Inside-First Leaders A Perspective
December 1, 2003 - Author: Buck Elliott
As I seek to understand the foundation of inside first leaders, I offer this perspective:
This person is someone who leads from the heart, aspires to truly know themselves and act accordingly. They know that a true leader is really a learner and servant first and understands this is not given by simple intention but earned by attentive practice. That practice involves holding the center in the midst of the fire, hearing what needs to be heard without judgement and then responding accordingly in the interest of encouraging the right actions to emerge.
This is a person who stands by their principles but is also willing to be challenged by them, because they understand the value in letting go as much so as holding on. This is a person who acts with integrity because they recognize that every moment is a teachable moment, and they humbly acknowledge that our deepest lessons are always within us. They recognize that being mindful of the circumstances that are present around us may help us recognize who we are and also who we are capable of becoming.
The inside first leader is a seeker who practices the art of the middle way, and through that practice is always exploring the perimeters of their principles and their spirit. This is a person who recognizes that we all carry the veil of our past and know that its presence can overshadow our true nature. This is a person who willingly imposes an awareness of the outside in order to know the inside.
And somewhere in this journey is a quest to identify and deepen their spiritual calling, practiced in whatever tradition embraces the soul. The inside first leader knows that their actions and their heart can be both empowered from the spirit as well as limited by it. To know the difference may be the understanding or the “standing under” that we seek in the ultimate act of practicing servant leadership. And servant leadership may well be the foundation of inside first leaders.
I would hope that the VLI inside first perspective could evolve from the collective anthropology that resides within all of us who have agreed to serve, and that we seek to understand how that contributes to the story we
purport to tell through the programs we offer and the lives we hope to empower, including our own.
