- Passion
- Unity
- Humility
- Thankfulness
- Servant Leadership
Servant leadership embraces the servant as leader. Rather than flowing from a hierarchical leadership style, servant leadership espouses service, community, and shared decision making.
Robert Greenleaf described servant leadership in depth in 1970 in a pamphlet, The Servant as Leader.
Here are a few excerpts:
"Leadership was bestowed upon a man who was by nature a servant. It was
something given, or assumed, that could be taken away. His servant nature was the real
man, not bestowed, not assumed, and not to be taken away. He was servant first."
"One does not awaken each morning with the compulsion to reinvent the wheel. But if one is servant, either leader or follower, one is always searching, listening, expecting that a better wheel for these times is in the making. It may emerge any day. Anyone of us may find it out from personal experience."
"A new moral principle is emerging which holds that the only authority deserving one’s allegiance is that which is freely and knowingly granted by the led to the leader in response to, and in proportion to, the clearly evident servant stature of the leader."
Greenfield notes key attributes of the servant leader:
- Awareness
- Community
- Conceptualization
- Empathy
- Foresight
- Growth mindset
- Healing
- Listening
- Persuasion
- Stewardship
Much of Greenleaf's writing and teaching have found their way into other literature, including Brett Ledbetter's What Drives Winning.
Ledbetter opines that character drives our process which informs results.
More recent studies have validated the relationship between the servant leadership "style" and personal outcomes (healthier, wiser, more autonomous, more likely to serve).
Much like in medicine (paternalism versus mutual participation models), leadership using servant leadership promotes more effective communication and organizational growth. As we teach and interact with young people, both substance and style matter.We build trust and loyalty or we destroy them.
