SECRETS OF LEAVING A LEADERSHIP LEGACY
President Bob Kuhn
It was one week ago - Thursday, 8 AM. In one hour and twelve minutes the deadline would expire.
We had been stuck in Jacksonville, Florida rush-hour traffic for at least 30 minutes, with no
meaningful movement in sight. After riding our motorcycles for 49 hours from San Diego,
California, the fatigue, stress, and the potential failure to meet the deadline seemed too much to
bear. I must admit I was close to tears as I squinted into the line of traffic ahead and prayed, “Lord,
what now?”
The Iron Butt Association calls it the “50 cc Quest”. It is a coast-to-coast endurance ride on a
motorcycle, which must be completed within 50 consecutive hours, including all fuel stops, meals,
rests, and stretch breaks. Every step from the beginning to the end needs to be verified.
We had taken the most popular coast-to-coast route, being pretty well a straight shot East along
Interstate 10 from San Diego to Jacksonville. It is both the shortest and consistently best freeway
riding. Still, it is a distance of 4000 km. Allowing for 18 fuel stops of 20 minutes each, which totals
approximately 6 hours, you are left with 44 hours to ride. Most people have to sleep during any 44
hour period time, so in our case, you can take off another 4 hours. That means you have to average
100 km/h in order to make it from one side of the United States to the other in 50 hours. On
average it means riding over 2 hours at a stretch, filling up with gas and then riding 2 hours more,
then repeating that 16 more times.
The riding wasn’t so bad during the day when you could see for miles. But at night I knew that a
jackrabbit, coyote, or small deer could make both me and the unfortunate critter into road kill in an
instant. Add to that the potential for human error by one of many bleary-eyed truckers piloting fully
loaded 18 wheelers careening past us pushing a prow wave of air that comes at your bike sideways
threatening to push you off the road. Despite squeezing my handlebars with a death grip, I couldn’t
figure out whether my shaking was from my Parkinson’s, the cool night air, or the simple fear of
ending up looking like one of the bugs splattered across my windshield.
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Leadership is like that cross-country motorcycle trip. In many respects it is illogical. Why do
something that will inevitably result in pain, being misunderstood by many, and all with a substantial
risk of harm? Motorcycle enthusiasts understand that you don’t have to have big muscles and
tattoos, or even a beard, to be a long haul biker. But you have to have a sense of calling to the road,
a feeling that you are part of the road and need to be there. It is a bit of a mystery.
Likewise, I suspect that for most of us in this room leadership was not really a logical decision. Most
of us didn’t wake up one morning saying, “I’m going to be a leader today!” More typically it comes
down to circumstances from which you find yourself in leadership. Ultimately, you find yourself
responding to a deep sense of calling; an irresistible voice that echoes the words of Esther 4:14
spoken by Mordechai to a reluctant leader, Esther, “Who knows whether you were brought to your
present position for such a time as this”.
I, for one, wonder about this calling of leadership, especially in my service as President of Trinity
Western University. I’m not sure that my neurologist has much of an appreciation for the phrase
“For such a time as this…” Every year I go and see him and every year he repeats the same advice,
“get lots of rest and exercise, and avoid stressful circumstances”. Every year for the past 9 years I
seem to have gotten those mixed up.
As I’m sure you’re aware, these are hardly stress free, “the future is friendly” kind of days for people
of faith or Christian institutions such as Trinity Western. To be quite candid, I often feel totally
overwhelmed. When I told this to a friend of mine he wisely stated, “If you are taking a lot of flak,
you know one thing; you are over the target”. Despite believing that I am in the right place I still ask
myself, “What am I doing this for?” In a world where nothing seems to last longer than the sales
cycle between iPhone 5 and iPhone 6, I am left asking, “What of enduring value will I leave
behind?” “What is the legacy that I leave?” Who of us really knows? Maybe, it is only at the end of
our lives that we are actually able to answer that question with any degree of certainty.
In the meantime, how do we anticipate leaving a legacy of leadership? How will we be remembered
as leaders?
The two-part dictionary definition of a legacy is: 1. Money or property bequeathed to another by
will. 2. Something handed down from an ancestor or a predecessor or from the past.
We all know that the legacy of money is a poor substitute for most things and often has the effect of
spoiling relationships and ruining lives rather than building them. However, the legacy we are
speaking about this morning is something handed down from a predecessor or from the past.
Aging is a curious thing. Despite the fact that getting older starts happening the moment we are
born, it does seem that the older we get the more we become conscious of what we are losing. And
this saddens or maddens us. We don’t want to lose what we have. We don’t want to see our lives
come to an end. We don’t want to have to grapple with disease and disability. We desperately cling
to our youth and the prowess of our earlier days. We ride motorcycles. We workout at the gym.
We mourn the loss of many things. And maybe that’s all natural.
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But let me challenge you to see the positive side of growing older. That diminishing number of days
left in our all too short lives are actually a reminder; a daily, hourly, minute by minute tap on the
shoulder from God reminding us of our mortality; trying to convince us that time is the ultimate
nonrenewable resource. And we can choose whether to live it exclusively for our own enjoyment, or
live it to leave a legacy. Our narcissistic age usually devalues what we cannot see and experience
today. We are like Esau who traded his future to Jacob to satisfy his appetite. We must maintain
perspective.
As Paul said, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly
we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us eternal
glory that far outweighs them all. So fix our eyes not on what is seen, but one what is unseen. For
what is seen is temporary, what is unseen is eternal.” I call it LIVING TO LEAVE A LEGACY.
Now, what does all of this have to do with leadership?
I’ve studied leadership most of my life, not because I aspired to that calling, but because I was
intrigued by what made leaders great, what made them fall, what made them stumble but then
recover, and what made the ordinary extraordinary. You see, I have found myself in leadership many
more times than I have chosen that role. Truth be known, the more I learn about leadership, the
more that I understand why so many people shy away from the challenge of its calling.
Let me share with you this morning a number of what I will call secrets about how to leave a legacy
of leadership. They come in easy A-B-C format. Growing up in a Baptist church I knew that every
sermon had 3 points, typically with some alliteration or other catchy way to remember them. Under
each heading I will ask you some challenging questions and make some counterintuitive statements
about which I expect you may disagree.
A. Aspiration
Why do you want to be a leader? What is your true motivation? My hypothesis is: “the more you
want to be a leader, aspire to be in leadership, and pursue it relentlessly, the less likely you are to be a
good leader”. In other words, the more you want it the less likely you should have it. We are all
prone to seek after the popularity, power, prestige, position, and even the profit that may be gained
through leadership. However, in my view, there is only one true basis, one pure motivation, upon
which leadership must be based if it is to leave a legacy of any significance; the motivation to serve
others. It is the servant leader whom we trust and follow.
When I look at leadership in the Bible, the men and women leaders who lived out their calling did
not do so for themselves. In fact, they rarely sought out leadership, but rather had it thrust upon
them. I think of Daniel, Moses, Noah, Jonah, Esther, and even David. The degree to which one
crowns oneself, like Napoleon did, one becomes less of a leader and more of a dictator. It is not the
people who serve a leader, but the leader who must serve the people. It is in the best interests of the
followers, caring for those who are being led, and loving those who need leadership that
distinguishes the worth of a leadership legacy left behind.
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So my first point is that every leader, in order to have a legacy worth leaving, must probe and
continue to probe at his or her driving motivation. For a leader must be prepared to sacrifice the
comfortable and the self-serving.
Recently, with my Parkinson’s disease advancing, I have felt every one of my 62 years of age and
wondered about my ability to sustain my leadership in such a young fast-paced world. I found solace
in the final words of Lord Alfred Tennyson’s poem “Ulysses”.
Though much is taken, much abides;
And though we are not now that strength which in old days moved earth and heaven,
That which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts, made weak by time and fate,
But strong in will to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
Why are you in leadership? Do you feel irresistibly called into leadership? Test your motives against
the wisdom of Psalm 78:72, which says: “And David led them with a pure heart and guided them
very wisely”.
B. Belief
Leadership, flowing, as it must, from a servant heart, cannot be self-serving. If you are called into
leadership, it is a trust, which is not your own but belongs to those who follow you. It is a trust
which must be protected, nurtured and your role as its caretaker must be constantly subject to
accountability. Sustainable leadership necessitates a belief, faith in the leader, that the leader and the
leader’s direction are trustworthy.
Faith in a leader is not the same as appreciation. Leaders who look to others for appreciation are
doomed to failure. This is because of two things. Firstly, you begin looking for appreciation rather
than simply doing the right thing, whether appreciated or not. Secondly, appreciation is like a
narcotic. You can never get enough. Once you start believing your press clippings, your popularity
polls, compliments of your “yes men”, your ability to lead is impaired.
As a lawyer who has specialized in dealing with charities and not-for-profit agencies over the past 35
years, I have had the opportunity to evaluate many different kinds of leaders. A lawyer is prone to
see leaders at their worst, unadorned. Over the last 3 decades something that I have learned to look
for in leaders is humility. Unfortunately, it is a rare character trait, perhaps because it cannot be
attained by or clearly recognized in oneself. It is not a skill nor an action. It is an attitude of
appreciation, an acknowledgment of weakness. Humility is often confused for weakness. But a
leader with humility recognizes his or her weaknesses and is stronger because of that recognition.
There is a thankfulness about humility that recognizes life as a gift of which none of us are
deserving.
How does one develop a servant heart, the character of humility? It cannot be conjured up or
studied like a textbook. It starts with the ability to look deep within and acknowledge one’s
limitations and weaknesses. The servant heart comes from enduring loss, pain, and struggle in such a
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way that produces strength of will and softness of heart. The servant leader has never “arrived”. In
fact, on every journey, a leader leaves behind part of herself or himself.
Are you a servant leader or a self-serving leader? Do others define you as humble?
C. Communication
If you die without a will there is no legacy. The property and possessions are distributed without
taking the deceased’s wishes into account. In order to leave a legacy it must be communicated. This
is where many of us fail as leaders seeking to leave a legacy. How do you best communicate?
My father died 5 years ago from complications related to Parkinson’s disease. He was a very rugged
but quiet man, not particularly comfortable in social gatherings or emotional exchanges, partly
because of his personality and partly because his lack of education. It was not until late in his life
that I began to realize the value of the legacy he was leaving me. There was no money, but there was
a seemingly endless list of lessons. He taught me how to work hard when no one was watching. He
showed me how to always help others if I could. He taught me to say “I love you”, even when he
could not seem to get those words out himself. He taught me how being right is not always best
when it comes to relationships. He taught me to forgive people easily. He taught me to be generous
but not foolish with money. And, perhaps most importantly, he taught me to accept adversity
because there was so much more to be thankful for.
During the latter stages of his life, dementia left him mostly speechless and incoherent. However,
just before I left on one of my motorcycle trips I was visiting him and asked him if he had any
advice for me. He seemed to think about it for a few minutes, then look in my eyes and stated as
clearly and seriously as if I were a 12-year-old kid, “Just don’t be stupid”. And then he smiled. I
consider that part of my legacy from my father.
I believe it is important that as we age we must consider ways in which to communicate the legacy
we wish to leave. So easily time will steal from you; your eyesight, your hearing, your endurance,
muscle tone, and even mental acuity. What will you demand in return? Will you gain insight in place
of eyesight; will you learn how to listen to the unspoken when it is difficult to hear words? Will you
learn patience in place of endurance; will you gain mental toughness when muscles disappoint you?
And will you gain wisdom when your quickness of wit dissipates? How will you choose to leave a
legacy as you age? Will you be angry, bitter, self-absorbed, or just plain grumpy and unforgiving? Or
will you, in the words of Ulysses, insist that, “Old age hath yet his honor and his toil; death closes
all: but something ere the end, some work of noble note, may yet be done.”
In order to leave a legacy of leadership, let me urge you to practice 4 different powerful
communication skills that I believe are used by the best leaders. These are counterculture and
counterintuitive in our world. But these skills can, in themselves, be a remarkable legacy.
1. What is the most difficult communication skill? – to LISTEN with interest; listen to
understand not just to respond.
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2. What is the most highly developed communication skill? – to OBSERVE carefully; body
language and especially the eyes.
3. What is the most avoided communication skill? – BEING SILENT, patiently to know the
power of silence for it gives freedom and peace.
4. What is the most loved communication skill? – QUESTIONING, honestly, as this
communicates caring and importance, and allows for understanding.
For myself, I want to leave a legacy of leadership by encouraging others to fight back against the
progressively degenerative disease that tries to define what I cannot do. I want to live my life defined
by what I can still do. The 50 cc ride is just an example of providing encouragement to ask the
question, “How can I take on the challenges that life has given me?” “How can I serve as an
example for others to follow?” To a greater or lesser extent, all of us will leave a legacy. Others will
watch and draw conclusions about us and what we truly believe in, not just what we talk about.
Indeed, each of us are engaged in a challenging and risky test of our will and commitment. It is
called life; life in which we must endure despite the challenges we face; life leadership that leaves a
legacy of encouragement to others.
-------------There was no real prize for succeeding in completing the 50 cc cross-country adventure within the
time allotted. Just a certificate, a sticker, and a license plate frame. But that didn’t matter, we wanted
to finish on time. And we did! With 20 minutes to spare our 50 hour journey ended with 2 sleepdeprived, sweaty, dead dog tired bikers hugging at a Shell gas station within a mile of the Atlantic
Ocean.
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