These generative services are not just about quiet leadership; they are also about community engagement (a key ingredient in any attempt to increase “social capital” or “community capital”). These generative and spiritually guided leaders are helping to build the shining city on the hill—or at least their own local version of this coherent city. They recognize that this building is a long-term process and that they must be patient and persevere. It often helps that these spiritually oriented and generative members of a community are no longer dependent on a job in the secure world for their sustenance. In keeping with the spirit of generativity, one of our sage leaders noted, “We don’t retire, we just quit working for money.” George Vaillant (2012, p. 166) offered the same observation regarding his Harvard grads: “Community building is a career of its own—one of the really great ones.”
Insofar as men and women are serving in generative roles that are spiritually directed when working with other people, with an organization, or with their community during senior years, they are likely to be more inclined than ever before to exert authority in a collaborative and nurturing manner. Their Hope is shared. They are teaching and mentoring on behalf of the greater good and compelling vision of the future. In these roles, they are willing to take less credit and be less visible. It is often the case that they already have acquired whatever power and recognition they are likely to get in their lives.
These generative men and women have had their “day in the sun.” They now gain more gratification from watching their organizational or community or cultural “children” succeed than from succeeding themselves. They have shifted from a primary focus on their own success to a focus on significance—making a difference in the world. They often drink from the fountain of Living Waters during their journey with others toward a compelling future. These leaders care deeply and serve quietly as servants of the greater good.
Leadership Through Servanthood
While many forms of leadership focus on creating a vision, a special kind of leadership is exhibited when one furthers the vision created and embraced by other people in the organization or community—one becomes a servant to the vision of all people associated with the organization or community. This concept of “servant leadership” has been portrayed in a very compelling way by Robert Greenleaf (1970) in a series of books he has written on this topic. He writes about the servant who prepares meals, cleans pots and tends to latrines on behalf of a greater good. A variant on this theme is evident in quite a different medium—the lyric of a popular song of the 1990s about “the wind beneath my wings.” This very appreciative statement offers a wonderfully poetic image of the role played by a masterful postmodern leader as a servant to the dreams, visions, and aspirations of the people with whom she works. A servant leader can provide the “wind” beneath the wings of her colleagues by first committing fully to the partnership, and then offering encouragement during difficult times.
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