I guess to answer the question, “Are Certain Positional Leaders Destroying Our Society?” I should first define what I mean by positional leaders.
Positional leaders influence others using their personal power. In his book, 5 Levels of Leadership, author John Maxwell, says people follow positional leaders simply, “because they have to.”
Examples of organizations where positional leaders are most prevalent include the military and those we commonly refer to as first responders like police and fire departments. Positional leaders are most often found where command and control organizational structures dominate.
In the case of the military, police, and fire departments, positional leadership is critical to the success of the organization. Orders must be given, and orders must be followed for the mission to be achieved.
However, positional leaders exist in every hierarchical organization.
- In business, the CEO has positional authority over the president, who exercises authority over the vice president, and so on down the chain of command.
- In government, mayors, governors, congress, and the president all exercise positional authority over lower levels in the hierarchy.
- In churches, the board of elders has positional authority over the pastor, who has authority over the assistant pastors and ultimately, over the congregation.
So, as you can see, there are positional leaders all around us. The question remains, “Are Certain Positional Leaders Destroying Our Society?”
To better answer that question, let me first give you an example from the Old Testament.
Malachi’s Warning
Malachi was a prophet of God living in Jerusalem. The central message of Malachi’s prophecy was a warning for the people of Israel to return to God.
You see, the priests of the day had become disobedient to God. They were dishonest in both their priestly duties and in their personal lives.
Malachi confronted the priests directly. He accused them of being corrupt, complacent, indifferent, and neglectful of their duties.
The problem is these priests were positional leaders; people followed them because of their position as priests. Unfortunately, they were bad priests, not doing their job the way God intended.
Because the people followed the priests blindly, the people ended up committing the same sins as their leaders.
Herein lies the real danger of positional leaders.
The Danger of Corrupt Positional Leaders
When positional leaders are incompetent or worse, corrupt, the people who follow them becomes like their leaders.
With positional leaders, people do not rise higher than their leaders. The proof of this claim is born out every day in business, government, and even in our churches. When corrupt leaders are uncovered, there are always corrupt followers, following along.
Think about it. Have you ever heard of an example of a corrupt leader who did not also have a group of corrupt followers?
No! It doesn’t happen. Whenever there is a positional leader who is corrupt, there will be corrupt followers.
Are Positional Leaders Destroying our Society?
So, back to our original question, “Are Certain Positional Leaders Destroying Our Society?”
I say, yes, at least some of them are, but they aren’t doing it alone.
- In business, they are responsible for all manner of corrupt business practices. Do you think Bernie Madoff swindled thousands of people out of billions of dollars all by himself?
- In government, dictators are a prime example of positional leaders. In our republic, positional leaders have been coming out of the woodwork during the COVID-19 pandemic. They are issuing proclamations like dictators ruling their subjects. Such behavior would never be tolerated outside of the current situation.
- In churches, governing bodies, elder boards, and pastors have drifted away from God’s teaching. In some cases, they have twisted themselves into pretzels trying to justify their reinterpretation of God’s Word.
What makes the impact of corrupt positional leaders significant is their sphere of influence is widening. More and more people are joining the flock of followers being led astray by corrupt leaders.
Corrupt priests in Malachi’s day led people away from the true worship of God. Malachi bravely stood against them, calling the Israelites to repentance.
I wonder, where are the Malachi’s today in business, government, and our churches who are willing to bravely step forward proclaiming God’s truth and say, “this is wrong.”
More Articles
I have written several articles on relationships and specifically about the use of power and influence. You can find them by typing “power and influence” in the search bar. Meanwhile, here are three of my favorites.
- #053: The Leader’s Role as Arbiter and Judge—Five Important Tips
- #091: What To Do When You Are Stuck Cleaning Up Someone Else’s Mess!
- #108: What One Thing are 99.2% of Leaders Doing to Hurt Results?
Join the Conversation
As always, questions and comments are welcome. Do you know any positional leaders who are hurting their organizations? What impact does their leadership style have on the organization?
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Category: Relationships | Power and Influence
