The most valuable component of leadership is not power, position, influence, notoriety,

fame, talent, gifting, dynamic oratory, persuasiveness, intellectual superiority, academic achievement, or management skills. It is character. Character is the cradle of credibility for the leader. Without the element of strong, noble, honorable character, leadership and all its potential achievements are in danger of cancellation. Every leader is only as safe and secure as his character.

I offer this book as a resource on this often-neglected aspect of leadership, which is personal but also extremely practical. Having a foundation of ethics is central to the success and longevity of one’s leadership.

Many leadership training seminars and academic programs focus on vision, skills, management, organization, teamwork, and many other helpful subjects. Yet few of these courses address the topic of the leader’s character. The subject is either downplayed or never covered at all. This oversight is tragic. Not only has it permitted the encroachment of an unhealthy atmosphere of negative attitudes and practices among leaders, but it has also led to destructive consequences for individuals, societies, and nations.

Character is the most powerful force a leader can cultivate because it protects leadership. It will enable you to be a success, personally and professionally, as you carry out your purpose, vision, and goals in life.

The Power of Character in Leadership is for…

• Leaders who are currently pursuing a vocational calling and desire

  to be the very best they can be. You will learn how to establish yourself solidly as a leader and reach your goals as you cultivate enduring influence.

• Those who are emerging leaders or who aspire to lead. You will discover how ethics and values free you to carry out your singular purpose in life.
• Leaders who have failed—perhaps in a major way—due to a character flaw of some kind. You are probably asking yourself, “How did I get to this place? What do I do now? Do I still have a future as a leader?” You will see how to rebuild the foundation of your life. Ethically, you may be on shaky ground right now, but you can begin the process of developing a renewed mind-set and a solid code of ethics that will lead to sound moral character. If you’ve fallen, this book explains how to “fall up” by making changes that will transform you from the inside out.

• Anyone who is concerned about the lack of moral force in leadership today. Having leaders of character on the local, national, and global levels is the key to solving a myriad of problems in our world. This book reveals a process for rebuilding our leaders so they can tackle the issues of our day.
• People who don’t yet understand that they are leaders. If you believe that leadership is for only a select few, you have accepted a false idea about leaders. Every person on earth is a leader in a particular area of gifting—and character development provides the foundation for discovering how you were born to lead.

  In relation to the last point, the focus of my leadership training has always been the transformation of followers into leaders, and leaders into agents of change. There are millions of people who have tremendous potential for leadership, but no one has ever encouraged them to express it and develop it. In fact, many people are being told that they are “nothing.” Eventually, they believe it, so they do not fulfill their purpose in life.

  If that has been your perspective, this book will help you to understand what it means to be a genuine leader and how to develop your leadership potential.

  Regardless of your background, I invite you to discover the remarkable power of character in leadership—and how values, morals, ethics, and principles affect both the development and the outcome of your personal leadership success.

Introduction

Contemporary Leadership and the Crisis of Character

“Whatever failures I have known, whatever errors I have committed, whatever follies I have witnessed in public and private life have been the consequences of action without thought.”
—Bernard Baruch, businessman and advisor to U.S. presidents

In the dynamic drama of contemporary leadership playing on the world stage today, there

are many “characters” who lack character. Moreover, the trail of history is littered with many would-be great men and women who harnessed the reins of power in various fields—political, social, economic, corporate, athletic, spiritual, and more. They wielded great influence and/or control over the lives of others; many felt the weight of material wealth and fame—only to have it all disintegrate and blow away like dust in the wind because of their tragic deficiencies of character.

A lack of strong leadership has made a mess of our world. Every country on earth is challenged by an absence of resolute leadership as it struggles under precarious times. Politically, economically, and socially, our nations are experiencing turmoil and moral decay—characterized by crime, religious conflicts, economic uncertainty, the unequal distribution of resources, political corruption, civil unrest, the disintegration of the family, cybercrime, poverty, disease, famine, sexual abuse, greed, racial clashes, ethnic “cleansing,” global terrorism, and war.

Our twenty-first century world seems to be an experiment in global self-destruction. We need strong leaders who have the courage to grapple with perplexing issues and seemingly overwhelming problems, as well as the ability to discover and implement workable solutions. More than anything else, what we require today are competent, effective, visionary leaders in all walks of life.

The Missing Element: “Moral Force”

The leaders who have emerged today seem to believe that the primary qualities needed to address our troubled, demanding times are the following: great vision; academic and intellectual superiority; dynamic oratory and other communications skills that have the power to persuade; management expertise; and the ability to control others. However, time and again, history has shown that the most important quality a true leader should and must possess is the moral force of a noble and stable character.

There are about two hundred countries in the world today, and each one has leaders on the national, regional, and local level. Many nations also have aspiring leaders who run for public office each year. In addition, corporations and businesses, religious institutions,

nonprofit organizations and community groups, and other enterprises in society all have leaders. Many people, in a variety of fields—economics, government, law, business, education, medicine, science, entertainment, sports, and so forth—are leaders or are training to be leaders.

We have all these skilled people in positions of power, with an ample supply of potential leaders. Yet the leaders who are trying to keep their nations, companies, organizations, and families from sinking are either lacking, or deficient in, that vital element of character.

Across the globe, we have seen leaders fall apart, ethically and morally. Many leaders start strong (or appear to), only to end up “crashing and burning.” A number of leaders have operated under a reputation of integrity that was only a façade. While they appeared competent and well-adjusted on the outside, they lacked real substance within. They were missing the element of moral force, and their ethical poverty eventually became evident. The public didn’t know who these leaders really were—until the leaders became enmeshed in scandal due to their reckless conduct, often finding themselves facing legal consequences for unlawful financial practices, theft, extortion, cheating, perjury…and the like.

The public didn’t know who their leaders really were—until the leaders became enmeshed in scandal.

Meanwhile, other people in positions of power have been hindered by incompetence because they have never learned solid leadership principles and how to implement them. Others are capable, but they still aren’t helping to address the needs of their society because they would rather destroy a corporate competitor or nullify a political opponent than work together with other leaders to address serious problems and find solutions.

Leadership Is Central in Our World

The contemporary crisis of character in leadership is alarming because, to a great extent, leaders determine the direction, security, and prosperity of cultures, societies, and nations. The following concepts demonstrate the central role of leadership in human society.

• Nothing happens without leadership. Leaders establish governments, start businesses, make scientific discoveries and advances, disseminate religious and philosophical ideas, and otherwise foster human culture.
• Nothing succeeds without leadership. Leaders develop ideas, carry out endeavors, and keep projects going.
• Nothing is altered or transformed without leadership. Unless an individual or a group of people begin to think differently or act differently, circumstances usually remain the same—or become worse.