Good Leaders: How does your faith affect how you show up?

Today the theme Back to the Future (not the movie) is alive in me. This Friday is the second Good Leadership Breakfast of the year. We are going back to the formula of the Seven Fs: faith, family, finances, fitness, friends, fun and future for organizing the speakers for the whole series. Last month, our kickoff speaker Richard Leider explored the idea of how “purpose” is at the center of the Seven Fs Wheel. Going forward we are focusing on each of the Seven Fs, starting with “faith.”  So, this being the second breakfast, “faith” is the back to the future subject.

Faith and leadership

Recently, a very strong resilient man shared his definition with me: “Faith to me is the substance of things hopeful, and evidence of things not seen,” he explained.

Faith – like leadership – is loud and bold to some, quiet and subtle for others. It’s also risky when people come on too strong and throw around the words “should” or “shouldn’t.”  What I find fascinating is the cultural values for companies/organizations which are rooted in spiritual concepts. Integrity, respect, courage, humility, etc…

Faith is at the beginning

Faith is important to the Good Leadership conversation, because The Seven Fs are organized alphabetically: faith is at the beginning, fitness in the middle and future is at the end. I think that priority order is relevant. Here’s why:

In the book What Really Works that I wrote with Tim Schmidt, we highlighted a study called The State of Faith. Independent researchers interviewed more than a thousand business executives, and 73% said they had prayed over a difficult decision while at work within the past year.

Growing good leadership

For my purposes as an executive coach, it’s not important who or what my clients pray to, or pray for. It’s important to me they each develop a strong spiritual core as a foundation for character building. Because character is all about how you show up, in good times and in bad. At home and at work.

I’m grateful to Marc Miller for his willingness to share a holistic faith story as our speaker this Friday. It’s a story of personal tragedy, spiritual insight, and his dogged pursuit of something bigger than himself. He is a man of good character, because after losing his son tragically at the age of 19 years old, Marc’s faith has a lot to do with how he shows up.

Good leaders embrace their spiritual core as a foundation for building character. And they use that faith to consistently show up and radiate goodness in their leadership.

So, please share with me: How does your faith affect how you show up?