What is the Foundation of Leadership? Day 10: 100 Days of Leadership

One cannot proceed through the 100 days of leadership without mentioning military leaders like Colin Powell and General George Washington. Interestingly, in The Art of Command, Washington is spoken of as a leader of integrity. He was a leader who was spoken highly of from military personnel to recruits to political leaders. Thomas Jefferson said of Washington, that 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….His character was, in its mass, perfect.’  

Have good character, because good character is the foundation of good leadership. Albert Schweitzer (Nobel Peace Prize-winner) says, 'Example is leadership'. That is to say, leaders lead by example, through their character, their actions and their integrity. Who they are, is what makes them a leader or rather who they are will determine whether they are a great leader or a poor leader. In essence, leadership is more about being than it is about doing. Good character is the foundation of leadership.

This reminds me of that phrase that people will follow who you are, not necessarily what you say. It goes without saying, that your words are meaningless if they do not match your actions. That is a difficult one, because numerous times we say something, like, ‘We all need to communicate better with one another’ and then you forget to follow through with an important piece of communication. The challenge is as followers of Jesus, that we have alignment between our words and our actions. This is part of our own journey of maturity, and over time it is about making the right choices to ensure that we have integrity in all that we say and do.

What does the Bible say?

1 Timothy 3:2-3 - Now the overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, ³ not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.

What will I do now?

Pray this prayer: Holy Father, empower me for ministry to be authentic in every act, holy in every intention, pure in every relationship, genuine in every word, and devoted in every expression of worship. Amen.