Dedication as a Character Strength and Re-dedication as a Leadership Activity

Leaders not only need (i) Dedication for their ideas/ideals/cause, they also need (ii) to constantly & consistently re-dedicate themselves to their cause. Like railway tracks which parallel one another and where both sides need to be functioning equally well... ...for the trains to run smoothly to efficiently reach their intended destinations, (i) Dedication as a Character Strength, and (ii) Re-dedication as a Leadership Activity, are the 2 absolutely necessary parallel sides of the railway track which are needed for the Leader to remain on course, to eventually achieve his/her cause.

This is especially true given that many Leaders' raison d'etre --- their reason for being, their deep seated purpose for living, their one dream(s), their definition of what is a life well lived for themselves and the people they care about? --- many times the raison d'etre of these Leaders are easy to define, but extremely difficult to achieve.

Often, even with (i) deep encouragement from family members, loved ones & friends, (ii) strong support from fellow leaders to jointly shoulder the deep responsibility, (iii) "clear as crystal" accountability, and (iv) wise decision making required for sense-making, decision-making, policy-/product-making and ultimately future-making for their causes/companies/communities/cities/countries; some leaders will still require the elapsed time and concerted effort of an entire career, if not a whole lifetime, to achieve their causes. The trick is to make the entire journey worthwhile, meaningful, and learning- & success-filled for the Leader, his constituents & his stakeholders, i.e., for the Leader & his/her entire ecosystem.

Today's takeaway is that Leaders need to journey ahead not only (i) with deep Dedication but also (ii) with constant & consistent re-dedication to their ideas/ideals/cause. Doing so, over time, will allow them to complete the journey and to do so in a proper, committed & acceptable way --- fighting the good fight, running the good race, keeping the good faith, staying true to their raison d'etre, achieving their ideas/ideals/cause.

As a Leader, I am one who is very clear what my raison d'etre, what my One Dream is. I can define with Simplicity, Mastery & Impact, the ideas/ideals/cause which I hold a deep Dedication to.

As a Leader, is there something you really, really want to achieve? Do you have a deep Dedication to certain ideas/ideals/causes which you hold dear? Have you crafted your raison d'etre, what does it look like?

As a Leader, do you sometimes lose track of where you are heading, do you lose focus of the various responsibilities & accountabilities you are juggling? Has the "Busyness Trap" gotten to you? Are you often on the "Frenzy Treadmill" running at a crazy pace, to nowhere... ...meaningful, satisfying, success-filled & ...impactful?

If so, at this --- the beginning of a brand new year, the commencement of 2012 --- it's opportune time to re-orientate yourself back to True North & your raison d'etre, and to re-dedicate yourself to that which makes Life & Leadership wonderful, vital, worthwhile and worth the journey for you.