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So far, we have examined the Structural Framework and the Vision driven Framework for raising the next generation of leaders. Today, we are going to be considering: Ethical Framework for Raising the Next Generation of Leaders. Under this framework, we are going to see why many modern-day leaders fail and what to avoid so that the next generation of leaders don’t fall into the same error that are being committed before our very eyes as we see in many leaderships across the world.
Listen to Podcast: Ethical Framework for Raising the Next Generation of Leaders
The lack of ethical behavior is the beginning of the downfall of many leaders, both in the past and even in the present. If we are to trace this statement back into the past by examining the life of Solomon, we would see how Solomon’s unethical behavior led to why he did not finish well in leadership, which also prevented him from raising a worthy and capable successor after him. If we read the book of 1 Kings 11:1-6, the Bible says:
“But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites— 2 from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, “You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love. 3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. 4 For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6 Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David.”
For all that the Bible recorded that King Solomon did in this place, he went against the commandment of God and the rule of his kingship, or what you could refer to as the rule of his leadership. Now, in case you are wondering what the rule of his kingship or leadership was, let me quickly show us in the book of Deuteronomy 17:14-17. God gave the children of Israel the framework that would guide the ethical behavior of whoever would be their king per time. See what the Bible says here:
“When you come to the land which the Lord your God is giving you, and possess it and dwell in it, and say, ‘I will set a king over me like all the nations that are around me,’ 15 you shall surely set a king over you whom the Lord your God chooses; one from among your brethren you shall set as king over you; you may not set a foreigner over you, who is not your brother. 16 But he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, for the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall not return that way again.’ 17 Neither shall he multiply wives for himself, lest his heart turn away; nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself.”
The first rule of his leadership is that he was not expected to multiply horses for himself, no matter how rich or wealthy he may be while he is the leader, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses. But we saw Solomon violating this first rule in 1 Kings 10:28-29. The Bible says: “Also, Solomon had horses imported from Egypt and Keveh; the king’s merchants bought them in Keveh at the current price. Now a chariot that was imported from Egypt cost six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse one hundred and fifty; and thus, through their agents, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.”
The second rule of Solomon’s leadership is that he was not expected to multiply wives for himself. But we saw how Solomon did otherwise simply because he did not keep a strong ethical living. The Bible says: “But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites— 2 from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, “You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love. 3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart (1 Kings 11:1-4).
The third rule of his leadership was that he was never to multiply silver and gold for himself. But this also Solomon violated. Many modern-day leaders would throw ethics out of the window, all in the bid to acquire wealth for themselves in leadership by all means. This then become a major bane for raising the next generation of trust-worthy leaders. As a leader, raising the next generation of leaders require that you conduct yourself in high ethical standard. Those that are coming behind should value what ethical behavior can make happen in their own leadership and not throw caution into the winds. Many leaders today are throwing caution into the winds, forgetting that people do what people see, and that their actions and inactions are being closely watched by their followers.
Leadership is not a race for wealth accumulation. Leadership is not a race to display personal aggrandizement. The goal of leadership is to build up the people that on leads, the organization or country that one leads, and to help followers and potential future leaders realize their potentials within a high ethical standard of leadership. This is how future leaders can emerge and move forward the goals and vision of the organization and everything that would be committed into their hands.
I believe you have learnt something on today’s episode of Leaderview. Please don’t forget to share this podcast with as many people that you know would benefit from what we have shared with ourselves today and also drop your comments in the comment section. Till next time on Leaderview, I remain Abiola Obayomi. Thank you for listening.
[Centre for New Dimension Leadership]
