person better. As Abraham Lincoln said, “I don’t like that man. I must get to know him better.” Getting to know them will enable you to learn about most of his or her strengths and weaknesses. Knowing that will help you understand them and get along. You might even figure out what you did (if you did really do something) to them. Then you can apologize to them and this will hopefully turn your enemy into your friend.
Now what if that doesn’t work because they just don’t seem to like you for whatever reason, you must now learn how to get along with them. To do this, you must first ignore their comments. Now I don’t mean that you should blow them off like “who cares about them” because that’s just what they would do to you. No, you must not react to their comments in a negative way. Don’t make their problem your problem. The next step is to not say anything about what he or she does. Don’t be critical of them. Don’t make negative comments. Otherwise, again, you are doing exactly what they are doing. You must ignore the urge to get back at them or the desire to embarrass them. Finally, you must always remember to be nice to them even if they are being a jerk to you. If you do this you will be setting an example. Hopefully they will follow your example.
The people we don’t like are usually the people we don’t know or seem to be not like us. We don’t usually like people that are different from us. The solution is to get to know others even if they are different and be nice to everyone we see. Will Rogers, speaking of Leon Trosky, said, “I bet you if I had met him and had a chat with him, I would have found him a very interesting and human fellow, for I never yet met a man that I didn’t like.” Get to know people. You’ll be surprised how much you might like them.
A Greater Victory (originally published with Lead Change Group)
Aug 6th
Earlier this week, Mike Henry graciously published this post on the Lead Change Group blog. Comments to date have been fabulous! You can find it, and the wonderful comments, here.
For the benefit of those unable to visit the Lead Change Group, “a peer-based open-source leadership community dedicated to applying character-based leadership around the globe to make a positive difference,” I take this opportunity to republish the post in its entirety.
~Pam Knox, Head Coach, Western Oregon
We all know leadership when we see it. The problem for most of us is this: we expect leadership greatness to look something like a CEO, the Chairman of the Board, or the President. We have somehow come to a place where leadership is commensurate with graybeards waxing long on the wisdom of the ages.
You are invited to view a clip that’s proof positive leadership is anything but old people (mostly men) telling everyone else what to do. You see, leadership never was about power, position, perks, prestige, or privilege. Instead, it’s always been about people, and it has always manifested itself as someone of character. Anne Frank said, “Human greatness does not lie in wealth or power, but in character and goodness.”
Mallory Holtman, the conference home run king, embodies this goodness. Her Central Washington softball team is behind in the second game of a double-header in a quest for the conference championship. As you may guess, there’s a lot at stake. Every decision matters, especially with their opponent at bat. On the second pitch in the top of the second inning of the second game with two runners on, Western Oregon senior Sara Tucholsky hits her first career home run. But there’s a problem. Only a true leader will do what Mallory does next.
Mallory and her Central Washington team went on to lose the game that day. But what they found will carry them — and all of the graybeards who realize just how much they have to learn from young & emerging leaders like Mallory — through a lifetime: leadership is love.
The next time we go looking for leadership, let us remember leadership without love is no leadership at all.
Make Gentle the Life of this World
Jul 27th
Today’s #servantheart quote is, “A servant heart makes gentle the life of this world.” As such, I wanted to share a few thots on the nature of leadership’s gentleness. What follows is the relevant text of a comment I recently left on a Servant Hearts post by Monica Diaz. She, too, spoke of Gentle Leadership. In her gracious words I found myself taken back to a time and place much in need of a strength of character capable of serving others with little or no thought of their own wants and desires, a time and place not unlike our own, a time and place much in need of the advice of the ancient Greeks.
Strength manifests itself in ways counter to our expectation. “Nothing is so strong as gentleness,” Ralph W. Sockman teaches us as he goes on to say, “nothing is so gentle as real strength.” We read of a similar sentiment in Han Suyin’s turn of phrase, “There is nothing stronger in the world than gentleness.” As we look back across time, we begin to discern, first hand, what Leo Rosten meant when he expressed, perhaps with some level of sadness, “I learned that it is the weak who are cruel, and that gentleness is to be expected only from the strong.”
It’s April 4, 1968. Senator Robert F. Kennedy had just began his campaign for the presidency a few weeks prior and was a front-running candidate of the Democratic Party. He is enroute to the Ghetto, one of the poorest areas of Indianapolis, Indiana. While on the plane, Robert received word that Dr Martin Luther King had been shot. Dr King dies before Robert Kennedy arrives in Indianapolis. Word of Dr King’s assassination had not yet been broadcast, and it fell to Robert Kennedy to inform the people of Indianapolis of this terrible news and the tragic loss to this country, indeed, to the world.
Robert Kennedy’s son, Max, who was three years old at the time of his own father’s assassination, later relates a remarkable story leading up to what has perhaps become one of the most poignant American speeches ever delivered. Driving into the Ghetto, Robert Kennedy’s police escort (and the car carrying Robert’s prepared speech) pulled away and refused to enter. Apparently, the Indianapolis chief of police warned Kennedy that the police could not provide adequate protection for the senator if the crowd were to riot, but Kennedy decided to speak to the crowd regardless. Standing on a podium mounted on flatbed truck in the midst of a very poor area of Indianapolis’ inner city, Kennedy spoke from his heart for just under five minutes.
He begins by telling them, “I have some very sad news for all of you, and, I think, sad news for all of our fellow citizens, and people who love peace all over the world; and that is that Martin Luther King was shot and was killed tonight in Memphis, Tennessee.”
Did you feel the empathy in his voice, his love for humanity? Robert’s speech continues to tug on the heart strings of all who understand a leader’s role is not to place oneself upon a pedastal but, rather, lift others within reach of dreams of their own. That night, many felt as though the dream they shared with Dr King had died too. Robert Kennedy, in the short span of five minutes, showed people not only in Indianapolis but the world over, that Dr King’s dream — our dream — remained alive and was still within reach of those who held it dear. He tells them (and us), “Martin Luther King dedicated his life to love and to justice between fellow human beings. He died in the cause of that effort.”
Love. Wisdom. Compassion for one another.
Near the end of his speech, Robert reminds the audience of Dr King’s efforts to “… replace that violence, that stain of bloodshed that has spread across our land, with an effort to understand with compassion and love.” “What we need in the United States,” he tells them regarding this injustice against all people, “is not violence or lawlessness, but love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice towards those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or whether they be black.” Because our spirit of unity is at stake, Robert suggests we find the courage to “dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world.”
Robert Kennedy understood what it means to lead with the heart of a servant. He easily could have justified the cancellation of his appearance. After all, Dr King’s death was sure to instill vengeful hearts certain to rise up in unimaginable anger and riot (more than 180 riots that night across our great land), the police chief admittedly could not protect him, and his prepared speech never arrived. Instead, Robert knew what he had to offer resided in his heart, and he knew American citizens in Indianapolis and elsewhere needed a leader they could trust, a shepherd of sorts, a gentle giant of a man who would help them stand firm on moral ground and reach, once again, for the dream that was within them. History records the impact of Robert’s leadership: Indianapolis was the only major city in America that did not riot that night. Such is the influence of a servant leader.
It seems to me our world desperately needs more servant hearts with the courage to stand against the status quo, realizing a leader’s first love is serving the wants, needs, dreams, and aspirations of others.
It is certain our world could use a lot more gentleness.
Something Larger than Me
Jul 8th
Thank you for dropping by! Thursdays are Servant Hearts day. Gracious leaders around the world guest post to NorthFork’s blog, A Servant’s Heart, sharing their fabulous insights regarding the serving nature of leadership. We’re delighted you’ve joined us. Be prepared for a variety of experience!
Today, we are happy to welcome Thomas Harper from America’s Midwest. Thomas hails from the University of Michigan; he later obtained his law degree from the University of Indiana at Bloomington. Like many of our Servant Hearts friends, I met Thomas on Twitter, and I am grateful we crossed paths. In a few short minutes, I believe you will see why. When he is not busy trouble shooting and solving complex problems, Thomas enjoys sports (esp Tae Kwon Do, racquetball, and running), travel, cooking, reading, and music. Thomas’ bio tells us he “thrives on difference makers;” seems to me Thomas IS a difference maker. His is a heart that knows how to serve. In so doing, love blossoms.
Engaging Creativity, Growth, and Contribution with Servant Leadership
by Thomas Harper (Indianapolis, Indiana)
One person can do great things; however, the greatest accomplishments cannot be achieved by one, alone. Young and emerging leaders must learn to embrace courage while letting go of bravado, and must learn to have faith, trust, and confidence, while releasing ego, to serve and to lead.
When I received Dr. Jack’s invitation to share a post for NorthFork’s Servant Hearts series I was genuinely excited and grateful. I knew it represented an opportunity to engage, create, grow, and contribute. And although the focus of this post is fostering engagement, creativity, growth, and contribution through servant leadership, we should also remember that being grateful is most important to humility, humanity, and servant leadership.
The most effective leadership removes obstacles instead of placing obstacles or causing resistance. At our heart and soul we each want to be engaging, creating, growing, and contributing to something larger than ourselves. The greatest leaders have not “managed” or “controlled”, but have served, their followers, subordinates, colleagues, and peers. “Management” and “control” foster the status quo, and result in continued mediocrity. On the other hand, great leadership achieves excellence through dynamic growth and development toward a shared vision and purpose. The greatest leaders have served and engaged their followers, subordinates, colleagues, and peers in their desire to create, grow, and contribute; and in their passion for purpose. Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Nelson Mandela (even from prison) served and led in this way. In short, such leaders motivate us. We learn from them, and others like them, our world can be a better place if we but treat people like, well, people! [At the end of this post is a great 11-minute Youtube video, viewed almost 2 million times, that helps us better understand "Why."]
Individually, what holds US back from engaging, creating, growing, and contributing is the fear of mistake, the fear of failure, or the feeling that we are inconsequential or unworthy. I recently read a blog reporting a CEO who refused to allow e-mail in his company because it had the side-effect of causing delegation upward (by e-mailing or cc-ing one’s supervisor or manager with problems to be handled by the employee), a direct result of the fear of making mistakes and a failure in properly handling the problems that arise. Likewise, we’ve learned procrastination and perceived “laziness” are mostly products of feelings of unworthiness, fear, and/or anxiety.
But we also know the servant style and serving nature of leadership requires trust, faith, vulnerability, caring, courage, and placing reliance and value on and in others. These are the values and character traits that overcome the obstacles presented by fear, anxiety, and feelings of unworthiness or inadequacy. These are the values and character traits that release us to fully commit to being engaging, creating, growing, and contributing; passionately. These are the values and traits that allow us to fully challenge our outer bounds. When we challenge our limitations, “mistakes” are inevitable; but so are growth, expansion, and creativity. These values also foster contribution, as well as feelings, experiences, and expressions of ourselves as valuable pieces of the overall purpose and vision.
Responsibility then arises from the reliance placed on us. Each piece has responsibility for the whole. And, in turn, this responsibility causes us to own, blamelessly and fearlessly, our choices and the results of our choices; creating empowerment and choice; instead of feelings of victimization, dread, or entitlement. We can only grow by challenging and exceeding our current limits; and, so, mistakes are inevitable, but also acceptable. Every great leader knows there are not great rewards without great risk. Every great leader has made mistakes; mistakes which have not detracted from the message, vision, or purpose. Mistakes have instead led to further growth and strength.
All of us, and our followers, subordinates, colleagues, and peers, are there for a reason. We want to be engaged. Servant leadership doesn’t maintain, “manage,” or “control” our obstacles and limitations; it removes them. Ask yourself, for every challenge you’ve faced, was facing the challenge easiest alone, with people watching for your mistakes, or with people encouraging you to “go for it.” The essence of servant leadership is engaging others to “go for it” and being there for them unconditionally to support their passion to create, grow and contribute. Sharing in and inspiring the values and character traits of trust, faith, vulnerability, caring, courage, and placing reliance and value on and in others creates this unconditional support. We are all both leaders and followers; when we lead effectively, we serve from our heart and soul.
Incidentally, there is an added bonus which results from what I refer to as the Platinum Rule (the corollary to the Golden Rule): ultimately, you will treat yourself the way you treat others. When you foster engagement, creativity, growth, and contribution in others, you foster it in yourself. And when you create trust, faith, vulnerability, caring, courage, and reliance in others; you create and enhance it in yourself as well. When you are a servant leader you have love and care for others, you have love and care for yourself, and you cannot help but serve.
In closing, please permit me to borrow a relevant John Quincy Adams quote posted earlier in this series by Christopher Zaucha as he was helping us better understand a True Leader Serves Their Constituency; indeed, they are difference makers:
A Difference Inspired
May 13th
I first met Chris Zaucha on Twitter. He is, in his own words, a “Golf Addict, Villanova Grad, and Philly Sports Fan.” Our connection was Mike Henry’s Lead Change Group. It did not take long to feel right at home with Chris’ serving nature and his desire to lead from behind and beneath those who follow him. Chris is a rare man of character who understands encouragement, empowerment, and example. I get the sense Chris’ legacy ~ the accumulation of impressive accomplishments so important to many ~ will have very little to do with him directly and everything to do with those who follow his lead, those he has inspired to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more. Such is the desire of a servant heart. Do get to know him; you’ll be glad you did!
A True Leader Serves Their Constituency
by Christopher Zaucha (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
A strange phenomenon has developed over the past decade or two. People with the title of “Leader,” however one may define that, have lost sight of the most important aspect of the position: a leader is simply a servant of their constituency.
A prime example of this is the election of a Governor. Only by the vote of each and every constituent who takes time to elect their leader does the Governor assume his or her position. What is surprising is that many leaders do not understand the relevance in their particular situations. The CEO of a public Fortune 500 company serves many constituents: shareholders, Board of Trustees, the SEC, and customers to name a few. The CEO of a non-profit organization serves his or her donors, professional staff, volunteers, and end users. Even a small business owner serves their customers, employees, and vendors. While a formal election may or may not take place in these instances, one fact remains: You are only a leader for as long as the people you serve deem you worthy to serve.
The common thread among these examples is simply this: all exhibit the servant nature of leadership. Individuals and organizations which truly grasp and understand this concept are typically at the forefront of developing future leaders. Traditionally a strong mentoring and/or development program has been created where executives work with their staff to make sure opinions, ideas, and thoughts are honestly considered. And, most importantly, there is a strong team-oriented culture of trust. Hundreds of other examples could be substituted but the fact remains that developing the talents is truly an exhibition of a servant leader. Felix P. Nater summarized it best when he said, “When I look in the mirror my reflection speaks volumes about what I learned from other’s interests in me.”
The opportunity to make a positive difference and serve a constituency effectively begins with recognizing that it is our responsibility to share wisdom and knowledge with our colleagues and, more importantly, with future leaders. “In America,” according to Oscar Wilde, “the young are always ready to give to those who are older than themselves the full benefits of their inexperience.” We all wish we possessed current day wisdom before we needed it. Unfortunately, some feel that emerging leaders should acquire their knowledge on their own, instead of sharing it with them to help develop them further. It was Walt Disney’s belief that “Our greatest natural resource is the minds of our children.” As a leader, it is our responsibility to mold and develop promising future leaders who will further advance our efforts. You get the best out of others when you give the best of yourself.
In concert with the aforementioned ideas, my own philosophy on the servant-leader centers around leaving the project/people involved in a position where momentum is moving in a positive direction once my participation is complete. Frequently, I share with colleagues that I do not join groups or associations because I wish to be viewed publicly as a success. Rather, my goal is to be viewed as someone who contributed through leaving a positive, lasting impact. My legacy I hope to leave behind is this: to be remembered as a leader who helped others help themselves and, in the process, produced a measurable improvement. The words of John Quincy Adams eloquently articulate my desire to be a difference-maker:
Heart Medicine: Growing a Servant Leader
Apr 29th
Over the last few months, I have come to deeply appreciate Steve Broe’s heart; he always is willing to lend an inspirational hand to help another achieve their goals or bring a dream within reach.
Steve is creative. He also is a Toastmaster, and as you get to know him, you will learn he practiced Japanese martial arts, meditates daily, practices the clarinet, and enjoys public speaking, not to mention (though I shall) his role as an executive coach and mentor. Steve also opened and operated a K-6 charter school and is now an instructor for the University of Phoenix, where he earned his doctorate in leadership. Above all, Steve is a wonderful friend who finds the time to bring smiles to the hearts of many. I particularly love his postcards and his colored inks!
Heart Medicine: Growing a Servant Leader
By Dr Steve Broe (Scottsdale, Arizona)
Leadership is an improvisational art; leaders are made, not born; leadership connects the heart with action. Not everyone agrees on what leadership is; however, I share with the members of this soulful community a conviction that great leadership is a selfless giving in support of a noble purpose.
How does one grow a servant leader? Some people do not seem to be ready to be servant leaders, yet Dr. Jack has shown me several cases of young people talking and acting with the moral certitude of a great leader. I think that life’s experiences help shape leadership wisdom, yet some people seem to reach this stage at a young age. Age shapes character, yet brilliant character is found in young people.
I offer heart medicine for good people who wish to grow as servant leaders. I’m a ridiculous imposter; I’m not a servant leader but my heart pulls me in this direction. For anyone who cares to listen and perhaps grow with me, try swallowing this medicine. The heart medicine for growing servant leaders comes in four doses.
LISTEN. Leaders work with other people, and servant leaders must have a deep understanding of the people around them. Listen to the pain and hopes of the people in your sphere. Let the message settle in your soul. Without listening and appreciation, others will not follow you. Without the understanding of an engaged listener, you will not be a servant leader.
QUESTION: DOES THIS SITUATION DEMAND CHANGE? Consider the message from those around you. Do you see a moral urgency? Leaders are the only human force to create lasting change. Is anyone speaking up for change? Perhaps no one else understands the situation. Do your colleagues need a leader?
QUESTION: ARE YOU WILLING TO TAKE THE CONSEQUENCES? Being a leader can be dangerous work. Leaders influence the direction of change; powerful forces can leave the leader without a life raft. If you are a leader, if you feel the pull from the heart, then the consequences may not be important to you. Be aware, and move anyway. Leaders take informed risks. The world offers few certainties. Doing what’s right may hurt you.
EXAMINE YOUR HEART. Leaders draw energy from inner sources. The heart and mind both offer lessons in life. The domain of the heart contains the message of conscience. Servant leaders feel the pulse of what is right. The heart demands allegiance to a moral purpose. If your mind is uncertain, the heart may help you find dedication to a cause.
Begin by listening to the people in your world. You may not have to seek out a cause; if you are ready for service, a great purpose will call to you. Ask questions, and consult your heart. The servant leader’s heart offers a light that conquers confusion and selfish interests. If you dedicate your service to a high purpose, the journey will enrich you. The essential truth you choose to represent plants the seeds of noble greatness in your character.
Eyes on the prize
Jul 14th
Great leaders possess high ethical standards; they assume responsibility and set the example for followers who do the right things (Hesselbein, et al, 1996, p.xii; Phillips, 1999, p.24). There is “nothing to be afraid of if you believe and know that the cause for which you stand is right” (Phillips, 1999, p.300). In general, leaders must understand human nature if they are to better understand themselves. And, as agents of change, leaders must understand human nature if they are to move the multitudes down the straight and narrow path—a path toward a new destination. In brief, “we are coming to believe that leaders are those people who “walk ahead,” people who are genuinely committed to deep change in themselves and in their organizations. They lead through developing new skills, capabilities, and understandings” (Senge, 1996, p.45). Such leaders are those individuals who inspire confidence, undermine hopelessness, confront fear, cease the day, promote positive and productive actions, light the candles, establish goals, and paint brighter tomorrows. They “have a dream.” A contemporary advertisement for such a “dreamer” might read:
Wanted: Corporate executive to lead Fortune 500 company into the twenty-first century. Must be visionary, authentic, courageous, and a global citizen. Workaholics need not apply (Bolt, 1996, p.161).
Although twenty-first century leaders are expected to be visionary, they must also be courageous. People expect their leaders to stand for something and to have the courage of their convictions. Dr. King exuded moral fortitude; he was a leader who marched, both literally and figuratively, headlong into history as the man who led America’s “third revolution” (Phillips, 1999, p.23). Addressing an audience in April 1959, Dr. King’s leadership is evident: “As I stand here and look out upon the thousands of Negro faces, and the thousands of white faces, intermingled like the waters of a river, I see only one face—the face of the future” (Phillips, 1999, p.275). A major part of Dr. King’s leadership style was to keep hope alive among the masses. “We must accept finite disappointment, but we must never lose infinite hope” (Phillips,1999, p.278). “The American people are infected with racism—that is the peril. They are also infected with democratic ideals—that is the hope” (Phillips, 1999, p.281). “All the darkness in the world cannot obscure the light of a single candle” (Phillips, 1999, p.280). Such are the words of a transformational leader.
In the final analysis, the courage to lead means standing up for what you believe in, acting when you know you’re going to be attacked for doing so, and continually trying to do the right thing. “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us” (Oliver Wendell Holmes). “Character,” Helen Keller once wrote, “cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved” (Phillips, 1999, p.306). Bolman and Deal (1995) suggest that “the signs point toward spirit and soul as the essence of leadership” (p.39). “Leaders with soul bring spirit to organizations … Leaders of spirit find their soul’s treasure store and offer its gifts to others” (Bolman & Deal, 1995, p.10). The essence of leadership is “offering oneself and one’s spirit. … Gifts [that affirm the fundamental moral precepts of compassion and judgment such as] authorship, love and caring, power, and significance only work when they are freely given and freely received … transforming a place of work to a way of life” (Bolman & Deal, 1995, p.102). Dr. King led with soul and he practiced what he preached. Dr. King was always about the business of his people. “I question and soul-search constantly into myself to be as certain as I can that I am fulfilling the true meaning of my work, that I am maintaining my sense of purpose, that I am holding fast to my ideals, and that I am guiding my people in the right direction” (Phillips, 1999, p.77). His principles of leadership are appropriate for all times, for all leaders in any situation with any organization. “Will we continue to march to the drumbeat of conformity,” Dr. King asked, “or will we, listening to the beat of a more distant drum, move to its echoing sounds?”
The choice is ours. Lao Tzu reminds us that “the leader teaches by example” (Heider, 1988, p.3). Our example is vividly illustrated in the life and times of one of the world’s greatest transformational leaders, Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. His example is expressed in the principles he embodied. Principles are “deep, fundamental truths, classic truths, generic common denominators. They are tightly interwoven threads running with exactness, consistency, beauty, and strength through the fabric of life” (Covey, 1989, p.122). Dr. King also taught us the significance of a vision if we are to lead effectively. Good leaders will have their own dream. Great leaders will share Dr. King’s dream—a dream deeply rooted in the American dream … a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”
The United States, after all, was founded on self-evident truths. Almost all of our greatest achievements have resulted from battles waged and won over moral issues and involving our understanding of right and wrong. Moral courage is a hallmark of great leaders. Abraham Lincoln was unwilling to accept “a house divided against itself,” a nation half-slave and half-free. Lincoln dreamt of “a place and a time where America will once again be seen as the last, best hope of earth.” As President, during a civil war that wrenched the soul of the country, Lincoln’s commitment to preserve the Union ensured the continuation of the uniquely American ideal of a truly “United States.” Similarly, Martin Luther King, Jr. led America’s revolution of the twentieth century on a campaign for justice, the redemption of a “promissory note” signed by the architects of our Republic who promised that all would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
If there is but one piece of advice he might give today, Dr. King would tell us the great leader constantly keeps his “eyes on the prize.”
[references on file]
Leadership tenets
Jul 11th
Not all are called to be leaders. I do not pretend to know whether leaders are born. What I might believe does not matter. In all likelihood, leaders are born but, as Peter Drucker so eloquently puts it, “there surely are far too few to depend on them” (Hesselbein, Goldsmith, & Beckhard, 1996, p.xi). Put another way, “when leadership is viewed as a nonlearnable set of character traits or as an equivalent to an exalted position, a self-fulfilling prophecy is created that dooms societies to having only a few good leaders” (Kouzes and Posner, 1996, p. 109). Warren Bennis, in his book, Leaders, puts it this way, “nurture is far more important than nature in determining who becomes a successful leader” (Bennis and Nanus, 1985, p. 223). Another view asserts, “leaders grow; they are not made” (Handy, 1996, p.5). One thing is absolute: leaders are special. Truly great leaders
tend to exhibit certain personal traits that are more a part of their character, more innate. They include high ethical standards in which a person consistently attempts to ‘do the right thing;’ an unusually strong bias for action fueled by a high rate of personal energy and an almost uncontrollable desire to achieve; a propensity for lifelong learning, curiosity, and continual improvement. Many leaders also possess an unwavering self-confidence that frequently translates into courage in the face of adversity, the willingness to take risks, and a sense of destiny—a personal belief that they are meant for something special, perhaps even greatness” (Phillips, 1999, pp.24-25).
Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was such a leader. While still a youngster, he told his mom, “Mother, there is no such thing as one people being better than another. The Lord made all of us equal, and I’m gonna see to that” (Phillips, 1999, p.29). As an adult, Dr. King asked Americans to realize,
there comes a time when people get tired. We are here this evening to say to those who have mistreated us so long that we are tired—tired of being segregated and humiliated; tired of being kicked about by the brutal feet of oppression. We have no alternative but to protest. If we protest courageously, and yet with dignity and Christian love, when the history books are written in the future, somebody will have to say, ‘There lived a race of people … who had the moral courage to stand up for their rights. And thereby they injected a new meaning into the veins of history and civilization’ (Phillips, 1999, p.39).
The famous biographer and historian, Douglas Southall Freeman, spent virtually his entire life studying the essence of great leaders. He was driven by a perplexing question, “What sets great leaders apart?” Freeman concluded that the power of their leadership came from their common adherence to three basic tenets: professional competence (i.e., know your stuff), service before self (i.e., take care—and lead—your people), and superior character. The greatest of these is character; it is the foundation of humanity. If leaders cannot be trusted by the people they represent, their credibility will be lost and no one will then follow. Many people have a basic understanding of leadership—they know it when they see it—but just what, exactly, is great leadership?
In his landmark book entitled, Leadership, James MacGregor Burns came closest to a pure definition of leadership when he wrote (Burns, 1978, p.19),
Leadership is leaders inducing followers to act for certain goals that represent the values and the motivations—the wants and needs, the aspirations and expectations—of both leaders and followers. And the genius of leadership lies in the manner in which leaders see and act on their own and their followers’ values and motivations.
Leadership, after all, is not a destination; it is a journey. Leaders “listen to others with genuine empathy; they seek first to understand, then to be understood” (Covey, 1990, p.123). How else can they understand and act for the wants and needs, the aspirations and expectations of the people they represent? Burns identifies two modes of leadership—transactional and transformational leadership. The relations of most leaders and followers are transactional—a first-order social exchange that is manifest in relatively incremental improvements to productivity and performance. This narrow reactionary focus, in transactional leadership terms, is akin to “a thermometer, reflecting the environment” (Nice, 1997). There is a better alternative.
Poplin (1992) calls on bosses “to be the servants of collective vision” as well as “editors, cheerleaders, problem solvers, and resource finders.” Such are the transformational leaders. It takes little effort to recognize the transformational leaders of history. Mohandas K. Gandhi, for example, had the ability to translate an idea into reality and sustain it. His goal was “not to defeat the British in India, but to redeem them through love, so as to avoid a legacy of bitterness” (Phillips, 1999, p.57). Throughout his campaigns of nonviolent resistance, he created a new method of dealing with oppression that he termed “Satyagraha.” Satya means truth which equals love and graha is force. Satyagraha thus means “truth-force” or “love-force;” it is also translated to mean “holding onto truth” (Garrow, 1986, p. 43; King, 1963, p.150; Phillips, 1999, p.57). As a result, his followers considered the importance of absolute values, the need to reconcile power with service, and the necessity to make decisions and take actions that are bounded by moral principles. Jesus is another example. The Hartwick Institute reminds us, “Evidence from the Bible suggests that Jesus, perhaps more than any other individual, has shaped the discussion of the virtues which a leader ought to possess and the techniques which leaders ought to use to motivate those whom they lead.” In fact, Jesus’ views of divinely inspired leadership are articulated in his teachings and exemplified in his actions—He practices the very leadership He preaches. And there’s no doubting Mother Teresa was a transformational leader. Though she rarely spoke in public and never built a huge corporation, she became a symbol of selflessness while inspiring millions to serve the poor. A less prominent fictional example of a transformational leader is evident in the movie, Dead Poets Society, where a newly appointed teacher, as a Hartwick Classic Film Leadership case attests,
inspires a love of poetry and intellectual freedom among his young students at a strict New England prep school. In the process, he encounters the profound resistance of his teaching colleagues and administrators. His students are given the opportunity to grasp how difficult it is to bring about change in entrenched cultures and, additionally, are encouraged to focus on alternative ways in which that change might be implemented.
In essence, change is what leadership is all about.
[references on file]
The Character of Leadership
Jul 11th
[One founding father’s candid assessment on the character of leadership displayed by General Washington. Thomas Jefferson penned this letter to Dr Walter Jones from Monticello January 2, 1814.]
“ … I think I knew General Washington intimately and thoroughly; and were I called on to delineate his character, it should be in terms like these.
His mind was great and powerful, without being of the very first order; his penetration strong, though not so acute as that of a Newton, Bacon, or Locke; and as far as he saw, no judgment was ever sounder. It was slow in operation, being little aided by invention or imagination, but sure in conclusion. Hence the common remark of his officers, of the advantage he derived from councils of war, where hearing all suggestions, he selected whatever was best; and certainly no General ever planned his battles more judiciously. But if deranged during the course of the action, if any member of his plan was dislocated by sudden circumstances, he was slow in re-adjustment. The consequence was, that he often failed in the field, and rarely against an enemy in station, as at Boston and York. He was incapable of fear, meeting personal dangers with the calmest unconcern. Perhaps the strongest feature in his character was prudence, never acting until every circumstance, every consideration, was maturely weighed; refraining if he saw a doubt, but, when once decided, going through with his purpose, whatever obstacles opposed. His integrity was most pure, his justice the most inflexible I have ever known, no motives of interest or consanguinity, of friendship or hatred, being able to bias his decision. He was, indeed, in every sense of the words, a wise, a good, and a great man. His temper was naturally high toned; but reflection and resolution had obtained a firm and habitual ascendency over it. If ever, however, it broke its bonds, he was most tremendous in his wrath. In his expenses he was honorable, but exact; liberal in contributions to whatever promised utility; but frowning and unyielding on all visionary projects and all unworthy calls on his charity. His heart was not warm in its affections; but he exactly calculated every man’s value, and gave him a solid esteem proportioned to it. His person, you know, was fine, his stature exactly what one would wish, his deportment easy, erect and noble; the best horseman of his age, and the most graceful figure that could be seen on horseback. Although in the circle of his friends, where he might be unreserved with safety, he took a free share in conversation, his colloquial talents were not above mediocrity, possessing neither copiousness of ideas, nor fluency of words. In public, when called on for a sudden opinion, he was unready, short and embarrassed. Yet he wrote readily, rather diffusely, in an easy and correct style. This he had acquired by conversation with the world, for his education was merely reading, writing and common arithmetic, to which he added surveying at a later day. His time was employed in action chiefly, reading little, and that only in agriculture and English history. His correspondence became necessarily extensive, and, with journalizing his agricultural proceedings, occupied most of his leisure hours within doors. On the whole, his character was, in its mass, perfect, in nothing bad, in few points indifferent; and it may truly be said, that never did nature and fortune combine more perfectly to make a man great, and to place him in the same constellation with whatever worthies have merited from man an everlasting remembrance. For his was the singular destiny and merit, of leading the armies of his country successfully through an arduous war, for the establishment of its independence; of conducting its councils through the birth of a government, new in its forms and principles, until it had settled down into a quiet and orderly train; and of scrupulously obeying the laws through the whole of his career, civil and military, of which the history of the world furnishes no other example. … ”
