Am I selfish or selfless? The answer to that question will determine our leadership trajectory. Is it about us or about others? We decide daily.
Community Leadership
I had the opportunity to speak at the Electric Cities of Georgia’s Economic Development Summit this past week. The topic…Community Leadership. It’s the why behind this blog and a concept that I wholeheartedly believe in. Community leadership is “the ability and willingness to better others and the worlds we live in.”
The core of the presentation was built around ten actions of Community Leaders (which I’ll share in a future post). “Actions” was chosen intentionally, because leadership is a verb. Our words mean NOTHING without the alignment of our actions.
I have never considered myself the best storyteller. I tend to envy those that have that skill. Over the past few months, I have read two books that contained stories of two men. Both started their journeys with selfish ambitions and ended up in two completely different places. I was compelled to tell their stories and did.
Tom
I have spent my entire professional career working with our Mayor, Tommy Allegood. He exemplifies what being a community leader looks like. Mayor Allegood not only has the ability, but possesses the willingness to better others and the world he lives in, the Acworth community.
He has a self-published book called Life is Short, Make it Count that he updates and refreshes each year. Around Christmas time, he always gives me the most up to date version.
While I read it recently, he had told me the story of his friend Tom before. Tom had passed away suddenly. The Mayor attended his funeral. As he walked in the door, their mutual friend Steve greeted him at the door. Steve asked him to say a few words during the funeral.
Mayor Allegood is very comfortable speaking in front of large crowds and extremely quick on his feet. In that moment though, he couldn’t find the words.
See…Tom lived a selfish life. He died with more than $2 million dollars in the bank and no legacy greater than himself.
Henry
We are currently reading a book in our men’s group that shares the story of influential people in world history and their faith. The week before the presentation, we read a chapter on Jean Henri Dunant, a Swiss businessman. Translated into “Georgian,” we will call him Henry!
Henry set out to Algeria with selfish ambitions around 1863. He had collected millions from investors to start an agriculture business there. He got a little ahead of himself though. Henry decided to build a water-powered mill to grind the wheat into flour. There was one key problem, he didn’t have access to water!
The French and locals controlled that process. At the time, the Swiss and French weren’t on the best terms. Out of desperation to fulfil his commitment to his investors, Henry decided to take his problem to the top of the French ladder, Napoleon III, the emperor of France.
Napoleon III was engaged in a bloody battle in the Italian town of Solferino. Henry traveled there and had a meeting set up with the French leader. The day before his meeting, he traversed the carnage of the Battle of Solferino. Dead bodies and wounded soldiers from both sides littered the battlefield.
He decided to redirect his journey and went to the town square. There, he helped render aid to the wounded. Henry ended up using his meeting the next day to petition Napoleon III to release the opposition’s doctors and nurses to help his cause. That petition was granted.
He would go on to self-publish a book, A Memory of Solferino where he shared his experience. It would be translated into multiple languages and read across the world. He would go on to be the founder of the International Red Cross and his efforts would lead to the Red Cross being declared neutral parties in wartime.
His story doesn’t end there. His investors from his failed business venture came calling. Henry would end up shamefully resigning from the Red Cross, the very organization he founded. He became homeless, sleeping on benches in a small community and disappeared from the world’s eye until the turn of the century. Henry was rediscovered by a reporter who published a story on him. Quickly, he regained his notoriety.
Henry would end up being one of the first two recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize. It came with a $400,000 purse, A LOT of money during that time. He ended up giving most of it away, including the nursing home he spent his final days in so that a bed was always reserved for someone who couldn’t afford it.
See…Henry lived a selfless life. He died with no money in the bank, but with a legacy greater than himself.
Conclusion
Two men, from two completely different times. They both started their journeys with selfish ambitions, yet finished them so completely different.
As leaders, we face a daily decision…to live like Tom or to live like Henry. Tom comes natural to us, it takes very little effort to mimic his life. We are born selfish. There aren’t a lot of self-help books written on how to become more selfish.
Being like Henry requires a daily willingness to better others and the worlds we live in. Dedicating ourselves to a cause greater than oneself. A selfless life is always better lived than a selfish one. It leaves a lasting legacy that will carry on to generations we will never see.
Be. Like. Henry.