Having a servant leader seems unusual, yet it is crucial to the servant leadership ideology. It is best to prioritize followers’ needs to increase performance and efficiency. My previous voluntary experience reflected servant leadership concepts, and I desire to be a more model leader. This study examines the benefits of the servant leadership concept, its aspects, and its implementation in the actual world.
Servant leadership promotes power-sharing in decision-making, a feeling of community, a holistic work perspective, and improved service to others. Servant leaders create empowering, participative cultures that engage and inspire employees, resulting in a successful business. Individual servant-leader activities can build a feeling of community among workers, helping them achieve corporate goals (Davis, 2017). A servant leader’s primary goal and incentive are to elevate people, whereas business success is a by-product of servant-leadership.
Servant leaders are revolutionary, reversing old power structures. The new hierarchy positions workers at the top and leaders at the bottom, serving them. Southwest Airlines, founded by Herb Kelleher, displays servant leadership in action. As a result of the founder’s employee-first mentality, the company has enjoyed almost three decades of profitable growth, a remarkable feat in the volatile airline sector. Barter, another servant leader, grew Datron’s income by $190 million in half a dozen years (Tarallo, 2018). These remarkable outcomes reflect beneficial adjustments in internal processes.
Volunteering has given me fresh ideas on life in recent years. In 2014, I realized why I was a great addition to a hospital as a volunteer. I first volunteered at the local hospital to fulfill a service obligation for my school’s honor society. After my first week of volunteering, I developed a passion for assisting others. Volunteers are essential at hospitals because they are a community of individuals working together to safeguard the lives of hundreds of people. I met pharmacists who worked hard to ensure every patient received the right prescription. It took a long time for the pharmacists to distribute the medicine to the various hospital levels. I helped them out by bringing prescriptions to all hospital floors. The event offered me joy since I was able to assist vital healthcare personnel and help patients get well with the proper treatment.
I had another exceptional encounter in 2016. My friends and I planned a bake sale for a support organization over the Easter vacation. We had a baking sale at our school’s church. Perhaps this was my most enjoyable moment. My friends and I believed we could assist youngsters with deadly illnesses like Lymphoma by pleasing them. The charity met these sick children’s requests with the $4 230 we earned during our baking sale. When I volunteer, I never consider personal rewards. I constantly think about how my help will benefit others. The satisfaction of knowing that my help can make a difference in someone’s life is enough to motivate me to volunteer.
It was 1878 when the Benedictine Sisters of the Annunciation first came to the Dakota Territory. The Sisters created the University of Mary with the same Benedictine beliefs that had governed them for so long. These ideas derive from a 6th-century style of living known as the Rule of Saint Benedict. They include community, hospitality, moderation, prayer, respect for persons, and service.
The Benedictine monastic community is where reciprocal service, particularly in daily life, is expected of everyone without hope of compensation. Contributing to a flesh and blood community under such conditions is difficult. Individual communities, monastic forefathers, and the global communion of saints all cultivate the necessary character traits. The commitments and ambitions of Benedictine life can only produce fruit if they are universal. At the University of Mary, I worked with charity organizations to support the needy in society, from orphans to the elderly to the homeless. It was an honor to serve these people. I intend to advance my volunteer services internationally now that I have graduated.
Hospitality is an openness to the familiar and a gathering to debate and explore the mystery of one’s self. No visitor should ever feel or perceive that their entrance or presence incurs unwarranted additional work. A speaker moved me in a Benedictine seminar I attended years ago at the University of Mary when he requested that all students be received like Christ. Benedictine hospitality extends beyond the Guest House and Gift Shop. Hospitality is a virtue I cannot neglect. I will continue welcoming guests warm-heartedly.
Moderation Benedictine emphasizes living modestly with thankfulness and respect for God’s creation. At the University of Mary, we planted trees every rainy season and cleaned plastics from the rivers annually. I will take what I need and not waste resources. I will be grateful for what I own and give back. When I give of my possessions and myself, I am giving my soul more than I could ever seek in this world.
Benedictine schools foster an essential sensitivity to God’s presence in the human intellect and heart and all creation. Nothing is preferable to prayer, as St. Benedict alludes. Individual spiritual reading, also known as Lectio Divino in Latin, is a Benedictine practice that supports and deepens daily meditation. The daily transition between ordinary liturgy and Lectio Divino allows a person to cultivate characteristics and virtues like compassion, honesty, and bravery. At the University of Mary, we prayed thrice daily, in the early morning, noon, and late evening. Although difficult to explain, daily prayers with the leading Holy Spirit always provided me guidance and grace favors. I will continue praying to overcome challenges and seek a satisfying life.
According to St. Benedict, we respect others by recognizing God’s image in each individual and acknowledging their gifts and limits. Our distinctions build our identity. Unique distinctions occur, yet we are all equal as members of society. Respect is given to all individuals for being humans. Equilibrium exists. The ability to value oneself is essential for valuing others. At the University of Mary, I always respected my peers, appreciated their capabilities, and supported them. When establishing expectations, I will always bear in mind the limits of others and their strengths and shortcomings.
The last rule of Benedictine, service, involves taking care of others like Jesus, the servant leader, did. Serving others brings joy and meaning to many. They may never ponder why, but they enjoy the delight it brings. Others seek and appreciate the accolades that service to others can provide. Their efforts are not just for the benefit of the other but also themselves. Our reward for assisting others is generally psychological or not. Back at the University of Mary, I looked after my friend who was physically disabled. I always pushed his wheelchair when around. I would aid others wholeheartedly while loving and respecting them if given the opportunity.
References
Davis, N. (2017). Review of followership theory and servant leadership theory: Understanding how servant leadership informs followership. Servant Leadership and Followership, 207-223.
Tarallo, M. (2018). The art of servant leadership. SHRM. Web.