Character Based Leadership

What is character-based leadership?  Quite obviously, it is a leadership style based on character. Duh, you may respond and rightly so.

Digging a bit deeper, what is character?  Some of the words that Webster’s New World Dictionary uses to describe character include “a distinctive trait”, “behavior typical of a person or group”, “moral strength”, “reputation”.

So, I suppose that the leadership style can be based on traits that are positive or negative, that are moral or immoral, and traits that can contribute to or define one’s reputation.  Given these considerations, I guess that most leaders would want to have a good reputation, don’t you think?  We can agree that many leaders who are in the news today including business, government and all other sectors, are “newsworthy” because a flaw has been discovered in the character of their leadership.  We read the story, sit back and say something like, “Well, there goes another one.” For some, it is not just a flaw in the character of their leadership; it is a flaw in their character.

I often wonder what our world would be like if more of our leaders would embrace, practice and really attempt to live out the principles of character based leadership – of having a positive influence on others, on having a focus on the success of others more than self success, on earning and keeping a good reputation.

There is a group that has taken on a challenge to engage other leaders in not only defining character based leadership but doing something intentional and almost revolutionary about advancing it.  The group is called Lead Change Group and is headed up by a friend of mine named Mike Henry.  He and some of his colleagues (and I am privileged to be one of them) have put together plans to gather people to talk about this and do something actionable and intentional about it.  The following comes from the Lead Change Group website providing more of the details. This is unique from the very start, as evidenced by its name – LeaderPalooza 2010.

We’re throwing an un-conference.  That’s right. We want to leverage each others’ ideas and energy in a get-together this February 19-20 in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.  We won’t have formal speakers and you won’t get a binder.  You will meet great leadership people and create opportunities to be part of something different.  You won’t just sit and listen; you will contribute.  Everyone (who will be attending) is capable of speaking on leadership anyway.  Come and share ideas and create ways to collaborate with other like-minded leadership friends. Will you join us?

The conference registration site is www.LeaderPalooza.com. The location will be at a Hilton Hotel very close to the Ft. Lauderdale Airport. (The room rates are very low, especially considering the time of year and location.) We want to get together, share energy and ideas and make a positive difference through character-based leadership. We believe together we will collaborate and create in a way that we can’t even imagine until we’ve done it. This is a chance for you to act on your beliefs about leadership.

Our world needs your ideas and energy applied toward advancing character-based leadership. Your contribution matters. But more than your individual effort, we need you to be part of a community committed to the same idea, supporting, energizing, equipping and mobilizing each other.  Our world needs us to pull together. Will you? You can get more information and register at www.LeaderPalooza.com.

Are you planning to go?

Let your Yes be Yes and your No be No

This verse is from James 5:12.  A related verse comes from Matthew 5:37 from Jesus Himself. As Christian leaders, this means that we are to be different in our communication.  When we make a commitment, we are to ensure that we are doing all we can to carry out that commitment and live up to it.  Intentions and plans are useless in commitments unless we actually achieve what we promised. How many times as Christians do we respond to a request saying that we will “think and pray about it” when we really have no intention to consider the request, much less pray about it. 

Some of us do this to avoid hurting the other person’s feelings, or to avoid actually making a commitment to do something we really don’t want to do. Vendors and service providers hear this often from Christian clients.  James commands us to be fully honest in our responses.  If we have no interest, just say so.  If we do have interest, but need more information, or have to seek the approval of someone else, just say so.

The Pharisees said one thing and did another, and Jesus was quick to point out that they were hypocrites. Jesus knew His every move was being watched by the religious crowd. They wanted to catch Him not practicing what He was preaching so they could then spread negative commentary and damage His reputation. He knew His actions needed to match His words.  We must also follow this approach.

What examples do you have of practicing this command?