THE ETHOS OF TRUE LEADERSHIP

Leadership & Authentic Greatness: An Ethos of «Herrschaft» (Lordship/Dominion)

In his essay on power, Guardini also speaks of “the very possibility of action”. Humans like to understand the course of history as a process that necessarily takes place, but, Guardini says:

“This view is wrong. Man is determined by spirit; but the spirit is free. Man is not determined by history, but is a determiner of history; in this sense history doesn’t rule us, but rather ruled by us, and can be ruled well or ruled quite badly." **(the word for “ruled” here is the word for lordship/domion)

So how do you deal appropriately with power? Guardini calls for an "ethos of dominion/lordship". The prerequisite for this is Humility which is a “virtue of strength, not weakness”, which “requires an immense courage and dedication” to commit oneself to the service of others through humility.

Social ethicist Markus Vogt:

“Many people shrink back at first and don't want to hear anything about humility. But I believe that beneath the surface there is actually a longing to rediscover the courage to serve. And I also think happiness depends on recognizing your own limits. Thus humility — the willingness to admit one's own mistakes openly."

Romano Guardini's conclusion also applies to us in the 21st century, perhaps more than ever: Man must learn again that lordship over the world presupposes lordship over ourselves, which is the essence of leadership.