CHARACTER.

Have you ever said...She [he] is quite a character or my favorite character is [Cinderella].

No? Well maybe not Cinderella, but what do these two sentences have in common? Obviously it's the word character, but in a different context. Both are nouns, but the first one describes the mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual and the second is a person in a novel, play, or movie.

The origin of sayings are always interesting to me as so many people say similar things. On the website, Quote Investigator (QI), they credit Malcom S. Forbes with the quote above, but traditionally something similar was said by Charles Haddon Spurgeon, a leading preacher in England, in the 19th century. The following passage appeared in a sermon that he delivered in 1876. QI believes that the central theme of the adage was prefigured in the words of Spurgeon [MTCS]:

I think you may judge of a man’s character by the persons whose affection he seeks. If you find a man seeking only the affection of those who are great, depend upon it he is ambitious and self-seeking; but when you observe that a man seeks the affection of those who can do nothing for him, but for whom he must do everything, you know that he is not seeking himself, but that pure benevolence sways his heart (quoteinvestigator.com)

This past week I had a birthday and grew one year older. I decided as with any birthday I could look at it in two ways: 1) I'm wiser; or 2) I'm closer to retirement! I chose the former to the latter. If I've learned anything about getting older it is to work smarter. People around me make me smarter. They teach without personal gain or loss by their words, wisdom and actions. The beauty of it all is that I work with really smart people that are both characters [like a novel, play, or movie] and possess character [mental and moral qualities].

Megan M. Biro, wrote about character-based leadership on Forbes.com. In her article she stated,

Leaders, on the other hand, can be character-based leaders – people for whom character is a positive and defining series of traits - or what I think of as accidental leaders. In my view, leaders can be made or born. Born leaders possess innate skills and character attributes that draw people to them, but leaders who are made by luck, opportunism or proximity are not so fortunate. They have to count on education, good mentors, broad experience and a willingness to learn from the people they lead. Character is more than intelligence, integrity, ethics, judgment, self-awareness, empathy or emotional health.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/meghanbiro/2012/09/30/are-you-a-character-based-leader/?sh=4b5085ec19af

The concept of character-based leadership possesses five attributes including integrity, trustworthiness, emotional intelligence, openness, and motivation. More attributes are discussed in the article above.

The age old debate of whether leaders are born or made is not challenged by the writer as she believes both. In researching this topic years ago, I found some notables that believe leaders are born due to the Great Man Theory, popularized in the 1840s by Thomas Carlyle. He suggested that leadership traits are intrinsic, meaning that great leaders are born and will emerge when confronted with the appropriate situation. This type of leader would possess charisma and decisiveness.

Vince Lombardi believes the opposite. He stated that, "Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile" (brainyquote.com). Research by psychologists has proved that, in the main, leaders are ‘mostly made.' The best estimates offered by research is that leadership is about one-third born and two-thirds made.

Whether you were born or made, I want you to ponder this question, "Do I possess character-based leadership skills or am I just another character in the book of life?"

What She Said ~ Beverly

#characterbased

#accidentalleaders

#bornleadership

#madeleadership

#greatmantheory