History gives us a mixture of very good leaders and pathetic self-centred leaders. It is my intention today to reflect on good leadership and particularly on leadership that is free of egoism and selfishness.
In his book: The Road to Leadership: Finding a Life of Purpose, American Businessman and Philanthropist, Kenneth E. Behring (1928-2019), quotes Jack Welch, who says: Before you are a leader, success is all about yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.
Those words of wisdom are quoted by Behring who started off as a small businessman as a young man and then gradually became a very wealthy man. He says that in most of his business life he was mostly concerned with making money and becoming wealthy. But as he got older and then one day almost accidentally got involved in assisting a person who needed a wheelchair, he was amazed at how much he had touched that man. It was like an inspiration from heaven for him to realise that his success could mean success for others in need and knew for the first time that being there for those in need is a fundamental purpose of his life.
That experience transformed him from a man who was mostly concerned about himself to a man who found his real purpose in life: Working for the success and good of others, specifically those in need. Reading his book on this revelation to him is almost like reading the holy scriptures. Indeed, his book is a testament of one who has translated the scriptures into action.
In today’s world, we see all kinds of leaders: Great ones and selfish ones and all kinds of leaders in between. It is the great leaders who have shaped history positively and it is the egoistic and selfish leaders who have led their countries into untold suffering and ruin. These leaders can be community leaders, private sector leaders, political leaders and even religious leaders.
We need today, perhaps more than ever before, leaders that are selfless and working for the success of those they lead. What we need least are leaders that want to hang on to power as if power and money are everything. We need leaders like Nelson Mandela who fought tirelessly for the independence of his people and when he became President of South Africa, he was satisfied with serving for only one term. He realised that selfish clinging to power is detrimental to his country and to his soul. Indeed, the best leaders are those who work tirelessly for the good of others, not for themselves.
