What do you Think Makes a Great Leader?
My mind moved past Heaven and Hell and reverted to what I was there to do. I was thinking about self-serving leaders and thought about some of the bosses I had over the years. Some were great while others were all about themselves. I remember one boss when I was a camp counselor. Her name was Sarah and she was a phenomenal leader. She would get dirty and help with anything that needed to get done. She led by example and when she asked for help, we all jumped at the opportunity to help her. She was great. I remember one guy named Fred who was my boss when I worked at a restaurant in college to help make ends meet. He barked orders around like a drill sergeant. He spent most of his time trying to find who the guilty party was when anything went wrong rather than trying to help us become better as a group and to have the best service. It was no surprise that I only stayed there a couple of months. The place shut down several months later. It was a toxic environment.
I looked at the Lord and felt confident I had a question that he could talk about for hours. “Lord, you talked about some of your key followers and leaders, what do you think makes a great leader?”
The Lord looked at me and his face transformed into the face of Sarah from my camp days. “Thank you for thinking so well about me Sam.” Then the Lord’s face turned into Fred’s face. That was not a sight I really wanted to see. The Lord sensed my uneasiness and quickly returned his face to his normal appearance.
“Sorry about that Sam, I was thinking about your prior bosses and agree that Sarah was a model leader. Fred on the other hand, well he had anger issues and even though he has passed in your world, I am still trying to work with him. In fact, I sent him back to earth as a kindergarten teacher so he could try to correct his ways and learn how to handle complaining kids. It has taken him a while, but he is learning.”
The Lord took out a box of chocolates and offered me one. I thought he might have high end Godiva chocolates, but they were Hershey or some other similar brand. The Lord’s face turned into the actor Tom Hanks, and he said, “Life is like a box of chocolates…you never know what you are going to get.”
He burst out laughing.
“Sam, A lot of people and leaders are like these chocolates. You hope for the good one, but sometimes you get some that are not as good. Similarly, you might have a leader who is interested in leading others for her own glory, or she might look out for the betterment of others. You never know.”
How could the Lord not know, I thought to myself.
“Sam, I know, but that is only because I know what is in someone’s heart. The key is that many others do not know the dark motivation behind many leaders and that is why there are so many bad leaders.”
“So, Lord, what do you look for in a leader?” I stopped myself and then restated my question. “What should we look for? Who will be a good leader?”
“If I was a human. I would like to look for a shepherd.”
This was the second time the Lord mentioned shepherd. I thought to myself that a shepherd might be an outdated example. Shepherds weren’t too common in today’s world.
‘Sam, it does not have to be someone who looks after just sheep. A shepherd is someone who cares for each one of his or her charges.”
I was still thinking about the movie portrayals of Moses with his staff in the desert. I was wondering what skill Moses really had. Was it patience, solitude, or some other skill? I didn’t know.
“Believe it or not Sam, the answer is humility. Let me throw in a Bible phrase that helps highlight how important humility is. The phrase reads as follows:
For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, mighty, and awe-inspiring God, who shows no favoritism and accepts no bribe. He upholds the cause of the orphan and widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing.
That is a quote from Deuteronomy 10:17-18. I wasn’t trying to be pompous or self-aggrandizing Sam. I was trying to show even someone who is as powerful as myself is a nobody if they cannot sympathize with the plights of the weakest in society. Similarly, a leader who is all about the top executives, the wealthy investors, or only those in the C-Suites, is a nobody. They are not a leader, but a follower of their own ego. A true leader looks out for the smallest people in the organization, and they in turn look out for the leader. They look out for the leader not because of the power they wield or the purse strings they control, but because they want to reciprocate the attention and caring given by the leader.”
Up on the screen popped up the image of one of those circus strongmen. He was lifting one of the bar bells with large round weights on the ends. Underneath was the caption- “All fluff and no substance.”
“I have real power- I created something and continue to create and re-create. That is true power. Executing what has already been done is not leadership nor does it represent power. That is management. There is no creativity there-just following a charge. The leader is the one who can deviate from the charge and relate to the people. Think of it like the people in the DMV office who just follow the rules regardless of the situation and then think of those who give a little to help someone in need. The DMV person has power. I know, I have waited in lines there forever. However, at one location in California I had a person who took interest in me and helped me through renewing my license. He did not “lord” over me and his position, he came to my level, and I was really impressed. That is being concerned about the lowliest, the helpless, the one who needs protection. That is what a ‘shepherd’ does.”
The Lord had that devilish look in his eyes. That seemed so ironic. How could the Lord have such a look when he was so holy?
“It’s not just managers that need to be holy, Sam, everyone, regardless of their status, prestige, or position in society, needs to be holy because I am holy. You and everyone else are reflections of me and if I am holy, then you need to be holy. It’s easier said than done. For some reason, a lot of people, including managers, feel that doing evil is their path to success or fun. I have given people free choice and people are free to act that way. It is not what I want and not in the natural order for a great society. That is why businesses are so messed up. Too many people do not want to act holy, and their future generations will suffer because of this narrow-mindedness. That is why the best leaders have that spark of holiness. I wish more business leader had that spark.”
I thought I saw a teardrop form and start dripping from the Lord’s eyes. All that working out and no sweat, but he can shed a tear when he thought about what had happened to his prized creation.
“Real men can cry Sam…and so can I. If you spent so much time and effort on something and saw it fall apart, you would cry as well. I also cried when old Yeller passed away in the movie.”
The Lord continued after a brief pause. He took a drink of water and offered me some more water as well. I motioned that I was fine, and he cleared his throat and continued.
“When leadership and management have no legitimacy to help those in their charge, they often claim they are “empowering subordinates.” That is often a farce. The subordinates already have the power and the manager’s/leader’s destiny is in their hands. Managers are trying to convince them to use this power to benefit the manager. True empowerment is when the manager does not need to give the employees anything but allows the employees to do their job in their own best interest, and then managers will be the beneficiaries. Results are driven by commitment not authority.”
Up on the screen popped up the Energizer battery bunny from the television advertisements.
The Lord pointed to the screen and continued. “I like to think about motivating as the bunny in the battery commercials. A manager can charge someone’s battery and then when they wear down the manager will need to re-charge the battery repeatedly. In contrast, if the employee has constant energy and enthusiasm the manager’s job is that much easier. The manager does not need to motivate, she just needs to help focus the employee’s energy and enthusiasm. Thus, a leader should be humble, holy, and focused on giving employees the freedom to achieve. After being given the tools, opportunity, and responsibility, if the employee fails, then it is the employee’s responsibility. I think my good friend Frederick Herzberg said it best:
“True motivation comes from achievement, personal development, job satisfaction, and recognition.””
The Lord continued, “It is very difficult for an organization to succeed with weak leadership. A strong leader shows no inconsistency between theories and practice. They walk their talk all the time. The best leaders walk the talk not just in public, but in private as well. All those within and outside the organization will attempt to prove whether the leader’s actions are consistent. Consistency is much more important in the social media age. There are so many people interested in catching someone doing something wrong that the battlefield of life is strewn with leaders from all walks of life who have stumbled and were inconsistent and their downfall was plastered all over the Internet. Instant access, instant feedback, shaming…I do not like it. I liked it when you had to write a letter. It required thought and you could not remove a tweet when you mailed an envelope.”
Up on a screen appeared someone who looked old. I mean the clothing looked old. He looked like he was struggling with a smart phone. “Who is that, Lord?”
“That is how William Shakespeare would look if he was forced to Tweet. So sad.”
I knew it was stupid question the second it left my lips, but it came out anyway. “Do you have a social media presence?”
The Lord just gave me one of those looks. Those disapproving looks that I received when I was a kid and my mom caught me taking a cookie from the jar on the counter.
“While I am all for technology, I feel social media is a hindrance to true communication. Person to person communication is critical. The best leaders listen…I mean really listen. They are like judges. They must treat everyone as equals and innocent and really listen to the facts before deciding. That is why I prefer human-to-human communication. Speaking about communication you got me off track again Sam.”
The Lord waved a finger at me and smiled.
“Let’s return to leadership. Some leaders try to be as democratic as possible, thinking that will empower all the employees. However, consensus is a poor substitute for true leadership. I remember when the all the people of Sedom and Gemorah agreed to attack strangers. That was the consensus. That was also evil incarnate. Only one person stood up to the mob, and that was Lot. He showed true leadership. How many Lots are out there today? There are some, but you often must look hard. Think of it like going against the tide. It is easy to agree with others rather than face criticism. A true leader though would face the music each time to do the right thing or say the right thing. It is not a popularity contest, but a righteousness exercise. As Margaret Thatcher said, “Consensus is the negation of leadership.”
I understood leadership was often a popularity contest. The ones who usually were voted king of the prom were normally the most popular, but often less likely to become a true leader in the future. I read those studies that taller people are perceived as more effective leaders. That led to my next question. “Lord, those who are beautiful or handsome have an unfair advantage, right?
“Sam, that is not the truth. A great leader can captivate with their voice and intellect. The best oratory leaders can help make a person see with their ears. Moses was not the tallest, most handsome, and would not win any beauty contests. He had a lisp, but he acted the part of a leader better than anyone else could. He chastised the people when they did the wrong thing. He celebrated with them when they did the right thing. His tent was on the edge of the camp- not in the middle. Yet it was the center for the people. True leaders don’t need to be the center of attention. A true leader tries to avoid attention but becomes the focal point for the entire organization due to their words, thoughts, and actions. That is what a leader should do.”
On the screen appeared a tent on the edge of a large gathering. The tent was simple and nondescript, but it had a line of people winding to the front door. The sides were raised so everyone could see inside. The Lord moved to the screen and pointed out the open flaps on the side. “Sam, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses all had tents with sides that could open so others could see inside…. they were the first to practice open book management. They were very transparent.”
The Lord came back to me and once again sat in his chair.
I thought about what is the “right thing.” It can be tough to figure out what is right and what is wrong. What was right 200 years ago would be considered very wrong now. I remembered reading a book on General George Custer and why he failed. He was a successful Civil War General, and the troops idolized him. The troops were volunteers from Michigan, so they knew one another and had a great working relationship. Custer galvanized these volunteers into professional soldiers and that is why he was able to become a war hero. In contrast, his troops during the Indian Wars were comprised of many immigrants and they sometimes did not speak English. They had not joined the army in a sense of pride or loyalty, but to escape economic hardship. Some of the soldiers were also past criminals or soldiers from the Civil War who possibly had Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and had a hard time adjusting back into society. They did not have a common goals or cause. Custer would blame others for any problems the 7th Calvary faced, rather than looking at what he had or had not done. What had worked for him during the Civil War did not work anymore. Instead of changing his actions to adjust to the situation, he became focused on punishing those he felt impeded his success without realizing he was the problem.
“What do you call that Sam?”
This time I was ready. I was starting to put it together.
“Context!”
I knew the answer was correct and that is why I did not need any reassurance from the Lord that I was on the right track.
The Lord stood up, gave me a high five, and continued.
“While some things change, the universal rights and wrongs really haven’t. Be good to the weak. Judge people how you would like to be judged. Don’t steal. Those are all the same, but people have changed how they interpret things. For example, don’t steal could be twisted to mean don’t physically take something, but it is much broader than that. One should not steal intellectual property, people’s time, or harm someone’s reputation. As leadership consultant Warren Bennis said, “Managers are people who do things right and leaders are people who do the right things.”
I love it when the Lord quoted people. He made everything so why did he need to quote measly human? Then it dawned on me. The Lord could say whatever he wanted. He is the ultimate leader. However, he gave credit to others. It also showed that he listened to what people were saying. The Lord was not just talking about what we should do, he was walking the walk. I was impressed before the interview and now he’d really blown me away.
“If you liked that one, how about this Sam. “The task of the leader is to get people from where they are to where they have not been.” Do you know who said that?”
I had no clue.
“It was former United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. I love that guy. A real straight shooter.”
I thought the Lord might show me another picture of him golfing with Kissinger, but there was no photo. The Lord was not sharing a 200 deck PowerPoint presentation. You do not always need all that pomp and circumstances when the content speaks for itself.
“Sam, what is true leadership? True leadership is being a flame. A flame can light many other candles without diminishing its power and influence. A great leader is not as concerned about their own career, but rather the careers of those she works with. I think that is the major difference between power and influence. A great leader has influence not power Sam. When you have power, it is hard to divide that and share it with others. Influence can be shared with many people without being diminished. That is similar to how a flame can help spread the light without diminishing itself.”
A roaring fire engulfed the entire room. I knew it was just on the screen but wondered if this is what happened with Moses and the Burning Bush.
“No, that was a real bush that wasn’t consumed. The flame analogy is so important. A leader can share their influence with many people and help lead them to the Promised Land. That is why the Israelites were not just led by Moses. Moses had shared his powers, influence, and judgement with many leaders. Moses, like many leaders, had a dream and he pursued those dreams together with those he led, not having them follow kicking and screaming. It took him 40 years, but when the Israelites finally made it out of the desert, they were dreamers…and believed in the dream…one and all. That is a real leader. One who dreams and then pursues those dreams with those they lead. If they are a great leader than even when they are gone, the flame continues in those they had led, and they will keep fighting for the end goal.”
I loved the flame analogy. It is something we can all understand. If there is one light, it provides some illumination. But if that light is used to light twenty other flames now there will be more lights. The first light was not diminished at all. It improved through creating other lights. That is what a leader does. He or she is that initial flame. The more flames that can be created the more light will shine on the entire organization. I knew my readers would eat that up.
