Leadership

Raising a boy changes everything.
Who knew?
I had a hint when, as a preschooler, our son decided he should demand tolls, stopping the neighbors as they drove by in their cars. He thought he was the sheriff.
Squelching that entrepreneurial urge took several intense discussions, not to mention panic attacks accompanied by throbbing heartbeats as I searched frantically for him all over the house only to realize with blind desperation that he was literally playing in the street. Again.
I’m sorry, but our girls never did anything nearly that dangerous!
Now that our son is taller than I am, it might be a good time to talk about leadership, right? Quickly, before he grows up and tries crazy ideas outside our little one-street neighborhood.
So, what kind of leadership inspires trust?
“I’ll take the blame now because it will be credit later,” my husband said years ago when we were faced with a particularly tough decision.
Here are some of the ideas about leadership that we’re exploring as a family these days.
-Do it first. Waiting for others to initiate is not leadership.
-Do it anyway. Looking over your shoulder to see if anyone is following, is not leadership. Waiting to see how others will respond is not leadership.
-Keep on doing it. Real leaders step out first. They step out alone. Then, if no one is willing to follow, leadership stands alone. Being willing to do what is right, alone, for a long time if necessary, that’s leadership.
-Communicate. Leadership requires the mental and emotional discipline to find the best way to communicate your vision. Communication often takes creativity and endurance.
-Listen and be reasonable. People will have objections and fears. They just will. Especially if you are doing something that requires a different perspective. Telling people their perspective is wrong is not leadership. Listening to and respecting other people’s perspective is not only informative, it is essential.
-Cultivate a heart’s desire to serve others. In order to do the right thing, it is necessary first and foremost to be selfless in wanting what is best for others.
I always tell my kids if you find yourself in the minority, make sure you are on the right side of the moral equation.
Why? Because, people seek out justice and they resist injustice. Because other people will respond to an appeal to their conscious. But only if your perspective has integrity.
Integrity requires unselfishness.
In the moment of temptation, when we are all tempted to compromise our core values and go with the popular trend, a true leader will trust his own moral compass without regard to the personal consequences.
And there are always consequences.
Kind of like a grown up version of letting the neighbors pass the house without paying a toll. Yeah, it’s just the right thing to do.
Cathy Primer Krafve, aka Checklist Charlie, lives and writes with a Texas twang. Comments are invited at http:/checklistcharlie.blogspot.com or cathykrafve@gmail.com.