Leveraging influence to serve others

This article comes from John Maxwell. I think he speaks volumes to us as leaders. Especially, as Christ following leaders... Enjoy the article. For more from him, click here.

Consider these sobering statistics:

•    Two of three Americans are overweight.
•    One child dies of hunger in the world every four seconds.

To feed a starving child for a year costs roughly $200, about the same amount the average American spends each year on soft drinks. By simply passing up soda, Americans could cut child hunger by 75% worldwide.

Leaders are responsible for leveraging their influence to serve others. When leaders use power for selfish benefit, we commonly refer to their “abuse” of power. Would it be a stretch to claim that Americans abuse their power by guzzling sodas when malnourished children are dying in slums?

Now, it’s impractical to think that Americans would never spend another dollar for Pepsi or Coke, and it’s unreasonable to ask of them. However, when 65% of Americans are overweight, surely some changes can be made to cut consumption in the USA and give generously to those in poverty around the world.

The list of the world’s ailments can be daunting—AIDS, starvation, water shortages, environmental contamination, etc. However, the affluence of Americans may be equal to the task, if only leaders would mobilize the resources within their grasp.

Many are simply too lazy to contribute to social causes, or they refuse to let the world’s problems disrupt their comfort. Still others justify their inaction by citing the “drop in the bucket” mentality. However, with enough drops, a bucket gets full.

Leaders are honor-bound to assist those in need. In the words of U2’s Bono, “In the Global Village, distance no longer decides who is your neighbor, and ‘Love thy neighbor’ is not advice, it’s a command.” In the age of globalization, we buy shoes made in China, shirts from India, oil from the Middle East, and diamonds from Africa. Is it just for children in those regions to suffer and starve while ours eat potato chips and play X-box?

THE CHALLENGE

How are you modeling compassionate leadership?
To what causes are you lending your resources?
How are you inspiring others to give generously to social causes?