Here is an excerpt from an article written by Patrick Lencioni for his “Pat’s POV” series featured at his website. To read the complete article, check out all the other resources, and sign up for email alerts, please click here.
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The Papacy is a singular, unique position, one that can’t really be compared to any other leadership role. Still, the events last week surrounding the election of Pope Francis brought to mind three surprising reminders of something I’ve written about before: the qualities of sacrifice, humility and selflessness that all true leaders must possess.
The first example has to do with the place where a new pope goes immediately after being elected. It is called The Room of Tears. As one website explained, the name stems from the idea that it is the place where “new popes have often been overcome with emotion at the thought of the heavy burden that has been given them.”
Now, we don’t generally imagine a newly hired or promoted CEO going into a room for solitary recollection or emotional processing, but it would make quite a bit of sense. After all, becoming the leader of any organization involves weighty discernment and great responsibility, or at least it should. What could be more appropriate than taking time to come to terms with all that? Perhaps all leaders should find their own Room of Tears after being hired or promoted.
Second, it was reported that Pope Francis, then Cardinal Bergoglio, had stated before the Conclave started that he didn’t want to be elected Pope. His predecessor, Benedict XVI, made the same comment prior to his election in 2005, as have others. But one member of the media I saw, when told about Pope Francis’ comment, rolled his eyes and declared, “Well, he may have said it, but I’m not sure I believe it. I mean, can you imagine being the executive vice president of a company for many years and then saying that you didn’t want to be CEO?”
While being the Pope is certainly different from being a CEO or political leader – something that can be difficult for the media to completely understand – there is a lesson to be learned from the reporter’s comment. He was suggesting, or perhaps assuming, that leadership is something that comes about because of personal ambition and individual achievement, rather than humble service and acceptance of responsibility. I think it’s fair to say that this is how many, if not most, people see leadership.
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To read the complete article, please click here.
Patrick Lencioni is founder and president of The Table Group, a firm dedicated to helping leaders improve their organizations’ health since 1997. His principles have been embraced by leaders around the world and adopted by organizations of virtually every kind including multinational corporations, entrepreneurial ventures, professional sports teams, the military, nonprofits, schools, and churches.
Lencioni is the author of ten business books with over three million copies sold worldwide. His latest is The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else In Business, published by Jossey-Bass (2012). His work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, Fortune, Bloomberg Businessweek, and USA Today. Prior to founding The Table Group, Lencioni served on the executive team at Sybase, Inc. He started his career at Bain & Company and later worked at Oracle Corporation. Lencioni lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife and their four sons.