leadingtoday.org

Leadership Tip of the Month

October 2005

Copyright 2005 ã weLEAD, Inc.

The Present Sad State of Leadership

Recently, U.S News & World Report Magazine dedicated virtually its entire October 31^st, 2005 issue to the topic of leadership with the cover proclaiming “America’s Best Leaders”. This excellent issue chronicles 25 modern leaders who are making a difference in the world today. Some individuals are well known including Colin Powell, Bill and Melinda Gates, and Steve Jobs. Others are unknown by most people including Paul Farmer, Jim Young Kim, and Geoffrey Canada. This is an issue of U.S News & World Report Magazine that is certainly worth reading.

However, the news regarding modern leadership in America is not encouraging. It is reported in a recent survey within this issue of the magazine! The results of this national survey on the state of U.S. leadership was commissioned by U.S News and Harvard University’s Center for Public Leadership. In a nutshell, Americans are highly critical of the state of leadership. It is published on page 80 of the magazine and is easy to overlook, but what it tells us is sobering. Here are some highlights…

A representative sample of 1,374 adults were asked their views on a range of leadership questions.

When the question was posed, “In your view, do each of the following phrases describe or not describe most leaders in this country today?” (Respondents could answer more than one question).

“Are out of touch with the average person” - 73% of survey respondents agreed.

“Have been corrupted by being in power” - 64% of survey respondents agreed.

“Are mostly out to enrich themselves monetarily” - 62% of survey respondents agreed.

“Have high ethical standards” – 39% of survey respondents agreed.

“Are the best we can do” – 28% of survey respondents agreed.

“Are the best and the brightest” – 27% of survey respondents agreed.

Another question asked was “Compared to 20 years ago, do you think we have better leaders today or worse leaders today?”

“Better” - 29% of survey respondents agreed.

“Worse” – 55% of survey respondents agreed.

Another question asked was “Unless we get better leaders, the United States will decline as a nation.”

“Strongly agree” – 34% of survey respondents agreed.

“Agree” – 38% of survey respondents agreed. A total of 72% agreed the US will decline without better leaders!

The survey methodology and full results are available at www.usnews.com/leaders

Additional survey results revealed that military and medical leaders had the highest confidence of the public while the Executive Branch, Congress and the press had the lowest confidence level. Older Americans are most critical of the nations leaders and 64% of Americans believe that the country would be better off if there were more women in leadership positions!

weLEAD was founded almost 5 years ago to help fill the need to develop a new generation of leaders. Our mission statement boldly proclaims, we are “committed to the ideal that great leaders are forged by knowledge, opportunity, experience and self-sacrifice. We also affirm that leadership qualities are potentially available to everyone, and we seek to promote positive leadership development in organizations, communities and individuals.”

Here is our “leadership tip of the month” for October, 2005. Be determined to “stand in the gap” and make a difference in the world! Our present society has a major deficit of caring and effective leaders. What is truly needed is a rebirth of ethical leaders who want to leave a legacy of positive change. This will not be achieved as a mass movement, but with one individual at a time. You can make a difference at your place of work, your community, your family, or your place of worship. It all begins with a desire to serve others combined with clear goals and a motivating vision of what you want to achieve. So get involved and engaged within your own personal sphere of influence. Teach, mentor and model servant leadership to everyone you meet.

Respected leadership consultant Warren Bennis has written about a national dilemma that exists today. He has pondered how in the 1770’s a nation of fewer than 3 million people could produce a half-dozen political giants, while in a nation of nearly 300 million today, we are struggling to find just one. It is the fervent mission of weLEAD Incorporated to help develop the leadership needed to make constructive change possible in our world. We plan on doing this one person at a time. We encourage you to keep reading and growing through the efforts of this organization. The world needs you, and is counting on you!

For weLEAD, this is Greg Thomas reminding you that Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Each man is a hero and an oracle to somebody”.