WHO AM I?

EXERCISE:

1. Enumerate five positive characteristics that make you a human person?

2. How are they manifested in your life as a son/daughter, a young resident in your
barangay, and as a student of Mater Dei College?

Group Dynamics

Divide the students into smaller groups and let them share the output to their
group mates for about 10 minutes. Let each group choose a facilitator, a secretary, and
a reporter. Remind the secretary to summarize the sharing and let the reporter share
the outcome to the bigger group during the plenum.

Introductory input

In her book Christianity Morality and Ethics, Nery has presented the nature of the
human person, classified them into:

 In Relation to Self

o Has intellect and free will, has dignity, Created in the image and likeness
of God, Ambivalent, Limited, Unique, Embodied subject

 In Relation to Others

o Social Being, Relational, Of equal value with others

 In Relation to Society

o Intervenor, Patriot

 In Relation to the World

o Work, caretaker, voluntary simplicity

 In Relation to God

o Transcendent, having conscience, child of God

In Relation to Self

Articulating the personal characteristics is a manifestation of one’s intellect and

will. It entails full knowledge of oneself, meaning a total awareness of your own
personal strength and weaknesses as a person.

Dignity resides in every person because it is God’s most special gift to the most
special creature like you. It is the most valuable asset that every person possesses.
Thus, no one has the right to take it from you except God.

Our being ambivalent reminds us of our frailties and limitations. Our nakedness
upon birth manifests the nothingness in us. And since we are born to be unique
individuals, the moment we look deeper into ourselves in relation to other people, we
are confronted with our being limited, hence we tend to be unpredictable.

The self is an embodied subject for we go beyond survival. We have the

capacity to transcend beyond ordinary demands of life. As an embodied subject, we
recognize that the spirit is responsible for making us stay alive, aspire or dream, hope
for the future, and above all communicate with God for our spirit is the God in us.

In Relation to Others

If he grows apart from social relations, even though he is gifted person, he

cannot do upright walking peculiar for him to say nothing of speaking and thinking. In
other words, man cannot be said to be a real man only with his biological birth, and only
when man forms social collective and lives in social relations, will he be able to exist
and develop as a man.

For the existence and development of man, the social relations become an
indispensable and permanent conditions and herein lies the essential meaning that man
is a social being.

We, human being are the most intelligent species in the world. One of the main
reasons being - we communicate.

We have been evolving since ages. There was time when zero was not even
invented. There was time when telephone, internet and all the
gadgets/inventions/discoveries were not taken place. We see this big difference only in
human race but not in any other species living on this earth.

Also, we socialize meaning we talk, discuss, dance, sing, have public gatherings,
maintain a friendly atmosphere and many others to keep moving our race forward and
advanced. We live in a community rather than in isolation. So, we are called as social
beings.

Though some of us are gifted with many talents compared to others, each person
is of equal value with others for the reason that we are all created by God in His own
image and likeness. The God –ness of God is in each of us. We are reflection of God’s
attributes; loving, understanding, caring, responsible, just, etc. God has given each of
us an equal value; dignified individual and that is our common ground.

In Relation to Society

Part and parcel of socialization process, if not, the outcome is the establishment
of community of communities. If communities are formed, society is also formed.
Society does not and could not exist without individuals and individuals cannot attain
his/her full potentials without society. In that sense, the individual is an intervenor of
society, thus he/she may be a patriot or a deviant of society. A patriot does something
for the betterment of the society. A deviant, on the other hand, does something against
the society and the norms prescribed by society itself.

In Relation to the World

God told Adam, after committing the original sin “Cursed is the ground because
of you! In toil you shall eat its yield all the days of your life.....By the sweat of your brow
you shall eat bread (Gen. 3:17 & 19).” With this, it is very evident that part of survival
and finding for meaning in life, every human person is called to work. It is our vocation
to work. We work because God call us to work. Yet working is always in the context of
others not only of our individual self.

It is in working that we fulfil God’s commandment for us, the earth and all its
resources are there to be developed, complete, and enhanced and not to be abused. In
so doing, God will commend “Good slave, because you can be trusted with smaller
things, I will entrust to you bigger things.” This is a reminder to all of us that everything
around us is there to be protected and enhanced because we are only caretakers and
not owners. The urgency of protecting the environmental resources, specifically, is at
stake.

In Relation to God

The self, others, society, and the world are all nothing without DUE consideration
of the one who is responsible for everything, i.e. GOD.

It is very ironical that many of us are more engaged into self-

satisfaction/fulfilment which may include other members of the family without taking into
account others, the society, the world and more importantly the source of everything
and everyone. Many are too absorbed with accumulating financial resources at the
expense of others, the society, and the world, yet failed to realize that they remain to be
living with people, in the society, and in the world. More significantly have not seen the
reality that people who died bring nothing.
 Thus, if God is the ultimate purpose or aim of every person, why can’t we change
our approach and make an amendment to ourselves that would lead us to
RECONNECTION with God. God has given each of us the gift of intellect for us to use
in order to become closer to Him.

To capsulize everything said above is not just a matter of answering the question
What is man in general?...But deals with man in the concrete, particular...who asks lots
of questions in life? Yet ‘he/she’ himself/herself is the question.

The one who asks the question (THE SUBJECT) itself becomes the question or
is the question. And, the question is: WHO AM I? Ordinarily, we do not bother to ask
this question seriously. In our everyday life and routine, it is surprising and even foolish
to ask this question: Who Am I?

There are two possible reasons: 1. We seem and assume to know ourselves
certainly and clearly. The answer to this question seems so obvious and certain to us
we have ready-made, reliable, habitual and acceptable answers by which we easily
dismiss the question, by which we do not allow the question to bother us and to make
us think critically and deeply. 2. We are so busy and engrossed with so many things,
that life will go one even if we do not answer this question seriously or we do not
question our ready-made answer on the contrary, taking the question seriously or
questioning our ready-made answers will just distract us from what concerns at the
moment.

We tend to confront this question seriously when we are at the point of:

Existential Break – means the breaking of the regular pattern of our life, such that we
cannot go one anymore as we are used to.

Limit-Situation – means a situation where we experience more intensely our limitation or

finitude, which awakens us to the limits of our ordinary experience, views, etc. For
example: death sickness, tragedy, failure, etc.

With these, we cannot go on without self-examination, we are brought to confront

ourselves, to ask questions about ourselves..

Why is this happening to me?

Where have I gone wrong?
What does this mean to me?
Where does this lead me to? (Gonzalvo, 2016)

Assessment:

Let us go back to the positive characteristics you have shared to your group
mates. Get hold of them. This time align them according to the nature of man
according to Nery, for example: responsible – self, others, society, or world. If you are
done, consider this: of the five nature of man, which is weighted most? Do it
mathematically by putting numbers.

Conclusion

If they are not balance, specially if you have more numbers with self, others,
society, and the world over God. Then something has to be done SERIOUSLY!

WHO IS AN MDCIAN?

EXERCISE

1. Are you an MDCian?

2. What makes you so if you claim to be one?

Note:

Take note of all the answers coming from the students as your basis in aligning
their personal character traits and the values we are trying to indoctrinate to them as
MDCian attributes.

An MDCian is literally a person who is studying at Mater Dei College and or

working in a catholic learning institution. But will it guarantee the claim?

MDC As An Institution

As articulated in her vision statement Mater Dei College exists with the zeal to
promote a community of dedicated educators and community-oriented students who
search for truth which lead to WISDOM, CHARITY which is expressed through service,
and PRAYER LIFE by living out the gospel or witnessing.

Being truthful, charitable, and prayerful may sound saintly or ideal in the world
which greediness and individualism is the only business, thus, unrealistic in a sense.
Yet the founders dare to be ambitious for a single reason, Mary – the most ordinary
young woman was able to live them out beyond any doubt.

With this, MDC vows to provide holistic, Catholic education to deserving youth
with a preferential option for the economically-disadvantaged of northern Bohol to
enable them to become responsible citizens and servant leaders in nation building.
Hence, her educational institutional efforts revolve around this mission statement.
 The vision and mission statements are substantially manifested into practicing
the institutional core values such as God-loving, excellence, integrity, servant
leadership, loyalty, patriotism, punctuality, environment-friendly, and gender sensitive.

Incorporated in the curricula of the institution, Mater Dei College hope to infuse in
every MDCian the following performance indicators upon leaving the portal of the
institution:

 Manifest excellence in the pursuit of doing their duties and responsibilities as

professionals;

 Demonstrate proficiency in performing tasks;

 Work in accordance with right conduct and positive attitudes;

 Communicate with other people clearly and effectively;

 Make wised decisions with integrity and clarity of intention in problem solving;

 Apply innovative techniques and strategies in meeting local and global demands;

 Show respect to people of different cultures;

 Engage actively in doing research and utilizing the results;

 Show leadership skills in all aspects of life;

 Manifest love of country by responding to the needs of the community with

dynamism and enthusiasm;

 Act as positive catalyst of change towards community development;

 Maintain harmonious relationships with people in the community;

 Behave according to the Marian virtues and ethical standards of morality;

 Maintain a strong sense of integrity amidst life adversities;

 Practice good moral habits;

 Manifest humility in all endeavours;

 Participate in practices as a manifestation of Catholic faith;

 Act as agents of evangelizing the gospel

 Serve as responsible stewards of God’s creation;

 Live a prayerful life;

  Communicate the message effectively and efficiently both in oral and written
forms;

 Engage in purposive communication;

 Express feelings with empathy and respect;

 Demonstrate competence in the use of the language in authentic and

contextualized setting;

 Manifest confidence in his own ethnicity and identity;

 Show appreciation of commonalities with others, recognizing that the share

value may be expressed in diverse ways;

 Show respect of practices of others; and

 Act with sensitivity to the expectations of other cultures and ready to adjust own
behaviour to promote and maintain goodwill (MDC manual).

Now let us lay down all the answers you have to the question “What makes you
and MDC?” Which of the answers resonate with the performance indicators of an
MDCian and which does not? Do you also recognize the other indicators mentioned as
important to you? If yes, how would you personally achieve them? Write your
individual answers in a piece of paper.

Alignment of our own personal characteristics and that of Mater Dei is an

imperative to promote healthy relationship among the members of this institution,
facilitate learning, and create a community of discipleship whose endeavour is anchored
to Mary, our patroness.

Moreover, it brings us to leadership. A leadership quality has to radiate to every

MDC graduate for it can lead to change. And we need to change our ailing society. But
first we have to understand what leadership is all about? How is it to be practiced by a
Christian? And what type of leadership does a Christian has to embrace?

LEADERSHIP

EXERCISE

1. What can you say about the human situation where you are a part of as
youth/Filipino/Christian?

Take note: the framework to be applied should be (ECONOMIC, POLITICAL,

SPIRITUAL, and CULTURAL)

2. What is supposed to be the ideal situation for them as human/Filipino/Christian?

 3. What are the manifest behaviour, principles, and views related to upliftment or
liberation from their concrete situation?

Small group sharing and plenum.

Input:

The Human Situation

SITUATION ECONOMIC POLITICAL SOCIAL RELIGION/CULTURE

WHAT SCARCITY OF VOICELESS INDIVIDUALISTIC FANATIC
FOOD

LANDLESS DEPRIVED VICES FAITH IS WEAK/FOLK

OR RELIGIOSITY
OPPRESSED
IDEAL ABUNDANCE HAS VOICE COMMUNITARIAN INTEGRITY OF FAITH AND
SITUATION ACTION
OWN LAND TO RESPECTED RESPONSIBLE PRINCIPLED
TILL

The concrete situation serves as basis of leadership. A leadership that is not

grounded in the concrete situation is a waste and not a leadership at all.

As human being/Filipino/Christian, we need to understand the prevalent human

situation and the ideal one in order to instil in us the value of visioning the total human
development which is what God wanted from all of us as part of His Divine plan.

We cannot separate ourselves from the objective realities for it is part and parcel
of our human rights and the right to live as expression of being created by God with
dignity. As dignified being we are responsible of creating a situation worthy of our
being. Thus, awareness, addressing the present situation and changing it in
accordance to God’s plan is the spring board to service.

Base on this realization, what is for you a leader or who is a leader? What are
the types, the characteristics, and the purposes of a good leader?

Small Group sharing/plenum

Types Characteristics Purpose

1. Dictator his/her voice is the voice of all followers always agree/

Blind obedience
All decisions come from him/her easier implementation
No participation from subordinates
 2. Democratic clarity of task and decision making members knows their
Roles, tasks, and
obligations
Training members to be
active and responsible
Consultative

3. Liberal not firm can’t stand on what is true

do not care for the members
Can’t make a decision for no initiative
Fear of criticism

4. Political like keep on promising but no just for popularity

Action self serving
supportive but cannot fulfil
any promise

5. Image maker status and prestige seeker image

No perseverance attention seeker
Publicity

6. Messianic does all the work members turns

All knowing very complacent
Knows all the solution no worries
Answers even financial problem

7. Opportunistic exploitative, oppressive, uses power to exploit

Others and can gain
Financial benefits

8. Fake willing to serve but don’t

Have abilities to lead

Characteristics of a Leader

1. Having a vision that is grounded with truth and willingness to work for a solution

A leader who lived up by the truth and is willing to fight against lie which hinders
the realization of the people’s aspiration. And further fight against all forms of
poverty, the root cause of injustices, militarization, etc.

2. Persistently working through mind, words and actions

 A leader of the people entails acceptance of responsibility that is evident
in his/her thought, words and actions. That he/she is willing to commit despite
atrocities, suffering and even willing to lay down one’s life if necessary.

3. Being critical

A good leader is not only contented with what is seen and experience but
continuously seeks for what is more appropriate and what can be done to help the
majority attain the total human development. He/she teaches people to stand own
their own and decides what is best for them. And above all, train people to become
leaders themselves.

4. Has positive outlook and unceasingly work for success and is always open to
learn new things

5. Inspiring and knows how to praise others

6. Has the ability to be with others or always extend to others

7. Principled

A leader is formed through being sincere and honest and persistent not only
to oneself but a model for others, true to being Filipino, and above all truthful to God.

8. Has the ability to share and welcome ideas from others

9. Stand for what is good to the community

Purposes of Leadership

1. Community development; and

2. Service;

Servant Leadership

EXERCISE

After learning about leadership, can you at least name five persons whom you think are
servant leaders? What do they possess that makes them servant leaders?

Small group sharing and plenum

Input

“Servant leadership putting your team first, and yourself second”

The statement suggests selflessness. It is doing things for others before the self.
Ideal but doable for what benefits the people you are serving benefits you.

What Is Servant Leadership?

Robert K. Greenleaf first coined the phrase "servant leadership" in his 1970 essay, "The
Servant as a Leader." However, it's an approach that people have used for centuries.
As a servant leader, you're a "servant first" – you focus on the needs of others,
especially team members, before you consider your own. You acknowledge other
people's perspectives, give them the support they need to meet their work and personal
goals, involve them in decisions where appropriate, and build a sense of community
within your team. This leads to higher engagement, more trust, and stronger
relationships with team members and other stakeholders. It can also lead to
increased innovation.
Servant leadership is not a leadership style or technique as such. Rather it's a way of
behaving that you adopt over the longer term. It complements democratic leadership
styles, and it has similarities with Transformational Leadership – which is often the
most effective style to use in business situations – and Level 5 Leadership – which is
where leaders demonstrate humility in the way they work.
However, servant leadership is problematic in hierarchical, autocratic cultures where
managers and leaders are expected to make all the decisions. Here, servant leaders
may struggle to earn respect.

It starts with the rationale “you are a servant first.” When this statement sinks in
to the aspiring leader, it necessitates the willingness to give ones best to others. It can
be likened to the theological slogan “other-centered.”

As suggested that this type of leadership leads to higher engagement, more

trust, and stronger relationship not only with team members but eventually to a bigger
community.

Furthermore, this form of leadership is synonymous to one of the most appealing

type – transformational leadership. A leadership that aims to change not only the
leaders themselves but all the members of the community.

The question at hand is how to become a servant leader?

This question would eventually lead us to the characteristics of a servant leader

and here they are:
According to Larry C. Spears, former president of the Robert K. Greenleaf Center for
Servant Leadership, these are the 10 most important characteristics of servant
leaders:
1. Listening.

2. Empathy.

3. Healing.

4. Awareness.

5. Persuasion.

6. Conceptualization.

7. Foresight.

8. Stewardship.

9. Commitment to the growth of people.

10. Building community.

1. Listening

You'll serve people better when you make a deep commitment to listening intently to
them and understanding what they're saying. To improve your listening skills , give
people your full attention, take notice of their body language, avoid interrupting them
before they've finished speaking, and give feedback on what they say.

2. Empathy

Servant leaders strive to understand other people's intentions and perspectives. You
can be more empathetic by putting aside your viewpoint temporarily, valuing others'
perspectives, and approaching situations with an open mind.

3. Healing

This characteristic relates to the emotional health and "wholeness" of people, and
involves supporting them both physically and mentally.
First, make sure that your people have the knowledge, support and resources they
need to do their jobs effectively, and that they have a healthy workplace . Then take
steps to help them be happy and engaged in their roles.
You could also use a tool such as the Triple Bottom Line to think about how your
organization can make a positive impact on the people you lead and the customers you
serve.

4. Self-Awareness

Self-awareness is the ability to look at yourself, think deeply about your emotions and
behavior, and consider how they affect the people around you and align with
your values .
You can become more self-aware by knowing your strengths and weaknesses , and
asking for other people's feedback on them. Also, learn to manage your emotions , so
that you consider how your actions and behavior might affect others.

5. Persuasion

Servant leaders use persuasion – rather than their authority – to encourage people to
take action. They also aim to build consensus in groups , so that everyone supports
decisions.
There are many tools and models that you can use to be more persuasive, without
damaging relationships or taking advantage of others. You should also build
your expert power – when people perceive you as an expert, they are more likely to
listen to you when you want to persuade or inspire them.

6. Conceptualization

This characteristic relates to your ability to "dream great dreams," so that you look
beyond day-to-day realities to the bigger picture.

If you're a senior leader in your company, work through and develop a robust
organizational strategy . Then, whatever level

7. Foresight

Foresight is when you can predict what's likely to happen in the future by learning from
past experiences, identifying what's happening now, and understanding the
consequences of your decisions.
You can use tools such as SWOT Analysis and PEST Analysis to think about your
current situation and environment, while Scenario Analysis helps you understand how
the future could play out. Use the ORAPAPA checklist when you make a decision, to
learn from experience and make sure that you've considered all the angles.
Also, learn to trust your intuition – if your instinct is telling you that something is wrong,
listen to it!

The SWOT analysis refers to Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.

PEST on the other hand, refers to Political, Economic, Social, and Technological
analysis.

8. Stewardship

Stewardship is about taking responsibility for the actions and performance of your team,
and being accountable for the role team members play in your organization.

Whether you're a formal leader or not, you have a responsibility for the things that
happen in your company. Take time to think about your own values, as well as those of
your organization, so that you know what you will and won't stand for. Also, lead by
example by demonstrating the values and behaviors that you want to see in others,
and have the confidence to stand up to people when they act in a way that isn't aligned
with them.

9. Commitment to the Growth of People

Servant leaders are committed to the personal and professional development of

everyone on their teams.

To develop your people , make sure that you use Training Needs
Assessments to understand their developmental needs and give them the skills
they need to do their jobs effectively. Also, find out what their personal goals are, and
see if you can give them projects or additional responsibilities that will help them
achieve these.

10. Building Community

The last characteristic is to do with building a sense of community within your

organization.

You can do this by providing opportunities for people to interact with one another across
the company. For instance, you could organize social events such as team lunches and
barbecues, design your workspace to encourage people to chat informally away from
their desks, and dedicate the first few minutes of meetings to non-work-related
conversations.

Encourage people to take responsibility for their work, and remind them how what they
do contributes to the success and overall objectives of the organization.

To further enhance, the key elements of servant leadership is needed.

CORE ELEMENTS OF SERVANT LEADERSHIP

The above section focused broadly on the history and development of the idea, but let’s
turns our focus on the core principles of the servant leadership theory.

Spears and other colleagues have identified four core tenets for servant leadership and
the framework for applying it. The four are: service to others, holistic approach to work,
promoting a sense of community and sharing of power in decision-making.
Service to others
Service to others is often viewed as the moral component of the servant leadership
theory. The whole concept is based on the leader taking the position of a servant in their
interactions with the employees.

The internal thirst to serve is “the key to greatness”, according to Greenleaf’s original
essay. The primary purpose of a servant leader is to motivate others and bring about
the greatness in others, with the organizational success being the indirect outcome of
this approach.

Therefore, a business shouldn’t emphasize the objectives of the organization, but to

ensure the employees and the community it serves are reaching their goals. In essence,
the element refers to ‘doing what’s right’ and could be part of an organization’s decision
to use sustainable supplies, for example.
Holistic approach to work
The second component relates to the emphasis servant leadership puts on serving for
the benefit of others, not just that of the company. Greenleaf wrote in 1996 in his
book On Becoming a Servant-Leader that, “The work exists for the person as much as
the person for the work”.

The holistic approach promotes the idea that individual employees, the organizations
they work for, and the society as a whole are interconnected. As mentioned above, by
instilling servant leadership in an institution, you can ultimately begin to change the
world around you.

The focus of a business should be about encouraging individuals to be who they are
and supporting their personal goals and objectives first. For instance, employee benefits
should be decided on the needs of the individual and not on the long-term interests of
the organization.
Promoting a sense of community
Nonetheless, you also need to promote the success of all stakeholders. For servant
leadership to work, you need different parts of the organization working together. In his
original essay, Greenleaf called for an establishment of a community within
organizations, with groups of individuals coming together. Members of these groups
should not only be liable for themselves, but also for the group as a whole.

To a business, the focus should be on ensuring different stakeholders from investors to

employees are able to work together and to understand the common objectives.
Sharing of power in decision-making
Finally, effective servant leadership requires collaboration in decision-making. In a
sense, a servant leader must have a strong ability to self-reflect and to nurture
participatory culture within the organization. R. F. Russell wrote in his essay The role of
values in servant leadership in 2001, “Leaders enable others to act not by hoarding the
power they have but by giving it away.”

Servant leadership is about breaking the pyramid structure of power and decision-
making. Instead, businesses should aim towards a more flexible process, whereas
decision-making is shared. A good way of doing it is by promoting top-down innovation
and fostering feedback within the organization.

THE QUALITIES OF A SERVANT LEADER

 © Shutterstock | Dooder

The image encapsulates the idea of a servant leader – instead of directing others to
success, a servant leader helps the team by leading through example.

The above ten core elements of servant leadership are also directly related to the
characteristics a servant leader should possess and focus on. But there have been
further focus on the qualities leaders should have.

Russell and Stone proposed a list of 20 attributes servant leaders highlight the most in a
2002 essay A Review of Servant Leadership Attributes: Developing a Practical Model.
They further divided these into nine functional attributes and 11 accompanying
attributes.

The functional attributes to Russell and Stone are intrinsic of servant leaders.

 Vision

 Honesty

 Integrity

 Trust

 Service

 Modelling

 Pioneering

 Appreciation

 Empowerment

The accompanying or enhancing attributes are:

 Communication

 Credibility

 Competency

 Stewardship

 Visibility

 Influence

 Persuasion
 Listening

 Encouragement

 Teaching

 Delegation

Other theorists have added to the lists and refined it further. Dirk van Dierendonck
identified six characteristics of servant behavior in his review of servant leadership
writing. His six included empowering and developing people, authenticity, humility,
stewardship, interpersonal acceptance and the ability to provide a sense of direction.

It’s possible to further identify six key components from the literature. If you want to
become a servant leader, you must be:

 Open-minded – Servant leader has to be open-minded because it focuses heavily on

the idea of development, collaboration and servitude. You must be open to listen to
people’s ideas and to accept their contributions as valuable. It’s crucial that you don’t
just passively take this in, but you need to actively seek out differing opinions, new ways
of looking at things and routes to try challenge the traditional models.

 Trustworthy – For servant leadership to properly work, the organization must be built
on trust between the different shareholders. If the employees don’t trust the leader, the
transformation to a servant leadership won’t take place. Because of the openness, self-
awareness and sense of community, trust must be among the first things you establish
as a leader.

 Helpful – Servant leaders are promoting self-development and wholeness of one’s self.
A leader who lacks empathy and the sense of wanting to help cannot succeed in a
servant role. A servant leader is always looking out for ways they can help and improve
the employee’s life, whether professional or private.

 Selfless – Servant leaders must also put their own ego and needs aside and focus on
the wellbeing of the employee and the whole organization. Furthermore, because of the
emphasis on foresight and conceptualization, a good leader doesn’t just think of the
present moment when making decisions, but the future generations as well.

 Aware – The awareness of your inner self and the awareness of seeing what the
people around you are made of will help become a better servant leader. You need to
identify the skills and the value each person brings to a team, but also to identify the
consequences of different actions. Being able to understand why people behave the
way they do will guide a servant leader to serving better.

 Accountable – Finally, servant leaders should be held accountable. But accountability

is not as much about the punishment, but rather a way to understand that everyone
makes mistakes.
Interestingly, the role of values is highly emphasized in discussion of the attributes of a
servant leaders. Russell outlined in 2001 the belief amongst theorists that says much of
the above attributes are inner values of the leader. Therefore, the thinking is assuming
servant leaders tend to have different value systems, which separates them from other
leadership theories.

Furthermore, servant leadership theory suggests personal values of the leader can
impact the resulting corporate culture. Therefore, a servant leader, just by bringing in his
or her own value and belief systems, can begin to shift the whole culture towards
something unique and different.

Concrete studies on the above hypothesis are yet to be conducted. Nonetheless, in a

2005 study by Joseph and Winston, a positive correlation was observed with a set of
values and organization performance. When the leader’s values showed honesty,
integrity, and benevolence, the organization tended to so more effectiveness and trust.

The Advantages of adopting Servant Leadership

As Greenleaf himself has written, servant leadership is a long-term concept, which

could potentially have an impact on the whole society. It’s therefore a transformative
theory that might change the way people treat leadership, servitude and authority.

Servant leadership has been considered especially powerful at a time when

corporations have found themselves trying to avoid negative press. The ‘self-serving’
leadership styles have created unhealthy power relations within organizations that many
theorists see unattainable. Russell (2001) writes, “Position of power is eroding in many
organizations; therefore, leaders must derive their influence from values”.

Naturally, at the heart of the theory is the idea of creating better employee-leader
relations and this can have a positive impact on a company. A good treatment of
employees and their needs have been shown to improve employee satisfaction,
which can in turn lead to better customer service and productivity. The tools at the
disposal of servant leadership are there.

Since servant leadership listens to a variety of opinions and encourages openness and
discussion, it has the power to improve innovation within the organization. Through
the innovation, the organization can foster and gain competitive advantage over its
competitors.

The openness to ideas and opinion also means servant leadership encourages
diversity within the workplace. Unlike in autocratic styles, the more democratic
approach to opinions can guarantee employees of different kind don’t start feeling
alienated within the organization. If each employee is met with a personalized approach
and concern, team cohesion can remain higher, as people don’t feel unfairly treated by
the leadership.

The theory also has the advantage of emphasizing employee wellbeing and training.
Focus on continuous training is important, as it guarantees the workforce is always on
top of their skillset and aware of any recent developments. Training can also help
secure future leaders for the organization.

As the needs of the employee are at the forefront, servant leadership has the power to
improve work-life balance and boost employee satisfaction. A servant leader is more
likely to adapt new ideas and schemes that can develop a person’s professional and
personal life. These can boost employee loyalty and reduce employee churn.

EXAMPLES OF FAMOUS SERVANT LEADERS

Organizations have taken on servant leadership and reaped its benefits. Below are a
few examples of leaders and organizations, implementing this transformative theory.
Abraham Lincoln
The US president is often considered an excellent example of a servant leader. Dr
Charles M. Hubbard, executive director of the Abraham Lincoln Institute for the Study of
Leadership and Public Policy, writes that Lincoln possessed the two main
characteristics of a servant leader. First, the idea of sustainable change that lasts
through the ages; i.e. the long-term change needed in servant leadership.

But in addition, Lincoln also revolutionized the organization of the US government and
empower the citizens to seek something greater. He embodied the idea of serving the
greater good of the people. According to Hubbard, Lincoln didn’t seek the presidency for
the sake of power, but rather as he felt it was the ultimate position to serve the people of
the country.

In terms of leadership lessons Lincoln’s servant leadership can teach to modern

leaders, Hubbard says the most profound is the idea that:

“True leadership is not about power over others. It should be about change for the
better regardless of the organization you are leading.”
Martin Luther King
If you are looking for a modern servant leader, then the example of Dr Martin Luther
King is a powerful one. James Perry wrote in the Huffington Post in 2010 that Dr King
thought people the true ideals of a servant leader – “one who offers an inclusive vision;
listens carefully to others; persuades through reason; and heals divisions while building
community”.

Perhaps different to other servant leaders, Dr King understood the long-term

implications of the idea. He once said, “Change does not roll in on the wheels of
inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle”. He wasn’t interested in the
personal accolades, but for the justice and equality of all people. He knew that by
helping others and enabling them to reach greatness, he could enjoy more in the
present.
TDIndustries
TDIndustries is an American company closely associated with the servant leadership
theory. The company’s founder Jack Lowe Sr. read about servant leadership and the
concept had a profound impact on him. He later implemented the model in his
burgeoning company.

The company has truly taken with the theory and employees are required to take
courses on servant leadership. Furthermore, supervisors within the company are
regularly assessed on how well they are implementing the ideals of Greenleaf and
others.

Maureen Underwood, VP of the people department at TDIndustries, told Axiom News,

commitment to the idea requires plenty of work and dedication. She said the whole
concept boils down to the idea of personal values. “It’s just about being a person who
listens, a leader who is dedicated to growing people,” Underwood said.

The company also shows its commitment to the principle of building a community and
taking care of its employees through the way it deals with profit. TDIndustries divides
around 30% of the profits between the retirement savings plan and employment stock
ownership plan. In addition, it doesn’t have any separate schemes for its executives –
all are equal within the company.
Festival Foods
Festival Foods is a relatively small business chain in the US, which adopted servant
leadership over a decade ago. In Success, chairman David Skogen explained the
philosophy and how the company has benefited from the approach.

According to Skogen, the servant leadership idea the company uses the most is the
idea of persuasion, or in their case “remind more than instruct”. The company’s
employees gather every morning and go through the performance of yesterday. It’s a
common practice of comparing annual sales and identifying things that have been
different, as well as outlining the road forward.

But in addition, servant leadership changes have added an element of having each
person at the meeting a chance to input their own ideas, hopes and dreams to the
conversation. According to Skogen, these can range from ideas regarding the
organization’s operations to personal ideas such as asking for prayers.

The idea is to provide an opportunity for everyone to speak. This creates an

atmosphere of openness within the organization. It also ensures the communication
lines between the people at the top and below are open. Skogen says it creates a
‘trickle down effect’ of servitude and helpfulness.

Furthermore, Skogen reminds that servant leadership isn’t easy and it didn’t result in an
overnight change in corporate culture. But there was a shift in attitude that meant
employees and leaders started a day thinking, “It’s a privilege to work for us and just be
thankful you have a job”.
Finally, check out the below clip by CNN on how servant leadership shows on
Kimpton’s business model:

MDCian as Servant Leader

EXERCISE

If given only 24 hours to live and be an MDCian servant leader, what are you going to
do? Give the details of your answers, per hour if possible.

What does it take to be an MDCian Servant Leader?

In the previous pages, we have been talking about personal character traits
intertwined with an MDC attributes that would eventually mould us to become leaders in
our own context, however, the urgency and appropriateness of servant leadership is
what we uphold because it’s Mama Mary’s way of serving Jesus, the Apostles, the
Christian communities in her time and even God.

Here are some of the tangible things that an MDCian has to continually practice
while still in the portal of MDC and even become habitual action in the real world.

An MDCian servant leader must:

1. Set time in a day to prayer

As a member of a Catholic institution, students and teachers are enjoined

to exercise religious practices such as individual prayer or devotion,
praying the Holy Rosary, and more importantly, valuing the highest form of
prayer: the Holy Eucharist.

2. enhance leadership capability building

Mater Dei College is not only an academic and a catholic institution; she
also trains students to become leaders of their own. The recognition of
different campus organizations are avenues to leadership capability
building.

3. Seriously give priority to environmental issue

 MDCian need not to become experts in ecology to identify ecological
imbalance but, it our very simple ways we can preserve mother earth by
being serious with our advocacy of zero plastic. Segregation of garbage is
a step to protect mother earth.

4. Empowerment

Administrators and teachers must introduce and practice empowerment.

As a learning institution, it is very important to empower students for
eventually they will become leaders themselves. Mentoring and trust are
two important components in the realization of this initiative for if practice
efficiency and effectiveness takes place.

5. Take initiative in the promotion of share leadership

An effective leader always value others and is willing to share talents,

skills, and time to effect better and effective leadership. Immersion to
adopted barangays is fundamental venues to enhance and be enhanced
with leadership skills.

6. Be willing to learn more

Learning is a life-long process. What we learn today may not necessarily

be applicable tomorrow. Leadership is not just a matter of being with
people but teaching people to be efficient and effective.

7. Be virtuous

One of the hindrances in promoting servant leadership model is the

incapacity or reluctance of leaders to embrace a virtuous life. Humility,
perseverance, patience, understanding are some of the virtues essential
to a leader. No matter how you master the 2nd to 6th skills if the 1st and the
7th are not practice, servant leadership makes no sense.
References:

Gonzalvo, Romeo: Philosophy of the Human Person, Intramuros, Manila,

Mindshapers Co., Inc. 2016.

Greenleaf, Robert, K: Essay: The Servant as A Leader

Nery, Maria Imelda Pastrana: Christian Morality and Ethics, Mandaluyong

City, National Book Store, 2010

Christian Leadership compilation, Sinagtala

Russel, R.F: Essay: A Review of Servant Leadership Attributes, 2002.

Kimpton’s Business Model.

Mater Dei College Manual