Someday, Maybe

This spring in Forbes magazine, Dan Hesse, former Sprint CEO, was asked by writer Robert Reiss what CEOs and presidential candidates can learn from ancient Greek philosophers. Hesse referred to a tome he read in college as an undergraduate: The Republic by Plato. It was the first book he read that shaped his views on leadership. Here is their interview:

Reiss: "What are the leadership lessons you learned?"

Hesse: "First and foremost, that it's a privilege and a responsibility to lead. Socrates talks about how a good ship's captain is more concerned with the sailors than for himself, how the good leader is more concerned with the welfare of his subjects than for his own.

"Second, great leaders bring people of different skills and walks of life (the aristocracy, the producers and the soldiers) together for the common good.

"Third, good leaders are always learning and constantly seeking the truth, and that the value of uneducated opinion pales when compared to facts or the truth.

"Fourth, that leadership needs to be earned, that leadership should only be bestowed on the 'best,' or most virtuous person. Justice is the first and most important of the four virtues, it enables the other three-temperance, courage and intelligence."

Reiss: "What is the relevance of a book written 2,400 years ago to our presidential election or business leaders today?"

Hesse: "Plato describes how the same qualities that make a person lead well make the organization or state function well (that an organization functions much like a person). A just person is in balance. They are educated in science, the arts and in sport, and healthy in body, mind and soul. Socrates argues that women, if provided the same education, are as capable of being fine leaders as men. A just person must lead the state, and the state must be in balance between the interests of all of its citizens, the workers, aristocracy and military if it is to function well. A leader who creates or foments class warfare is extremely dangerous, and this behavior can lead to tyranny or dictatorship. Plato asks how the tyrant 'tries to rule others when he cannot be master of himself?' Even though tyrants or the greedy gain physical possessions, Plato describes them as unhappy, as 'the most miserable.' Tyrants can exist in governments and in companies.

"The Republic helped shape my view that business leadership is a vocation, that how a business is led impacts the lives and livelihoods of so many people -- employees, customers, shareholders, suppliers and the communities served by a company, and this is why Corporate Responsibility is important of and by itself, not because the ends might justify the means (in reputation or brand). The openness, intelligence, civility and quality of the dialogue and disagreements between the participants in these Socratic debates are also important to foster within companies, in our political campaigns, and in Washington.

"Our founding fathers created the United States on Plato's principles, which had been developed further by political philosophers like Hobbes, Locke and Rousseau. Plato said that the best leaders often don't seek to be leaders -- they don't seek power. George Washington was practically 'drafted' to be our first president. The idea of a couple of open party conventions where the most virtuous or best person is 'drafted' is an interesting idea whose time may have come."

Interesting ... "drafting" the most virtuous -- the most capable and qualified candidate -- to lead our country.

If only that were the case.

Well, someday, maybe.

Is there anything you care to add concerning our prospects for the coming election?

If so, you can drop us a note by going to the Men's Network blog and clicking here.

So What?

Over the years I have become fairly cynical about what I read, watch and hear. I do not believe there is such a thing as "unbiased" media. In today's world most media conveys a specific point of view, agenda, or call to action. The same "news" story reported on five different channels will deliver five different conclusions. Corporations and governments alike employ a cadre of media specialists to provide "spin," so their point of view is portrayed as fact.

Over the years I have looked for the "So what?" in what I hear, see or read, especially in the media.

I define the "So what?" as an action or attitude that the author wishes me to adopt.

For example, when watching a car commercial, the "So what?" is that I be moved to purchase that vehicle. Those so whats are easy to spot.

Ads promoting the lottery offer the "So what?" that you will be a hero to school kids as you spend your money on the lottery, which funds education. Some of these ads leave me feeling as if I am a terrible person who hates kids if I don't plunk down my dollars for them -- at least once in a while.

Now to all this some of you may be saying to yourself, "So what?"

The "So what?" I want you to think about is to become a critical consumer of media. Too often we accept everything we hear or read without thinking objectively about it. We buy into the adage that "If it's on the Internet, on the national news, or in the newspaper, then it must be true ... at least mostly." This also applies to hearing it from "live" sources as when we wholesale accept something because we heard it from a friend or family member. Suffice it to say, critical thinking should a close companion, a very close companion.

As for me, I read the fine print, look for the angles, and will not send money to Africa because someone died and named me in his will.

This whole critical-thinking thing is something worthwhile to pass along to the next generation too. The world's awash in hyperbole and trivial nonsense, and this schlock is targeted (as it has been for years) at the very young as well. For impressionable, young minds the world is full of choices like never before. Some are of value; many are not, and it's a huge help if by our input and experience we can help them see the difference.

As any guy knows, some of the priceless benefits that come with age are the lessons gained from our hard-won experiences. But let's not let these life-changing gems remain with us. Be sure to pass them on when you get a chance, but do so tactfully, in small, steady doses. As we all know, it's good medicine for those who hear it, but for some it may be hard to swallow.

Thinking outside the box is a skill worth working on. Are you a critical thinker? Have you found yourself resisting staid and worn-out kinds of "knowledge" and, instead, going deeper, digging past the fluff and surface noise, to get at a more reasoned sense of an issue -- whether it's politics, theology or science?

So what does all this matter? Well, it can matter quite a bit when what's pawned off as true and real is a semi-sophisticated spin of dubious details and questionable facts -- something we're all getting an ear full of this election cycle.

Heard anything that's made you ask "So what?" lately? If so, let us know by going to the Men's Network blog and clicking here.