U.S. AIR FORCE (MIKE MEARES)
The U.S. Sea Services have a strong tradition of character-based leadership founded on a world view rooted in Judeo-Christian values. Departing from or denying this foundation makes it much more difficult to develop good leaders. Moral character development of all sailors—from admirals and commanding officers down to new enlistees—must be a top priority of professional and personal development.
Jesus Christ was a great leader because he had a clear vision, he led by example, and he epitomized servant leadership. Leaders in the Sea Services can gain the ultimate trust and the full willingness of others to follow them by modeling their leadership philosophy and principles after Jesus Christ. These principles can be summed up in a few words: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” If leaders follow the Golden Rule, followers will trust, admire, and respect them.
Free to Learn From Religion
It is important to recognize the relationship between religious freedom and the military. Each member of the military takes an oath to support and defend the U.S. Constitution. The Constitution protects the rights of every citizen to practice the faith of his or her choosing. We have the military to thank for protecting and defending the words of the Constitution, including religious freedom.
In January 2015, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff compelled all service members to recognize that, “All Americans have the right to worship as they see fit, but no one has the right to use the government or military to endorse or promote their religious beliefs.” Therefore, I am not suggesting that all sailors should practice the Christian faith or any other faith. That would be out of line with American values and principles. I have written this essay from a Christian perspective, but I invite those of other belief systems to see the parallels with their own faiths and apply the same approach toward improving leadership by increasing moral character. We are each free to learn from our own and others’ religions. From Christianity, there is much to learn.
Good vs. Effective Leadership
Jesus was a moral leader worth following. It is important to differentiate moral leadership from effective leadership. Distilled to its essence, good leadership is the courage to stand up for what is right regardless of the consequences. A moral leader is a person who influences people to achieve a noble purpose. But how does one know what is right or noble?
Good and long-lasting leadership cannot be developed without first developing a solid character base. It is easy to talk about how to be a good leader, but the real challenge is developing people who do the right thing when nobody else is looking and when facing adversity. Some effective leaders, including terrorists, gangsters, tyrants, criminal masterminds, and even some politicians, use their charisma to deceive others with false promises, or coerce them into following their commands.
Some argue that Adolph Hitler was a good leader because he was extraordinarily effective. He convinced millions to follow him by energizing their emotions and setting out a vision of world domination. But Hitler was not a good leader; he was a tyrant because he did not possess a noble character. What Hitler and all immoral tyrants have in common is that their reigns and influence are fleeting because their moral compass points 180 degrees in the wrong direction.
Evil and corrupt leaders tend to rise fast and fall hard. A moral person’s rise to power might be slower, but it typically has staying power. Pursuing the evil path to power and dominance is often quicker and easier, but it is not sustainable. Envision what these evil-minded people could have accomplished if their moral compass had been pointed in the right direction. In the end, as Admiral Chester Nimitz once said, good always trumps evil.
None of this is to say we have evil and corruption running rampant through the ranks of our Sea Services. Yet, if we allow the moral character to erode, the strong leadership that has underpinned the U.S. Navy’s history and heritage of victory at sea will erode.
EXERCISE Moral Leadership
At no time in history have leadership and moral character been so important, because the United States is facing tremendous national security challenges. The world in general, and the relationships between sovereign nations have become more complex, causing an exponential number of new challenges to be managed daily. Adding to those is the fact that our adversaries are catching up with our advanced technologies and military strategies with their own capabilities. As the world becomes more complex, the battlefield has expanded from land, sea, and air to mind, heart, and soul.
We cannot continue to throw more money at the nation’s national security problems. The United States spends $596 billion annually on defense, which is more money than the next seven countries combined. As globalization of technologies is leveling the playing field, we must find an alternative way to sharpen our edge.
For the Sea Services to be successful in this day of globalization and rapid change, we must develop leaders who are marked by character and competence. Based on a solid moral foundation, naval leaders will be able to make the right decisions faster. We must, therefore, take swift action to raise the moral character bar higher throughout our services.
Raising the Bar
Great leaders know the right thing to do and then quickly gather the resources and set out a plan of attack for people to follow. It all starts with the correct moral compass because that is what guides a leader’s decision making and associated actions. But how does one know where to find this compass that will direct a person toward righteousness?
Should inexperienced leaders try to emulate a mentor’s philosophy or a certain institution’s moral code? Many do, and they have limited success because there is a fatal flaw in obtaining your morals from other humans or earthly organizations.
Many U.S. military leaders have been well-served by leaning on their Judeo-Christian faith and values. Their leadership was epitomized by four principles that can be used to operationalize the Golden Rule.
Principle #1: Have a vision. Life will always come chock full of troubles, so active planning through considerate thought, developing a vision, and laying out the group’s mission and objectives are paramount. Not doing so will only result in less effective and more reactive actions, which waste valuable time and money and allow enemies to gain ground. In addition, just reacting to the inevitable changes and issues will frustrate, cause confusion, and reduce followers’ confidence in their leader’s ability.
Principle #2: Actions speak louder than words. The second key principle is to lead by example—act, think, and speak the same ways you want your followers to act, think, and speak. When a leader displays actions from the adage “do as I say, not as I do” this destroys trust and respect. If a leader mandates a requirement or policy and then he or she freely chooses not to follow it, then the policy was never substantive in the first place. Leaders and followers must be held to the same standards to ensure a cohesive, efficient, and productive environment.
Principle #3: Be a servant leader. Leaders must understand and take selfless and direct actions to care for and benefit those they lead. For me, being a servant leader requires me to ask the question, “What would Jesus do?” In this situation, what would he say and what actions would he take to ensure the best outcome for all? Being a leader has the added responsibility of serving followers, so that their wants and needs come before your own.
Selfless sacrificing is an absolute requirement for real, transformative leadership. Servant leadership demands never ordering a subordinate to do something you would not be willing to do yourself. Positions of leadership are earned through merit, hard work, and a dedication to the organization and to those you lead, but just because you are the boss does not mean you are above your subordinates. The only difference between leaders in higher authority is that they have more people to care about and more responsibilities to manage.
Principle #4: Be a leader of character. All sailors are leaders in some fashion. Rank or title often authorizes positional leadership, sometimes without ensuring the person has the right moral character. Leadership is personal, not positional. For the Sea Services to continue flourishing, we must ingrain in all sailors’ minds the crucial principle that everyone must be a leader, and that for leadership to be effective it must be built on a foundation of morality. Once everyone develops the right moral character, leadership will look the same from the top, from the side, and from the bottom.
Good leadership is all about the Golden Rule—treating people the way you want to be treated. A good way to operationalize the rule is to follow the above four principles. Leaders who understand and apply these rules have the potential grow into influential and well-balanced leaders, who live up to the Sea Services’ core values of honor, courage, and commitment. Such leaders are respected, trusted, and admired. Others will be inspired to follow them because they know they will receive proper care and the needed skills, training, and tools to set them up to attain the team’s most challenging objectives.