vladimirgrebenar 
If we observe people’s behavior, and if we also think about our behavior, we can easily realize that we have a tendency to quickly forget the good we received from other people, the Church, society, education, sports, heroes of the Homeland War… Unfortunately, many people do not even see the good they receive every day, so they are not able to keep a minimum of gratitude in themselves for a long time. It is amazing how often we forget important decisions and successes in which others have helped us and because of which we would not have the life we live today.
In contrast, every injustice we have personally experienced or a wound we have suffered is remembered and carried deep within us. The same is true in business organizations or relationships in society. For example, many workers complain to their employers and managers that there is not enough fairness in the organization, that wages are not high enough, that it would be good to make this or that decision. Also, the same people complain about injustices in society and poor leadership of political authorities. Unfortunately, very few such people have the courage and faith to ask: “Can I take the responsibility and initiative and bring about change for the greater benefit and growth of all?”
Few citizens are ready to raise their voices and stand up against injustice and participate in a civic initiative. Most people mostly say that things don’t work best, but on the other hand they don’t do anything to change those things. Most people rarely start ventures in life to correct things they consider unfair and wrong. The choice of most people is to passively wait for someone else to do something and solve the problem.
Given that leaders in organizations and politics have the greatest responsibility, most expect that these leaders should change things for the better so that everyone is happy and prosperous. Many people do not seem to have a sense of responsibility for their own faults, difficulties and failures, nor for contributing to such a state of society. This is not some new knowledge, but a description of what is contained in the books of wisdom of the Old Testament from three thousand years ago.
“Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?“ (Eccles. 1:2-3). Man is more or less vain, and extremely vain people suffer in vain as it is written in the Bible. Leaders and individuals when they want to change things for the better have the challenge of overcoming three types of spiritual evil: personal vanity, other people’s vanity, and general oblivion. Whatever we try to do good for the community, we will face our own vanity and the vanities of other people.
Leaders in any endeavor, political, military or business, must put their personal interests last, and that is the place behind the interests of the organization they manage. Leaders must first overcome personal vain interests and then other people’s vain interests for the common good of all. Leaders who want to achieve great success must always put the interests of the organization they manage first.
The interests of the organization are often not the interests of many vain people. Because of the vanity, fears and selfishness of many people who are part of the collective, leaders have an even more difficult task. A leader’s task when implementing change is not only to subordinate personal interests to organizational interests, but even more, to confront many vain people. In the end, when some change for the better is made, then over time the majority forgets.
We can cite one religious, political and business example. When Moses led the Israelite community out of Egypt, he first had personal resistance to the calling. He said to God, “Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?” (Ex. 3:11). When he accepted the mission for the common good, he had to confront Pharaoh and many Israelites who objected to any change until the crossing of the Red Sea. Finally, part of the Israelite community in complete freedom in the Sinai Desert expressed the worst ingratitude to God and Moses by worshiping the golden calf as a pagan deity. God knew that they were ungrateful, so He told them through Moses: “And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart (…) And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates” (Deut. 6:6-9). We can cite another example from our recent past.
When our beautiful homeland was reborn after many centuries in the Homeland War, when party comrades watched how they should leave power after half a century, and after cowardly surrendering weapons to the enemy, President Tuđman accepted the leadership position in the most difficult historical circumstances.
The first president confronted the leader of a militarily superior and more numerous enemy who even tried to kill him in an air raid.
A firm stance in defending the interests of the homeland and confronting the enemy and domestic opponents of independence, touched the hearts of many people who went to the defensive war, although it seemed lost at the beginning.
Then we had a strong leader and a stronger faith in God.
Today we have a homeland and freedom for which so many defenders have subordinated their personal interests and life and which is threatened by new challenges because of the personal interests of false leaders willing to form a coalition with both the enemy and the short-sightedness of most peoples.
Religious and political leadership are in a way a model of events in business organizations as well.
Few people know that in the active working population in the Republic of Croatia, almost half have undesirable forms of work motivation.
In other words, their behaviors as workers and managers are not desirable to employers.
Also, such behaviors cannot start your own business ventures or ventures in an organization.
Characteristics of such behavior are frequent accusations of superiors, reactivity at work, resistance to change for the better, propensity to idleness, and avoidance of responsibility. Such workers were described in the middle of the last century by one of the greatest scientists of occupational psychology, Douglas McGregor, as the X working population that leaders must firmly control in order to give any result. However, a leader who spends time controlling X workers misses an opportunity to create. Such people do not create, take more than they give, blame other people, and have the capacity only to do the job unwillingly.
Modern development cannot guarantee jobs to workers with such behavior. As crude as this may seem, this is true of the work and creation that Jesus Himself defended when He condemned a third servant who received only one talent to “weeping and gnashing his teeth” because he created nothing and because he defended himself by manipulating how he was honest and small. Thus, such behavior is a grave sin in work and can lead a person to eternal ruin. Being employed and not being aware and not wanting to know if I deserve a salary is a delusion to myself and a burden to others.
How many people realize this or think about it at all? The assumption that the state is responsible for creating jobs and enabling everyone to work and live in well-being is only partially a minor truth. Greater responsibility is on the individual, who will eventually stand before the Creator and be accountable for his actions. When we will look one another “face to face” in “that day”, those we accused of personal failures will not be with us.
Leaders and individuals who want to do good for the interest of a community will inevitably come into confrontation with people. Instead of gratitude, they will often experience quick forgetfulness and ingratitude. That is why it is important to have the Lord on your side who is your “protection and shield.” People who love and follow the Lord are not afraid of other people who are enemies of good. Whenever I need to do good for the common good and fear imposes itself as a barrier, I need to know that faith is the only way to win. That is why many leaders who want to do good and who are not firmly in Christ cannot serve others as true leaders.
Fears that are not overcome by faith reduce leadership potential and such leaders fall into selfishness, careerism, and corruption. Leaders who cannot overcome their fears and vanities and the negative words and actions of other people are not good leaders. When difficult moments come, such people waver and recoil in face of temptations. Their leadership becomes a disappointment for those who lead.
All who are educated and strive to take responsibility and lead others one day should learn from the example of Jesus Christ, the leader of all leaders. Jesus subordinated his interests to the common good of the Church, that is, of all people. Death on the cross is a shameful death. Jesus, as the perfect leader, accepted His own shame and confrontation with the authorities and evil people in order to leave everyone with an invaluable success – eternity.
Jesus’ success is the resurrection and the Church. Jesus is a leader who has given the opportunity for change even to those who have committed crimes against Him. Jesus is giving us today an example and an opportunity for change, you and me, all people. He invites the proactive, innovative people, eager for life and fulfillment, full of love and compassion for others to settle in the kingdom of heaven already here on earth. He promises and fulfills the realization of the full meaning of life to those who are ready to subordinate their interests and who are ready to confront evil people.
Jesus promises and fulfills spiritual and material well-being to all who follow His example of leadership. The lukewarm people do not enter the kingdom of heaven on earth or in heaven. Jesus said: “the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force” (Matt. 11:12). [1]