A Dabbling in Leadership

In a recent meeting about the admissions process of one of the top graduate schools in the country three key elements were listed as the qualifiers for applicants. The first was obvious: analytical skills, or in other words smarts The second was surprising and refreshing: a desire to not just make money but to make a difference. The third was at once standard and intimidating: leadership. It is that third trait of successful grad school applicants that I'd like you to think about for a moment.

Being in the Marriott Business School and attending endless amounts of lectures, networking events, talks about interviewing and resumes, etc., etc., I am constantly reminded of the need to be a good leader. And to their credit they do a good job of providing opportunities. Just about everyone in the school is the Board Director, Committee Leader, or Vice President of something. Add that to mission experience and maybe even being a district or zone leader or assistant to the President and you ought to be just fine right?

Frankly that had been my thoughts until recently. Through an experience that I will relate at another time, I was reminded that that is not the case. There are plenty of leadership positions but actually being a leader is entirely different. It requires a whole different skill set than simply administrating.

One of those skills or attributes that came to mind was from D&C 121: the attribute of persuasion. "No power or influence can or ought to be maintained" simply because of our position. No matter if you have the right answer and the right authority you cannot force people into any path, it will simply complicate things. We are to persuade by "pure knowledge...without hypocrisy and without guile." None of the joys that those who lust after leadership positions really exist. In real leadership there is not extra power in forcing people to do as you see fit. There is simply a greater responsibility to persuade, to see things from all sides and present your case "with kindness" and real understanding of what would be best and then to work through that with your associates that you are working with.

This is true leadership as taught directly from Heaven and is something that was beneficial for me and that I believe we could all benefit from reviewing  as we lead in our respective spheres. And if we do we will likely be better prepared for challenges that come our way, be it grad school, church positions, or simply leading a school project.