What makes people want to follow a leader? Why do people reluctantly comply with one leader while passionately following another to the ends of the earth? What separates leadership theorists from successful leaders who lead effectively in the real world? The answer lies in the character qualities of the individual person.
The Law of Process says that leadership develops daily, not in a day. Understanding leadership and actually doing it are two different activities.
Leaders are effective because of who they are on the inside – in the qualities that make them up as a person. Everything rises and falls on leadership. And leadership truly develops from the inside out. If you can become the leader you ought to be on the inside, you will be able to become the leader you want to be on the outside. People will want to follow you. And when that happens, you’ll be able to tackle any situation.
How a leader deals with the circumstances of life tells you many things about his character. Crisis doesn’t necessarily make character, but it certainly does reveal it. Adversity is a crossroads that make a person choose one of two paths: character or compromise. Every time he chooses character, he becomes stronger, even if that choice brings negative consequences.
What must every person know about character?
1. Character is More than Talk
Anyone can say that he has integrity, but action is the real indicator of character. Your character determines who you are. Who you are determines what you see. What you see determines what you do. That’s why you can never separate a leader’s character from his actions. If a leader’s actions and intentions are continually working against each other, then look to his character to find out why.
2. Talent is a Gift, but Character is a Choice
We have no control over a lot of things in life. But we do choose our character. In fact, we create it every time we make choices – to cop out or dig out of a hard situation, to bend the truth or stand under the weight of it, to take the easy money or pay the price. As you live your life and make choices today, you are continuing to create your character.
3. Character brings Lasting Success with People
True leadership always involves other people. As the leadership proverb says, “If you think you’re leading and no one is following you, then you’re only taking a walk. Followers do not trust leaders whose character they know to be flawed, and they will not continue following them.
4. Leaders Cannot rise above the Limitations of their Character
Have you ever seen highly talented people suddenly fall apart when they achieved a certain level of success? The key to that phenomenon is character. People who achieve great heights but lack the bedrock character to sustain them through the stress are headed for disaster.
To improve your character, try the following:
- Search for the cracks
- Look for patterns
- Face the music
- Rebuild
Spend some time looking at the major areas of your life – work, marriage, family, service, etc. and identify anywhere you might have cut corners, compromised, or let people down. Write down every instance you can recall from the past two months.
Examine the responses that you just wrote down. Is there a particular area where you have a weakness, or do you have a type of problem that keeps surfacing? Detectable patterns will help you diagnose character issues.
The beginning of character repair comes when you face your flaws, apologize, and deal with the consequences of your actions.
Now that you’ve identified any areas of weakness, create a plan that will prevent you from making the same mistakes again.
Daily Take-Away
“Never ‘for the sake of peace and quiet’ denies your own experience or convictions.”
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise.
