Leadership is Influence

There have been numerous leaders throughout history. Some did a better job than others at actually leading. But few were what you would call “inspirational leaders.”

By inspirational, I simply mean that they had the ability to motivate others to accomplish something significant, perhaps even heroic. William Wallace was such a man.

Remember his speech in BraveHeart before the battle of Stirling Bridge. He said,

"I am William Wallace. And I see a whole army of my countrymen, here in defiance of tyranny! You have come to fight as free men. And free man you are! What will you do without freedom? Will you fight?"

A veteran shouts, “Fight? Against that? No, we will run; and we will live.”

Wallace responds,

"Aye, fight and you may die. Run and you’ll live ... at least for a while. And dying in your beds, many years from now, would you be willin’ to trade all the days, from this day to that, for one chance, just one chance, to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they’ll never take ... our freedom!"

The men are inspired and Wallace leads them into battle. They defeat the British, who were more numerous and better equipped.

Later on in the movie, Robert the Bruce has a discussion about leadership with his father. He understands that there is a fundamental difference between having a leadership title and actually being an inspirational leader.

Robert the Bruce: “Lands, titles, men, power ... nothing.”

Robert’s father: “Nothing?”

Robert the Bruce: “I have nothing. Men fight for me because if they do not, I throw them off my land and I starve their wives and children. Those men who bled the ground red at Falkirk fought for William Wallace. He fights for something that I never had. And I took it from him, when I betrayed him. I saw it in his face on the battlefield and it’s tearing me apart.”

Robert’s Father: “All men betray. All lose heart.”

Robert the Bruce: “I don’t want to lose heart. I want to believe as he does.”

Fortunately, in real life, Robert found his heart and became a great leader. He led the Scots against the English in the First War of Scottish Independence and eventually defeated King Edward II at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314.

What does this have to do with us? Everything. Each of us can become that inspirational leader— a leader who can inspire others to give their best efforts for the sake of the greatest cause--to live and die for Jesus.

Remember the movie We Were Soldiers? (Mel Gibson as Lt. Col. Hal Moore)
Prior to leaving for service in Vietnam, Moore delivers a moving speech to his troops. He says,

"I can’t promise you that I will bring you all home alive, but this I swear: I will be the first one to set foot on the field, and I will be the last to step off. And I will leave no one behind. Dead, or alive, we all come home together."

Moore then literally fulfills this promise. He is the first one to step into battle and the last one to leave. This is real leadership. True leaders don’t ask their people to do anything they are unwilling to do. They lead by example. They model the behavior they want others to manifest.

The ultimate goal of course is finding your place in the Lord's highest will. This is incredibly motivating. Your job is to help people understand that what they do, not only matters in this life, but in the life to come. It will “echo into eternity.”

We all get bumped and bruised as we go through life. Circumstances constantly come up to undermine our esteem. It’s easy to lose heart—to begin doubting our ability to handle the challenges we face.

That’s why it is so refreshing to have others in our wonderful Family who can support and encourage us. But the most admirable thing about those folks is their willingness to verbalize it. It encourages and gives us that faith and confidence that maybe we do have what it takes.

Great leaders—like great parents—help people believe in themselves. They look for opportunities to catch people doing something right. They focus on their people’s strengths, not their weaknesses. And, they have a knack for offering encouragement at strategic moments—when someone in your home or team needs it. Not everyone is put in a position of leadership. But, as Robert the Bruce pointed out to his father, leadership is influence. And that is something all of us have.