Radio Commentary
Leadership and service aren’t limited to public roles,
according to author Marian Wright Edleman, president of the Children’s Defense
Fund.
In fact,
she argued that the strongest leadership and most effective service can come
from the way individuals handle themselves day to day in normal interactions
with others.
In a book
for her children she wrote: “Be a quiet servant-leader and example. You have a
role to exercise ... every minute of the day.”
She
explained how in the most common of circumstances we can seize the opportunity
to resist what is negative and set an example for what can be positive.
She
wrote: “Have you ever noticed how one
example—good or bad—can prompt others to follow?
“How one illegally parked car can give
permission for others to do likewise?
“How one racial joke can fuel
another?
“How one
sour person can dampen a meeting?”
Edelman
writes that the opposite is also true. “One positive person can set the tone in
an office or school. Just doing the right and decent thing can set the pace for
others to follow.”
We could all benefit by being one
of those model-setters.
Edelman
writes: “America is in urgent need of a band of moral guerrillas who simply
decide to do what is right, regardless of the immediate consequences.”
This is
wonderful advice for young and old alike.
