Letter To The President

Posted by Jonathan Brink
November 3, 2008

Dear Mr President,

Today you will be chosen to lead what many call the most powerful position in the world.  With this comes responsibility to lead.  I can only assume that in your running for President you have chosen to accept responsibilities for leadership. So with that I would like to ask you to consider the following possibilities for leading in this brave, new, wired world:

Lead With Love: As President the world will be watching you.  In ever move you make, ask the very simple clarifying question, “How would I want to be treated?” Leadership begins with love.  It means providing an example for the world to follow.  And love, which is begins with seeing and holding the other person’s dignity, is the highest ideal.

Ask Us To Be Responsible And Then Give Us Responsibility: The world is waiting for the most powerful leader to give away power. Help us see a vision for a better America, one that includes lifting our neighbors up, having faith in each other, and being the creative individuals we are.  Invite us to participate in our own growth and maturity.  Invite us to take responsibilities for our neighborhoods, children and schools.  Show us the value of turning our backs on greed as a mechanism for growth.

Live In The Moment: Don’t pretend you are a savior so you can get elected.  This could be the most important four, or even eight years, of your life.  You have the chance to lead with a sense of abandon.  If you act in the moment with wisdom, not worrying about what will happen in 2012, we will almost assuredly vote for you again.  But if you pretend to be the our savior, you’ll just be like every politician who sold out.

Give Us A Vision: You have the opportunity to think like a visionary.  Give us HUGE problems to dream about and solve and then let us solve them.  What would it look like to solve issues like Aids, clean water, and third world poverty.  We are the nation of entrepreneurs. We have the creativity and the resources.  Will you give us the initiative?

Be Honest: Shoot us straight.  We can handle the truth.  We may not like it but it’s easier to handle in the long run once we’re over the initial shock.  The truth just works better.  The truth is we can tell when you’re lying anyway.  And when we can’t John Stewart will eventually find out and you’ll look silly.

Don’t Forget The Impoverished: Will you be the President who restores compassion to the Presidency?  One of the best ways to do that is to begin with the poor.  Show the world what it would look like to think about the least of these in a way that is not patriarchal but restorative.  Help our brothers in poverty rise above the muck and mire and restore their dignity.  We need you to take a stand against those who oppress the poor, the sick and the widow.  Fight for the dignity of those who can’t fight for themselves.

Show Us How To Sacrifice: Ask us to think beyond ourselves but also show the world how.  This country was built on sacrifice and it has always been what made us great, not just as Americans, but also as human beings.  To sacrifice is to love and become the best of who we were designed to be.

Cross Lines: Show the world what it means to come over the traditional lines of “us” and “them” so we can discover “we the people”.  It’s just too easy to focus on what separates us.  Help us see and participate in what brings us together and a people.  Invite us to cross lines so we can become a more whole people who rise above our own self interests.

Mentor Other Leaders: Spend time with the Fortune 500 leaders of America asking them not just how they can create new jobs here but also how they can use their power in ways that create a better future.  Call them to move beyond greed and selfish abandon and to a more meaningful future of love and sacrifice.

Lead With Courage: Take courageous risks that will both succeed and fail.  But at least try.  Think outside the box and reveal to the world once again why we are the nation that once led the world.

Please consider these requests as you begin looking towards the next four years.

Much love to you.

Jonathan

——————————————————

This post is part of a Synchroblog on Leadership.  The following blogs took part in the experiment:

Jonathan Brink – Letter To The President

Adam Gonnerman – Aspiring to the Episcopate

Kai – Leadership – Is Servant Leadership a Broken Model?

Sally Coleman – In the world but not of it- servant leadership for the 21st Century Church

Alan Knox – Submission is given not taken

Joe Miller – Elders Lead a Healthy Family: The Future

Cobus van Wyngaard – Empowering leadership

Steve Hayes – Servant leadership

Geoff Matheson – Leadership

John Smulo – Australian Leadership Lessons

Helen Mildenhall – Leadership

Tyler Savage – Moral Leadership – Is it what we need?

Bryan Riley – Leading is to Listen and Obey

Susan Barnes – Give someone else a turn!

Liz Dyer – A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Polls…

Lionel Woods – Why Diverse Leadership is Good for America

Julie Clawson – Leadership Expectations

Ellen Haroutunian – A New Kind Of Leadership

Matt Stone – Converting Leadership

Steve Bradley – Lording or Leading?

Adam Myers – Two types of Leadership

Bethany Stedman – A Leadership Mosaic

Kathy Escobar – I’m Pretty Sure This Book Won’t Make It On The Bestseller List

Fuzzy Orthodoxy – Self Leadership

Sonja Andrews – Leadership In An Age of Cholera

Tara Hull – Leadership & Being A Single Mom

Glen Hager – Election Day Ponderings On Leadership

Beth Patterson – Leadership:Being The River

Bill Ellis – Spiritual Leadership And The Rehumanizing Of Our World

Liz Dyer – A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Polls

Joe Speranzella – Leadership: This Election and Social Justice

Andries Louw – South Africa’s leadership crisis

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  • Hi, thanks for the contribution to the Synchroblog.

    As I read your thoughts, a question comes to mind. You ask the President to give us a vision, love, and give us power. I wonder, do you consider the President to be your spiritual leader as well as your political leader?
  • J.R. - I consider the President to be the one in the spot light. His capacity to be a light is obvious. If he's going to be there, I say use it for good. But no, he is not my spiritual leader. I may learn from him and seek good in him but only Jesus is my spiritual teacher.
  • Fair enough, but it just seems that some of these suggestions are more about spiritual leadership than executing the constitutional duties of his office.

    Maybe you can give me an example of how the president will "Invite us to participate in our own growth and maturity."?
  • Jonathan I posted my contribution to today's Syncroblog.
  • Jonathan,

    You've made some good suggestions for the future president. I don't expect him (whoever is elected) to follow though on your suggestions, unfortunately. :)

    -Alan
  • Joe, A leader invites participation and growth by exhibiting that growth. I spoke of love and sacrifice because these are the core of what it means to be a whole human being. They transcend the Presidency but include the Presidency.

    The President is under a microscope. What if that person used that opportunity to advance and idea of what it meant to be the best American/human. Some say Washington did this. He led with deep courage and honor, justice and love. Why can't this President exhibit the same qualities. It was these qualities that made Washington so loved by his peers.
  • Alan, I don't know. But I wouldn't put it past Obama, although that's my opinion.
  • Jonathan, could you suggest to the 'powers that be' to include your ideas in the oath of office?
    Blessings,
    --Jerald
  • excellent stuff!
  • Jonathan, thanks for entertaining my questions. I appreciate your time brother.

    Joe
  • Joe, any time brother.
  • Jonathan -- love your thoughts here -- am cautiously optimistic that whoever our next leader is will heed your advice, and seek to be a visionary leader who leads by example -- compelling, but not coercing folks to follow his lead...inspiring to action, yet respecting our freedom... Here's hopin' :)

    BTW, thanks for coordinating the synchroblog. It's been fun to participate and learn about others I wouldn't have otherwise known about.
  • Steve, I'm optimistic too but we'll see. Doesn't hurt to ask.

    Glad you participated.
  • Jonathan,

    I think Obama will be the next president (we'll know soon). I hope you're right that he would follow your suggestions (we'll know that soon also).

    -Alan
  • I like it. I hope he will follow this advice.
  • Hi Jonathan--
    I really liked this post--thanks for the tone of it!

    I was looking for something talking about 'leadership to sacrifice': we are going to have to sacrifice some of our cherished paradigms if we are to survive as a society...

    Many thanks, again--
  • hey jonathan just getting around to reading everyone's posts. i like reading this in light of last night. great words & thoughts & i know our nation, the world could be different if some of these things were lived out! kathy
  • Hi Jonathan, thanks for a very relevant post. I have also posted on leadership but from a South African perspective, quoting our biggest daily newspaper that asks "Where is OUR Obama?"
  • Tania
    Heya I'm joining a writing competition in my school. And I have to write a letter to the president, could somebody give me some advices? you can tell me at tania_ramadhiani@yahoo.com
    Please I really need your help..
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