Have you ever known an executive who stuck with a bad decision out of their pride? I do, and I’ve seen it play out in all kinds of businesses and ministries. We all have the ability to make bad decisions, but pride makes us stick with them right to the end.
The Contract from Hell
It was common in my industry for manufacturers to offer incentives to retailers in the form of off-invoice allowances. The hope was that retailers would use the allowances to reduce the retail price to consumers or use it to offset marketing costs of the products. That was the hope. The reality was most of the money went straight to the retailer’s bottom line.
So, our company decided to get rid of the off-invoice allowances and replace them with stricter performance allowances. Some genius group of attorneys worked up a two-page performance contract for retailers. Then, some well-meaning folks put together a 140-page manual to guide the sales force in implementing the contract.
Next, the entire national sales force was brought together over a two-day period of time to be trained on how to sell and implement the new contract. Two-days of every salesperson’s time to learn how to implement a two-page contract following the instructions in a 140-page manual. Does anyone see what might go wrong here?
Despite warnings from several sales managers, the executive that initiated the new contract stubbornly refused to consider pulling the contract. It was too late to make changes, he said. He assured us we would love it once we really understood and started using the new contract.
The retailer’s response was no surprise to any of the salespeople in the field. The retailers hated it and us. The salespeople made all kinds of mistakes when implementing the new contract. Auditors had a field day trying to unravel the mess.
Millions of dollars wasted and relationships with key customers damaged all because of one man’s pride. Pride kept that executive from seeking input from his staff. And pride kept him from heeding the warnings of his own sales force.
Two miserable years later, the contract was abandoned in favor of a retailer-friendly performance incentive. So, what happened to that sales executive? Well, he was given a chance to seek alternative employment options!
The King Whose Pride Cost Him Everything
The Bible has a lot to say about the sin of pride. We see pride exhibited in the lives of numerous Bible characters. Sometimes, they realize the danger of their pride and repent. More often than not, they retain their stubborn pride and go down in flames.
One such person is Saul, the first King of Israel.
The people of Israel wanted a king to be like other countries. God warned them about the dangers of having a king, but the people persisted. So, God anointed Saul to rule as the king over the people of Israel.
In his early years as Israel’s king, Saul was obedient to God. He was humble and practiced self-control. But over time, he became prideful. He thought his success was his doing, and not due to God’s influence in his life.
Saul’s pride caused him not to obey the instructions of Samuel, God’s prophet. Then Saul became disobedient to God. He did not follow God’s instructions. He made rash vows. He became jealous of David and wanted to kill him. Saul even met with a medium to consult with the dead.
In the end, an unrepentant, prideful Saul lost God’s support and committed suicide.
The Pride Spiral
In my experience, most leaders start out well enough. They care about their work and the people with whom they work. But then success comes, and pride enters their lives. Perhaps only a little at first, but then it grows like cancer until the once humble, considerate leader has been replaced by a prideful, arrogant leader.
That’s what happened to Saul.
He had a wonderful start. He was hand-picked, anointed by God, and filled with the Spirit. He started out great. Then success went to his head. He became prideful.
First, he disobeyed God’s prophet. Then he disobeyed God directly. Stubbornly prideful he resisted God, even more, making rash vows, becoming jealous of David, and meeting with a medium. Had he only repented of his pride and humbled himself!
Perhaps David was thinking of Saul, when he wrote, “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18).
Leaders, the sin of pride is in all of us and we need to be mindful of that fact. Even someone called and anointed by God experienced pride and it was his downfall. The same thing can happen to us.
The key to long-term faithful service is to recognize pride in our lives, repent, and humble ourselves before God.
Join the Conversation
As always, questions and comments are welcome. Have you experienced prideful leaders? How did their pride impact the organization?
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Category: Personal | Leader Qualifications
