Here is a fantastic article written by Curtis D. Lebaron (an associate professor of organizational leadership and strategy at the Marriott School of Management at BYU) where he highlights how leadership is evident in the small personal interactions between individuals. He provides examples from the work place, his life, religious leaders such as Joseph Smith, and Jesus Christ.
http://magazine.byu.edu/?act=view&a=2589
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Ethical Leadership
I've always been fascinated with leadership. As a result I've constantly asked myself what leadership really means. Over many years my ideas of leadership has been shaped by the idea that leadership is an external quality. What I mean by this is that leaders are responsible for leading others to achieve a certain objective or goal. While in high school I was one of the captains of our basket ball team, and it was my responsibility to lead my team to victory. Over the years I have also led many groups at work and in school to achieve specific objectives. Furthermore, I have also led a volunteer organization (which consisted of 125 volunteers coming from over 10 countries) by coming up with a strategic initiative, implementing that strategy, and guiding the organization to success by achieving its core objectives. Hence, it is no surprise that I have always felt that leadership is one's ability to lead other people. I'm quite certain that the general world view about leadership is not too distant from this definition. In fact Stephen R. Covey, one of the great leadership thinkers of our day, has gone so far as to say that over the last several decades most of the research and writings on leadership has been focused on this quality that people have to lead others. I have no qualms about this definition of leadership; however I believe that this is a very narrow lens through which one should look at leadership. Over the last couple of years, I have begun to see that leadership is also a private thing.
Have you ever looked through binoculars? If you, like me, have played around with one maybe you've tried to just look through just one of the lenses (while closing the other eye). Looking at leadership as just an external quality is pretty much like looking through just one of the lenses in a set of binoculars. The picture is kind of blurry, it is kind of uncomfortable, and you obviously cannot see the whole picture. Yet, when it comes to leadership, we are so used to looking through just the one lens that we have become so used to just seeing the partial picture. In a sense this is the paradigm that has shaped our ideas of leadership over the last few decades. Opening the other eye, allows us to see the whole picture, see it more clearly, and most importantly allows us to make better decisions while becoming better at the same time. Opening the other eye makes us look inward, and allows us to focus on our own character. Hence in the leadership binoculars while one lens focuses outward to the environment surrounding you the other is firmly focused inward to the soul to help you understand your position in relation to that environment.
Each lens is pivotal to the development of the ethical leader. The outward focused lens, like an umbilical cord, provides us information and knowledge that helps us learn truth and develop as human beings. This lens also provides us the context by which we live our lives. Many times, we are unable to choose the environment in which we live. For example, we do not choose whether we are born to live in the US or Sri Lanka. We do not choose whether we will be born to a wealthy family or to a family that lives in the slums of India. We do not choose whether we will live in a time of war, or live through great calamities (think great depression, or the more recent Asian tsunami). While the context in which we live our lives is given us, how we live our lives within that context is primarily in our control. As Victor Frankl explains in his landmark book; Man's Search for Meaning, "everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way." You see, while we are unable to choose the picture that greets our eyes through the outward focused lens, we are able to choose how we will act in response to that image. This is where the inward focused lens comes into play.
The inward focused lens helps us look into ourselves and see ourselves for who we are. This may be tough for so many who have blinders of pride on. Pride prevents us from seeing our weaknesses, and shortcomings, thus preventing us to consciously overcome those weaknesses. The sad thing is that pride is a transparent set of clothes we wear to hide our own insecurities. Furthermore, pride generally exacerbates the weaknesses we have rather than even hiding or masking our weaknesses effectively. Thus when looking through the inward focused lens we need to be able to put away pride, and look at ourselves objectively. Here I wish to ask a question. When we look through the inward focused lens what is it that we see? What are my strengths and weaknesses? What character qualities do I display through my daily actions? Am I courageous enough to stand for what is right and act within the context I am living or do I find cowardice where I am content to do nothing or join the ranks of those in the wrong? More importantly, do I know what is right and wrong; do I know what I believe in, and what principles I am choosing to live my life by? Here, it is important to note that while we may be unhappy at the image that greets us through the inward focused lens, we are definitely capable of changing that image. Here, I wish to defer to Aristotle and his seminal work; Ta Ethica, where Aristotle discusses what makes a virtuous character. An important point that Aristotle wishes to explain is that character requires effort to maintain, and unlike habit (which interestingly is ethos with a short e in the Greek) requires one to make a conscious choice. We must be willing to expend the effort required to become the best person we can be and understand that the most important work that we will be engaging in is shaping and molding of our own characters. Leadership truly begins with and within me!
It is here that I wish to jump into defining what ethical leadership means. The word ēthos in the Greek translates to character, and therefore ethical leadership translates quite simply to character based leadership. Ethical leadership embodies several elements. Understanding these elements and allowing these elements to guide our actions leads us in the direction of becoming ethical leaders. Here is an introduction to a few of these elements that I have become acquainted with.
The first of these elements (inspired by Socrates) is the constant search for truth. Knowledge and wisdom (what I like to describe as truth) expands our capacity as human beings and thus permits us to act beyond our pre-truth ability and more importantly act in better ways than we were capable of previously. I truly believe in the inspired words of Winston Churchill; “The empires of the future are the empires of the mind.” Imagine the eternal truthfulness of these words. People may live and die, so do empires rise and fall. Beautiful cities and monuments may lose their luster and decline towards decadence but truths stand the test of time, and are undimmed by their use. Socrates himself equated the gaining of knowledge to gaining virtue, which virtue enables man to live in happiness.
The second element (inspired by Aristotle) directly follows the first element. It is that ethical leadership requires us to realize our full potential as individuals. Aristotle exclaims that not realizing this potential is what causes human unhappiness and frustration. In the New Testament Paul explains something that most Christians fail to comprehend. Romans chapter 8:16-17 reads (King James Translation); “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ…” I will be the first to say that I am not a God and I have many weaknesses in my current state. Yet as a Christian I wholeheartedly believe in what Paul says; that I am a child of God, and because I am a child of the Divine, I have the seed of divinity within me. What this means, is that I am not a meaningless gathering of atoms hurtling around space on this satellite called earth. There is meaning and purpose to my life, and I am endowed with this amazing capacity and potential to do great things while overcoming the weaknesses that are part of me. Furthermore, as a child of the Creator of all things, I too have in some small way the ability to create. Now, I do not believe that I am unique in having these qualities, but rather that all human beings are endowed with these same gifts when they are born. However, while circumstance (think children born with down syndrome, or those who suffer from mental paralysis) may prevent the few from using that ability like the rest of us, what we (the rest of us) do with these gifts is totally within our power, and ours to choose.
The third element (inspired by Epictetus, the famous stoic philosopher) is also related to the other two. It is that self-mastery leads to peace and contentment, while having no control over one self leads to a form of slavery. In a particular capacity that I held a couple years back I was able to help people who were addicted to drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and various other things. Every single person I worked with were slaves to whatever they were addicted to, and were miserable because they were unable to find a way to be free from it. In short, they had lost all ability to control their own behavior, and were completely controlled by external substances. In providing this example I have described more serious addictions, yet many of us are addicted to many things such as anger, food, work, money, video games, or movies that we may not even realize at this time. Understanding ourselves and gaining control over our actions helps us break free from the shackles that weigh us down and enjoy a greater sense of freedom. Having freedom (and thus having peace and contentment) not only requires us to stop doing destructive things, it also requires us to cultivate and do good things. There are many times that I am envious of someone who can play a musical instrument, or do something that I am unable to perform at this time. At the same time I look back at all the opportunities that I had to learn an instrument (I took piano lessons when I was young), or learn a skill (kayaking, diving) that I wished I possessed at this time. Either because I was lazy, or just did not make it a priority I am now left to envy others who can do these things. What I am getting at is that I am not free to go diving, or play the piano (without being attacked by all in earshot) because I did not put forth the effort to master these skills. On the other hand, if I had just spent the time mastering these skills I would now be free to do these things.
Hence, ethical leadership requires us to be dedicated to the principles mentioned above. Our dedication to these principles leading to a recognizable change in our characters will help us be the best individuals that we can be. These character changes will then help us live with much more contentment, peace, and purpose while effecting change around us. I sincerely hope the entries made in this blog will inspire you to become an ethical leader.
Have you ever looked through binoculars? If you, like me, have played around with one maybe you've tried to just look through just one of the lenses (while closing the other eye). Looking at leadership as just an external quality is pretty much like looking through just one of the lenses in a set of binoculars. The picture is kind of blurry, it is kind of uncomfortable, and you obviously cannot see the whole picture. Yet, when it comes to leadership, we are so used to looking through just the one lens that we have become so used to just seeing the partial picture. In a sense this is the paradigm that has shaped our ideas of leadership over the last few decades. Opening the other eye, allows us to see the whole picture, see it more clearly, and most importantly allows us to make better decisions while becoming better at the same time. Opening the other eye makes us look inward, and allows us to focus on our own character. Hence in the leadership binoculars while one lens focuses outward to the environment surrounding you the other is firmly focused inward to the soul to help you understand your position in relation to that environment.
Each lens is pivotal to the development of the ethical leader. The outward focused lens, like an umbilical cord, provides us information and knowledge that helps us learn truth and develop as human beings. This lens also provides us the context by which we live our lives. Many times, we are unable to choose the environment in which we live. For example, we do not choose whether we are born to live in the US or Sri Lanka. We do not choose whether we will be born to a wealthy family or to a family that lives in the slums of India. We do not choose whether we will live in a time of war, or live through great calamities (think great depression, or the more recent Asian tsunami). While the context in which we live our lives is given us, how we live our lives within that context is primarily in our control. As Victor Frankl explains in his landmark book; Man's Search for Meaning, "everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way." You see, while we are unable to choose the picture that greets our eyes through the outward focused lens, we are able to choose how we will act in response to that image. This is where the inward focused lens comes into play.
The inward focused lens helps us look into ourselves and see ourselves for who we are. This may be tough for so many who have blinders of pride on. Pride prevents us from seeing our weaknesses, and shortcomings, thus preventing us to consciously overcome those weaknesses. The sad thing is that pride is a transparent set of clothes we wear to hide our own insecurities. Furthermore, pride generally exacerbates the weaknesses we have rather than even hiding or masking our weaknesses effectively. Thus when looking through the inward focused lens we need to be able to put away pride, and look at ourselves objectively. Here I wish to ask a question. When we look through the inward focused lens what is it that we see? What are my strengths and weaknesses? What character qualities do I display through my daily actions? Am I courageous enough to stand for what is right and act within the context I am living or do I find cowardice where I am content to do nothing or join the ranks of those in the wrong? More importantly, do I know what is right and wrong; do I know what I believe in, and what principles I am choosing to live my life by? Here, it is important to note that while we may be unhappy at the image that greets us through the inward focused lens, we are definitely capable of changing that image. Here, I wish to defer to Aristotle and his seminal work; Ta Ethica, where Aristotle discusses what makes a virtuous character. An important point that Aristotle wishes to explain is that character requires effort to maintain, and unlike habit (which interestingly is ethos with a short e in the Greek) requires one to make a conscious choice. We must be willing to expend the effort required to become the best person we can be and understand that the most important work that we will be engaging in is shaping and molding of our own characters. Leadership truly begins with and within me!
It is here that I wish to jump into defining what ethical leadership means. The word ēthos in the Greek translates to character, and therefore ethical leadership translates quite simply to character based leadership. Ethical leadership embodies several elements. Understanding these elements and allowing these elements to guide our actions leads us in the direction of becoming ethical leaders. Here is an introduction to a few of these elements that I have become acquainted with.
The first of these elements (inspired by Socrates) is the constant search for truth. Knowledge and wisdom (what I like to describe as truth) expands our capacity as human beings and thus permits us to act beyond our pre-truth ability and more importantly act in better ways than we were capable of previously. I truly believe in the inspired words of Winston Churchill; “The empires of the future are the empires of the mind.” Imagine the eternal truthfulness of these words. People may live and die, so do empires rise and fall. Beautiful cities and monuments may lose their luster and decline towards decadence but truths stand the test of time, and are undimmed by their use. Socrates himself equated the gaining of knowledge to gaining virtue, which virtue enables man to live in happiness.
The second element (inspired by Aristotle) directly follows the first element. It is that ethical leadership requires us to realize our full potential as individuals. Aristotle exclaims that not realizing this potential is what causes human unhappiness and frustration. In the New Testament Paul explains something that most Christians fail to comprehend. Romans chapter 8:16-17 reads (King James Translation); “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ…” I will be the first to say that I am not a God and I have many weaknesses in my current state. Yet as a Christian I wholeheartedly believe in what Paul says; that I am a child of God, and because I am a child of the Divine, I have the seed of divinity within me. What this means, is that I am not a meaningless gathering of atoms hurtling around space on this satellite called earth. There is meaning and purpose to my life, and I am endowed with this amazing capacity and potential to do great things while overcoming the weaknesses that are part of me. Furthermore, as a child of the Creator of all things, I too have in some small way the ability to create. Now, I do not believe that I am unique in having these qualities, but rather that all human beings are endowed with these same gifts when they are born. However, while circumstance (think children born with down syndrome, or those who suffer from mental paralysis) may prevent the few from using that ability like the rest of us, what we (the rest of us) do with these gifts is totally within our power, and ours to choose.
The third element (inspired by Epictetus, the famous stoic philosopher) is also related to the other two. It is that self-mastery leads to peace and contentment, while having no control over one self leads to a form of slavery. In a particular capacity that I held a couple years back I was able to help people who were addicted to drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and various other things. Every single person I worked with were slaves to whatever they were addicted to, and were miserable because they were unable to find a way to be free from it. In short, they had lost all ability to control their own behavior, and were completely controlled by external substances. In providing this example I have described more serious addictions, yet many of us are addicted to many things such as anger, food, work, money, video games, or movies that we may not even realize at this time. Understanding ourselves and gaining control over our actions helps us break free from the shackles that weigh us down and enjoy a greater sense of freedom. Having freedom (and thus having peace and contentment) not only requires us to stop doing destructive things, it also requires us to cultivate and do good things. There are many times that I am envious of someone who can play a musical instrument, or do something that I am unable to perform at this time. At the same time I look back at all the opportunities that I had to learn an instrument (I took piano lessons when I was young), or learn a skill (kayaking, diving) that I wished I possessed at this time. Either because I was lazy, or just did not make it a priority I am now left to envy others who can do these things. What I am getting at is that I am not free to go diving, or play the piano (without being attacked by all in earshot) because I did not put forth the effort to master these skills. On the other hand, if I had just spent the time mastering these skills I would now be free to do these things.
Hence, ethical leadership requires us to be dedicated to the principles mentioned above. Our dedication to these principles leading to a recognizable change in our characters will help us be the best individuals that we can be. These character changes will then help us live with much more contentment, peace, and purpose while effecting change around us. I sincerely hope the entries made in this blog will inspire you to become an ethical leader.
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