Faith + Character + Discipline = a three-part foundation for sustaining excellence
This question was posed to me at a coffee shop meet-up recently: “What do you think about the situation with the Michigan football coach?”
This started a big conversation. Coaches. Anthropic CEO. Enron execs. Ponzi schemers. Megachurch pastors. Influencers. There have been many high-profile character judgment mistakes.
“But all people make mistakes so what makes these more impactful?” And, “Why do people get so obsessed with these stories?”
Leadership is a privilege and, when done properly, you can have an oversized positive impact on lives and livelihoods. When done poorly, the same is true with negative impact.
Why Do Leadership Failures Capture So Much Attention?
Of course, I wish all people would score highly on the character meter. The truth is that character matters more as people grow in influence and fame. Think of the influence bosses have on employees. Sometimes, we mistakenly place a higher level of respect on someone based solely on title and past professional accomplishments.
Therefore, we might start changing the way we view certain things when our “superiors” act in a way that we wouldn’t have previously tolerated. It may be subtle at first, but next thing you know there are words coming out of our mouths, or actions we are taking that are hard to reconcile with who we are. I see this happen too in Social Media, “influencers” with large followings are often ascribed some level of status that assumes what they say is worth listening to, or what they are selling is worth buying.
They are speaking into our lives, our kids’ lives, whether we like it or not! Massive amounts of dollars are spent to establish roots in our brains and hearts to influence the way we think (and buy). Often, there isn’t a foundation there that can sustain pressure when it comes, and that is when our “heroes” disappoint us.
Look for substance clues before you buy-in. The point is, the erosion of character can often be subtle and build over time.
How Character Slowly Erodes (And Why We Miss the Warning Signs)
The show Breaking Bad tracks this perfectly. Walter White starts as a mild-mannered chemistry teacher who cooks meth to provide for his family after getting terminal cancer. Understandable, right? Some would certainly rationalize this. But the show walks you through his transformation step by step – each small compromise, each rationalization leading to the next bigger line crossed. By the end, he admits the truth: he did it for himself, for the power and recognition, not his family.
That’s the thing about character erosion – it happens incrementally yet can end catastrophically.
The Core Components of Character That Sustain Leadership
So, what are components of character? This is my list:
Honesty – telling the truth and being transparent
Integrity – aligning action with values
Authentic professionalism – showing up as yourself (with appropriate polish)
Discipline – doing what matters most even when you don’t feel like it
Respect for others – everyone is a person of value
And for me, faith is the cornerstone – understanding that I will always need my Lord and Savior to do for me what I cannot do for myself. This is the North star.
There are more, but that will suffice for purposes of this content.
In business, I hire first for character. Yes, competence matters, and there are levels of leadership where acumen is absolutely imperative. That part can often be cultivated. It’s far easier to train skills and methods than it is to modify character. I’ve tried. Usually it takes some sort of major life event – some spiritual reckoning, birth of a child, major life event positive or negative.
You see, character is developed over many years, and often people are doing the best they can do with the inputs in their life that, for some years, they had no control over. At some point, however, we need to own our current reality and our past and see if the decisions we make are in alignment with how we would like to be remembered. Yep, legacy matters. Why? Because if we consider our legacy as we go about our days, we may treat others better, act with more courage and discipline, and take steps to grow courage and reduce fear.
What the Data Tells Us About Ethical Leadership
Here’s what the data tells us: According to an HBR study, 88% of employees believe there is a need for moral leadership among the most senior levels in their organizations. I would wonder about the other 12%, but that might be for another blog!
Companies with strong ethical cultures tend to outperform their competition over the long-term. There are multiple studies that support this:
- 2 LRN Benchmark studies over the past 5 years of 8,000 survey results across 17 industries show 40-50% outperformance across business metrics such as growth, innovation, client satisfaction, and employee loyalty.
- Ethisphere Institute research found a 7.1 percentage point outperformance in stock market returns over a 5 year period
The numbers don’t lie – character isn’t just the right thing, it’s the smart thing.
And here’s something General H. Norman Schwarzkopf said that supports our thesis: “Leadership is a combination of strategy and character. If you must be without one, be without the strategy.” Think about that. You can teach someone strategy. It’s far more challenging to teach someone to be a decent human being after they’re fully formed.
Abraham Lincoln put it even more directly: “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” Power reveals who we really are. It doesn’t corrupt – it exposes.
“Isn’t it hard to tell character before you hire someone?”
Yes and no. There are clues. Of course, the background checks matter, and references matter. And we also need to hear what isn’t being said from these references as much as what is being said. The higher up the position, take the time to really get to know someone. See how they treat others. Listen to how they talk about their family and friends. I do this even today with companies who want to hire me for coaching or consulting, I want to partner with people and companies of the highest caliber.
Questions That Reveal Character Under Pressure
Here are some questions to ask to start to get a sense for someone who keeps themselves above reproach:
“How would you rate yourself on an integrity scale, from 1-10?” Well, this sounds like a ridiculous question but it’s not the numerical answer that I am looking for, it’s the follow up. “Why did you pick that number?” If it’s a 10 – I am asking how they could possibly be perfect. If it’s a 9, I am asking what kept them from a 10. I want to understand the thoughts and where they take the discussion from here.
“Why did you decide to <insert change IE move to your current city, change career paths, take some time off from career, choose that degree>?” And then, “Tell me more about that.” And possibly a couple more layers of “Why was that important?” You see what we are getting to? Depth of decisions. How are they guided? Have they thought through non-negotiable principles that help them choose?
“Tell me about a decision you’ve made that had a negative impact on the bottom line?” This catches some people off guard, but if you have been in leadership for any amount of time you have had to decide not to do something that wasn’t aligned with good values even if it would have produced great results.
And I love this from Andrew Sobel’s book Power Questions, “As you think about your own legacy as a manager and leader, what would you like to be remembered for?”
The next question that was posed to me, “How many people know really know right from wrong?”
This one is perhaps the deepest of these questions. I need to point to faith here. For people who believe in a higher power, there is generally a strong foundation for right versus wrong. And, a belief that this higher power can help us navigate through the challenges and mistakes.
I think at a minimum it is powerful for leaders to look at their role as service to others including employees, clients and customers, and stakeholders. Earning an excellent living comes as a result of this focus, but can cause issues if that is the primary objective.
A Simple Leadership Filter for Hard Decisions
Here is a leadership filter that may help when facing decisions, let’s assume that doing the thing would be a huge win for the company or the team:
Is it legal?
Is it ethical?
Is it in alignment with Mission, Vision, Principles (MVP)?
And there is no better final test than this one. Warren Buffett has what he calls the “newspaper test.” When his managers aren’t sure if a decision is the right call, he tells them to imagine it shows up the next day in their local paper. And not just any story – picture it written by a smart reporter who doesn’t like you much, who really gets what you did. Your family reads it. Your neighbors. Your friends. If you’re comfortable with that, go ahead. If not, you already have your answer. Buffett pairs this with another line that hits hard: “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”
Here’s the great news: some of the best people I know have compromised morals and ethics in the past, made amends, learned from it, and now use their story as a means to help others not make the same mistakes. This is not designed to judge someone solely on their past, but to explore how they have grown from it! None of us is perfect; what counts are the lessons learned and how we conduct ourselves now and in the future. And there will still be missteps, we can only put ourselves in the best position for long-term success, and I will not back down from the character component being the biggest pillar here.
The Leaders Who Last Understand This One Truth
Look, here’s what I’ve learned after years of hiring, coaching, and watching leaders rise and fall: character is the foundation everything else is built on. But this isn’t just for leaders, more people than ever are making choices that reflect on the organization’s values. Every decision counts now, not just the ones at the top.
The leaders who last, who build something that matters, who sleep well at night – they’re the ones who figured out early that shortcuts have a price tag that comes due eventually. They understand that their legacy isn’t what they accomplished, it’s how they accomplished it and who they became along the way.
So let’s ask ourselves: Are we building character today that will stand up to the pressure tomorrow? Because the pressure always comes. And when it does, the character we’ve built will, in fact, shine through and knock us and others down or lift us up. The foundation matters a lot..