The Conviction to Lead: 25 Principles for Leadership That Matters

by R. Albert Mohler Jr.

public character was the single most important qualification for public leadership.

We now look for leaders who are more than a public persona. We look for those whose lives are in full alignment with their convictions.

you cannot buy courage and decency; you can’t rent a strong moral sense. A president must bring those things with him.

“As he thinks in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7, NKJV).

Jesus told his disciples they were to live before the world so that their character would be so apparent that people would give thanks to God.

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people

light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give ...

The church is to live by God’s Word and the gospel in such a way that others are left scratching their heads, wondering how people could actually live like this. Why do they love each other? Why are they so generous? Why do they stay married to their spouses? Why do they live so conscientiously?

We are not perfect, and claims of perfection will only serve to undermine our leadership. We will fail, and we must be answerable for those failures. Our sin will show up in our leadership, usually without delay.

The great warning to every leader is that certain sins and scandals can spell the end of our leadership. We can forfeit our role as leader and the stewardship of leadership can be taken from us.

Leaders, like all sinners, can be forgiven. But forgiveness does not restore credibility, and character must be seen as something that can be lost far easier than gained, much less restored.

Leadership Happens When Character and Competence Are Combined

A good leader stands out when character is matched by competence and the central virtue of knowing what to do.

When you enter the room, trust and confidence had better enter with you.

The leader is not a superman, but he had better know who he is, what he is doing, what the organization faces as a challenge, and how to move forward.

If no one in the room possesses those competencies, the organization faces imminent disaster. Organizations need these critical competencies and cannot survive without them, and that is why organizations need leaders.

No leader is competent in all circumstances and contexts, nor do you need to be.

You must be competent in the skills and abilities of the leadership role to which you have been called.

There are some leaders who inspire and motivate just by their physical presence. They have rare gifts of personality and character that almost compel others to follow them.

The most essential element in determining whether others will follow you is your credibility to lead them and to guide the organization to the right future.

If you are credible, they will follow. If not, you will never be effective as a leader.

how is credibilit...

The good news is that credibility can be earned. The bad news is that it can also be lost.

Credibility can be lost by moral failure or by a disastrous misadventure in leadership.

Every single day, the faithful leader must be aware that credibility is the essence of leadership, and that it can be both earned and

The Leader’s Most Essential Skill Is the Ability to Communicate . . . Over and Over Again

to be a leader is to communicate constantly, skillfully, intentionally, and strategically. The effective leader communicates so pervasively that it seems second nature, and so intentionally that no strategic opportunity is ever surrendered.

communication is action, and the leader will spend more time communicating than in any other activity.

We were created to communicate—to send and receive an almost unceasing flow of information, impressions, symbols, and, most important of all, words.

Leaders

message flows out of them as naturally as a geyser releases its energy.

Have you ever noticed how much easier it is to listen to a speaker who knows what he or she believes and stands ready to speak out of those convictions?

If you don’t have a message, don’t try to lead.

Once you begin to communicate and connect, leadership just happens.

The effective leader aims for three essential hallmarks of powerful communication.

The first is clarity.

The goal of communication is not to impress but to convey meaning and purpose.

We must communicate directly and clearly, and we must avoid cluttering up our own message and thus confusing those we are called to lead.

The second hallmark is consistency.

Convictional leadership requires a constant and consistent message, no matter the context, the audience, or the occasion . . . and no matter what may come.

Powerful leaders are known for

showing up with the same message, the same convictions, and the same principles...

We all need colleagues and friends who can listen to us and help us to ensure consistency of thought and of message.

the third hallmark of powerful communication, courage.

Communication requires courage for the very simple reason that, if your convictions mean anything at all, someone will oppose you.

Every leader knows the experience of rejection and opposition. You must prepare for it, expect it, and deal with it when it happens.

leadership is a “do or die” calling.

the courage required for leadership and for the risk of communication is usually

the everyday courage required to get up in front of people and expose yourself and your message to the scrutiny of others. If this seems too daunting, then follow. Do not aspire to lead.

Say It Again, and Keep on...