Gary Ryan Blair, in his book
Everything Counts! describe a leader as someone with character. A strong moral compass that is strong no matter what. In my big time career in the international corporate environment, I found myself selling my soul for the opportunity to earn good money. Our sales manager walked around the office encouraging the young sales force to buy expensive cars, get into their first homes, join an expensive golfing club and get all the equipment. In his words,
greed us good. Big debt would produce big sales.
These 20 year olds were selling our product to people who couldn't use it. Every Monday new would-be winners joined the team. Every Friday those who didn't make their quota were gone. We were out to
nuke the competition. The war metaphor made me cringe. I was spending my weekends at anti-nuclear rallies and inviting young leaders from the Soviet Bloc to sit down and talk about how the people could change our governments' policies.
I was miserable. I was so out of integrity with my moral compass that I was afraid my character would be sullied forever. I was making very good money and our family needed it. All four daughters were in college at once.
On one occasion I was sent to a customer whose many far flung centers were using our service, and it wasn't working well for them in remote areas. My job was to hold the head of IT's hand and tell her that it would be better soon and just hang in there with us as we improved our network national wide. In a moment of agonizing moral discomfort, I spoke to her with honesty and integrity. I told her it would be months before my company could satisfy her hope for better service and that if I were her, I'd find a better vendor. I knew our competition would serve her needs.
My manager was horrified when I returned to the office with her cancellation papers. My legs were shaking and my mouth was dry. As I leaned on the table for support, I told him that I had to let her go for her own best interests. Our brief moment of eye contact said it all. My manager knew I had acted in our client's best interest and not my own. He knew my leadership quality had triumphed over our company's profit-is-all values.
Shear luck would have it that I met a woman at a networking event who asked me if I would like to know more about nutrition. I said yes. It was a time in my life when my health was falling apart and no medications seemed to help. We met for lunch in my office a few days later and I ended up with a bag full of supplements and instructions of how and when to take them. She called several days after that to see how I was liking the protein shake. It still stood on my counter unopened. And had I listened to the tapes she had given me? The one about health and the one about a business opportunity. I had not.
Once I began to actually take the protein and supplements every morning, my health changed for the better dramatically. I was so pleased, I invited my new friend to tell my other friends about these products and why we actually needed to supplement our diets to have optimal health. They placed orders and enjoyed the benefits they experienced. I got a bonus check.
I asked about the business and what I realized was that here was something I could sell that I believed in with all my heart and soul. I studied the company, Shaklee, finding nothing but praise and value and integrity in everything they did from sourcing the raw ingredients to the sales plan. Everything about the company, everything, was predicated on honesty, integrity with no compromise even if that meant losing a competitive advantage in the moment.
Ryan says the best leaders are stewards. Stewardship consciously seeks out and achieves the good of the community above all else. "A steward, then, can be defined as an individual who upholds what is best for all people, even if it may not be in his or her own interest to do so. In addition to protecting values and beliefs, good stewards live those values as a model and example for others to follow."
Dr. Shaklee and all the employees at Shaklee, the top sales leaders and the distributors I met all had this quality in common.
In January 1989 at my telecom company's annual goal setting meeting, I determined to pay particular attention to the character of all those in the room, from the corporate leaders to my fellow sales people. I could feel it in every fiber of my body and in my heart. This was not a team I could work with any more. Big money or no. There was no value placed on stewardship whatsoever.
The very next day, a January kick off for Shaklee was held in Seattle and I met the CEO, many top leaders and a room full of vibrant, warm, gentle and radiantly healthy people. At the end of that day, I knew I would tell my husband that I was changing careers.
It was tough on the family to drop down in income, but within a couple years I was making as much in Shaklee as I had made in my old company. Most of all, I worked in a flow of integrity, high moral value, and everything I was doing helped the other person and the environment. I was a leader and a steward. One and the same.
Thanks for reading. Let me know how leadership counts in your life.
Betsy
Betsy Bell's Health 4U
206 933 1889
http://HiHoHealth.com
http://HiHoWealth.com
My preferred strategy is to use 2 pillows, one with a hollow in the center for my head and one of those lumbar pillows they sell at the chiropractor's office. In fact both of my pillows came from a chiropractor's office. I hope this picture helps: 
I bought a couple camping pillows from Big 5 and made cases for them from an old pillow case. These roll up and fit in one of Rick Steve's travel bags. This way I never have to deal with the giant boulders of bed pillows in European hotels. I tuck my night gown and slippers and even a wash cloth in on top. These little zipper draws hold an amazing amount of stuff. I have even crammed in a silk dressing gown for when the bath room is down the hall.