Choices

I doubt if anyone reading this blog (with perhaps the exception of a few political junkies) is sorry the recent national election cycle is over. Well, if I owned a television or radio network I might be lamenting the absence of all that commercial advertising revenue! Regardless of which side you supported it’s obvious that the tone of this campaign was more nasty than many in recent memory. So how do leaders respond after a slug fest that resulted in a nation divided by ideology, with nearly half of the voters choosing to “stay the course” and the other half wishing for immediate change?

The leadership I have observed in politics and business over the past numbers of years all have one thing in common - they fail to inspire. Don’t misunderstand, I’m not suggesting that our leaders are not well-educated or experienced. Many of them work hard and seem to care about the people they lead. But an inspiring leader does more than that.

Author Lance Secretan outlines the secret to inspirational leadership in his book, “ONE: The Art and Practice of Conscious Leadership.” He shares these five ingredients: courage, authenticity, service, truthfulness, love, and effectiveness. If you pause to think of leaders you know who inspire, they all possess these characteristics.

Where was authenticity, truthfulness, and love demonstrated during the recent political campaigns? It seemed both sides spent most of their resources on slinging mud, character assassination, and lying about each other. Every word seemed calculated, every appearance orchestrated, every gesture prescribed. What was missing? How about real, authentic behavior.

Voters left without a clear vision of inspirational leadership choose to blindly follow a cult of personality or to protect a given ideology. The result is a hollow victory where being right only means our side won and nothing more. To change an organization or rally a nation to greatness takes more than this “win at all costs” mentality.

The elections are behind us but the most pressing problems of our nation and the world remain in the hands of politicians and business leaders who seem content with the status quo. Who will have the courage to make principled decisions? Which of these leaders will model authenticity in the midst of difficult conversations? Who will adopt a servant attitude toward those they disagree with and those they serve? When will these leaders practice truth-telling and behave in loving ways? At what point will we notice these leaders being effective in the jobs we have asked them to perform?

The voters have decided, but now it is the elected leaders who face the biggest choices. I pray they will choose wisely.