Plato formulated such an idea some 2500 years ago, and it seems to me that in many contexts it is time to return to it. Not everyone in power carries power. It is too heavy a burden when the ego is not yet mature enough.
Plato spoke of a so-called philosophical king with a love of wisdom and the search for truth. The wisdom of philosophical kings comes from philosophical thinking and a way of seeing the world – or a love of wisdom, which is what you mean by ‘philosophy’. Such insights are deeper than what we seek in an age of superficial information and the lust for quick fixes.
Leadership is not taken on voluntarily by the “philosophical kings”, let alone by their own desire or candidacy, but as a duty to society they find themselves at one point in time in such a role. They are inwardly driven by a desire to serve the common and all-embracing good, wisdom, justice, spiritual wisdom.
Plato said well that a leader should not focus solely on efficiency or practical solutions, but should strive for the holistic good and harmony of society. As a holistic management trainer, I can only subscribe to this with hand and heart.
Perhaps it is time to go back to what was said millennia ago and take a much fresher look at the world of governance? Perhaps there really is something to take back to our own day?
But the logical question is: what will become of us? Are we still competitive? What will become of what we have so painstakingly built and for which we compete and compete every day? Will we even make a profit any more? Are we making a profit? What does work mean then? Do I really want to work and make money any more? But if I don’t, what then?
I would argue that we make a profit (however you measure it) because then the profit comes to you when you have benefited the world by looking beyond or above personal ambition. There is no benefit in money anyway. Money is a means to an end. Maybe sometimes it is necessary to skip the money stage and move towards it now? I am not saying that money is not necessary. The question is not one OR the other, but one AND the other.
For those who want to think about it in more depth, we took the topic of “Leadership without Leadership” in the 123.podcast episode even deeper than this post.
