The leaders our culture pays attention to are often the people we would never really want leading us.
Today is the day we can start a counterculture revolution. Anyone who has ever read my books or blogs or sat in one of my sessions would be surprised that I am a countercultural revolutionary. Even though I don’t have crazy hair, hats with pithy sayings, or flags with righteous symbols, I am going to ask you to join me in this countercultural revolution.
Our culture celebrates the loud, brash, spotlight grabbing individuals. We listen to, cheer for, and vote for people who demand attention, won’t admit their faults, and yet vilify the faults of others. The people we pay attention to are often people that we would never want to lead us because they choose not to reign in their pride and they make it all about themselves. To be honest, most of us would admit that we don’t like working for or even being around people like that. But when we look around us, more and more people are following the example of those culturally aligned and relevant leaders.
Think about the leader we wish we had. There are counterculture leaders out there. We need to understand what they look like so we can emulate them. The counterculture leaders exercise a few key traits:
Listening: A leader who is more interested in asking about others than sharing their own opinions.
Accountability: A leader who can take criticism without arguing.
Growth: A leader who is always trying to get better and become wiser.
Team: A leader who puts the needs of the whole group before their own desires.
Service: A leader who will get “dirty” and do the hard things because it is what others are doing as well.
Others: A leader who says “I am here for you,” as opposed to asking “Are you with me?”
This leader is one that inspires the best in all of us. Imagine if we had that type of leader. Imagine if everywhere we went, those were the leaders we saw on TV, celebrated in Facebook groups, or praised in our homes. Imagine the impact on our society if somebody set that type of example.
Well why should we wait for someone else to do it? Why can’t we be that leader to the people around us? If a few of us decided now to ignore what society celebrates and instead do something countercultural, imagine how our culture could change. Come join in the counterculture movement towards a society full of humble leaders. Let’s pay attention to how Leaders of Character exercise Humility and act like few others in our culture act.
In a culture driven by pride, then to be truly countercultural, we need to exercise Humility. That will truly make us different and maybe make the world we live in different as well.
Dig Deep Questions:
Who are some humble leaders that inspire you?
How could a movement of humble leaders change our society?
Making a shift towards taking responsibility and living with Humility is a lifelong journey. We want to partner with you as you practice the habit of Humility daily, which is why we have created our Habits of Character Action Guides.
The Humility Action Guide offers you a month of daily, interactive training complete with a daily reading, dig deep questions, weekly processing guides and instructions on how to use the guide both individually and with your team. The Humility Action Guide is available here.
We are behind you, championing for you, your teams and your organizations as you become the leader you wish you had. We want to come alongside you as you grow to confidently answer “yes” to the question, “Would you follow you?”
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