Dare Great Things

In his book “The Prince”, Machiavelli makes the claim that it is better for a leader to be feared rather than loved.  He makes the claim that the efficiency of maintaining power is better for those who instill fear in their followers rather than those who live the good life.  What is a Christian to do in front of such a claim?  How did Christ live this out?  This is what we want to talk about today.

Leaders find themselves at the crux between the practical and the ideal.  Between what is expedient and what is best.  How does our faith help us navigate staying in power and using our influence while following the teachings of God and practicing virtue?  One way not to do it is to follow the teaching of Machiavelli.  In this first of series of talks on anti-leaders we begin by studying Machiavelli and “The Prince.”

For many leadership is an act whereby we influence people to do what we need them to do.  This is a very true idea, however, Catholic leadership goes much deeper.  For Christians, we try to lead other not only to do what we need them to do but to be whom God has made them to be.  This lasting legacy needs more than skill of command and organization, it needs the ability to inspire in a way that leaves a legacy. 

St. Thomas Aquinas is a genius of thought and in this course for Catholic leaders I present a summary course on the four aspects of all human action essential for leadership.  In today’s class I focus in on the doing of deeds.  All leadership goes from vision into planning and from planning into execution.  Doing the great things we planned is the key to having impact in our lives.

The story of Wilbur and Oliver Wright has captivated our hearts for more than a century.  In their lives we see an example of innovation being the first in flight and proving the impossible can be done.  But their story is more than just daring.  It involved a lot of planning and strategy and their ability to make good decisions.  St. Thomas Aquinas concurs.  Great leadership begins with great dreams but great dreams need great strategy for execution. 

By our baptism God calls us to be leaders of our world.  But where does leadership begin?  How can someone who might not customarily be used to leading actually begin to assert themselves under God’s grace in the world around them?  St. Thomas Aquinas offers us some amazing insights from his Summa Theologica.  Let’s dive in and talk about the movement of the will and it’s power to lead.

Leadership can be defined in many ways.  Yet most definitions converge on the same point:  Leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less.  The impact my life can make on others to bring others to act for a common vision.  But how can I harness my leadership for its maximal impact?  How can I lead best?  St. Thomas Aquinas gives us the key – he teaches how to act with depth.

After a lifetime of leadership, effort, struggle, all of us want to leave a legacy behind that will be remembered.  When it is all said and done what will your life leave behind?  These are the questions that all of us face, King David was no different, and before he died he spoke to Solomon, his successor, and he gave him his legacy.  By looking at it we can get a better glimpse of our own.

Our Lord doesn’t call leaders to lead just in their businesses.  He calls them to lead in their families as well.  And in fact, it is especially in the family that the depths of who we are are tested and tried and where our leadership most intimately links us to our God.  It was no different for King David as he confronted the real struggles in his family. He also had to find his own peace with God.

Shouldn’t it all be easy?  That’s a question we a lot of us ask ourselves as we lead our businesses and work with our children – we have a dream in our mind, a kind of nostalgia, that life should be at least easy if we are good at it.  And we all want to be good at it so we think somehow or other that troubles or difficulties are signs of failure.  But that’s not what the life of King David shows us.  By looking at how King David dealth with trials we can learn a little bit more about our own.

Every good leader knows that there are few people in his life more important than those that he trusts to give good advice.  It was no different for King David.  In his kingdom he relied up on prophets and friends to guide him.  One of his most trusted advisors was the prophet Nathan.  Their relationship was profound.  Nathan corrected David twice and saved his kingdom and his legacy forever.  Let’s listen to the story and listen to God speak to us as well.

All of us need time where we can take a break and let our spirits be renewed.  In this very special series on “A Retreat With King David” I lead business professionals through a time of reflection on their own life as leaders in light of the story of King David.  God’s incredible working in David’s life presents a paradigm to help us understand the challenges and the grace of our own.

Every leader needs to pray.  The best gauge of h ow much we can stand for is the dignity of the One before whom we knee.  Prayer is the heart of leadership because it preservers the heart of the leader.  And the inner spirit that soars towards God can transform the world as needed.  One of the most powerful prayers for leaders is the prayer of The Litany Of Humility and I’m looking to sharing about it with you.

All too often in my life as a Priest I hear business leaders tell me that they don’t know why they pray.  It’s almost as if for them the time spent in prayer might be spent better by doing productive labors.  Our inability to honor the sabbath properly speaks to this.  What does the Bible have to say about the prayers of leaders?  What you find in the Bible might surprise you.

The life of the Virgin Mary is the tale of a hero.  In the face of great obstacles and great opposition Our Lady demonstrated leadership in the most excellent of ways.  She goes before us as a mother and a queen, but it can be easy to overlook the harrowing and trying circumstances in which she lived.  Learning about her heroism helps us in our own.

By our baptism we are called to lead.  We are called to bring the influence of Christ into our families, into our relationships, and into our world.  But in what does this leadership principally consist - especially for those of us who have been entrusted with communities, in our families, in our businesses, what are we supposed to do?  St. Thomas Aquinas offers us concise and insightful guidance in his work, De Regno, On The King, his letter to the King of Cyprus.

When all things are said and done, the goal of leadership ought to be simple.  Thomas Aquinas provides us with a wonderful summary in chapter sixteen of his work, On The King, he gives us a final goal - three things.  By focusing on these three things we can find the direction we need as we apply leadership to our home, our business, and our world.

In business as in life, success is largely a function of focus.  Knowing what our priorities are allows us to hit them correctly allows us to be successful.  What’s the proper focus for leadership?  What is it supposed to be all about?  Aquinas’ De Regno, offers us an amazing lesson in leadership, allowing us to see that the true end goal of leadership is in the ultimate perfection of those that we lead.  

We all know the temptation to glory, power, and fame.  We all know the power of its allure and how desirable it seems to be.  So what’s the downside?  If in fact we don’t live as soldiers of Christ and followers of the King of Kings but become tyrants ourselves, benefitting ourselves at the expense of our flock, what’s the downside?  What could possible go wrong?  Listen in to my commentary on chapters 10 and 11 of Thomas Aquinas’ De Regno.

Choosing to lead is choosing a kind of solitude, a way of life that few people understand.  Leadership has its own crosses and its own blessings, and its own rewards.  St. Thomas Aquinas in his book, De Regno, in chapter 10, lays out for us the uncommon rewards for the uncommon sacrifices that a leader has to endure for the sake of God.