Heroic Leadership

Today’s nuggets are from the book Heroic Leadership by Chris Lowney. In his book Chris reveals the leadership principles that have guided the Jesuits for more than 450 years. Jesuits have made great contributions in many different areas for the advancement of humanity. Their heroic adventures produced great learnings for all of us to apply in our daily lives.

1) The four principles are:  

     * Self-awareness

     * Ingenuity

     * Love

     * Heroism.

How many of us apply these four principles in our lives?

2) To grasp our own leadership roles we can learn from Ignatius of Loyola by:

     * Appreciating our own dignity and rich potential,

     * Recognizing the weaknesses and attachments blocking our potential,

     * Articulating the values we stand for,

     * Establishing our personal goals,

     * Having our own worldview (what we stand for, what we want, and how to relate to others),

     * Seeing the wisdom and value in focusing on priorities and extracting lessons from successes and failures

3) The four values embodied in the Jesuit leadership are:

    * Understanding our strengths, weaknesses, values and worldview

    * Confidently innovating and adapting to embrace a changing world

    * Engaging others with a positive, loving attitude

    * Energizing ourselves and others by heroic ambitions.

4) Leaders are developed one at a time. Loyola knew that his great ability was to help others become leaders.

5) Loyola urged Jesuit trainees in Italy to “conceive great resolves and elicit equally great desires.”

6) Don’t lead unless you are ready for adventure.

7) Ingenuity disposes people not just to think outside the box but to live outside the box. Ignatius people think and live outside themselves serving others. Heroism is not measured by the scale of the opportunities but by the quality of the responses to the opportunities at hand. Heroism brings energy, imagination, ambition, and motivation to the tasks to be done. Love lends purpose and passion to ingenuity and heroism. Love is the glue that binds individuals into loyal, supportive teams. Self-awareness roots and nourishes the other virtues.

Information comes and goes, principles endure because they have passed the test of time.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others!

Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx

Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy)