Integrity and Leadership
Thesis:
George Washington exemplified and demonstrated integrity throughout his life and career, which made him a great leader.
Main Arguments:
1. Through his leadership during the Revolutionary War, Washington set an example of excellence and inspired commitment in his soldiers.
2. Washington showed his commitment to the newly formed United States by standing up for his men, standing alongside them, and demonstrating transparency and honesty in his words and actions.
3. Washington was an example of humility and selflessness, demonstrating the importance of putting the needs of others before his own desires.
4. Washington's character was repeatedly tested and proven, making him an ideal leader.
As Cox (n.d.) notes, Washington embodied the ideal of the officer and gentleman (p. 15). Yet what really won his army over in a moment of crisis regarding pay was an aside that he madean aside filled with candor and good humor and evidence of Washingtons own good will: when struggling to read a letter aloud to his men, he reached for his spectacles and said, Gentlemen, you must pardon me. I have grown gray in your service and now find myself growing blind. This remark was the icing on the cakethe thing that sealed the deal for the men: they would trust him as their general to stand with them before Congress and make sure they were awarded what was theirs.
Yet there were many instances throughout his life and military career that exemplified his honor and integrity and his desire to motivate others by encouraging them to devote themselves to an ideal. Cox (n.d.) for instance, points out that Washington relied on inspirational tactics and his personal reputation for integrity to keep the Continental Army together. He offered his men an opportunity to transform themselves, to pursue something...
…again and again with numerous examples of Washington putting himself on the line to ensure
success.
Cox (n.d.) provided ample evidence of the importance of leadership and integrity in Washingtons militaryand it showed that he could do so without kowtowing to political correct sentiment or to faux-virtues that are paraded about today as though they were all that mattered. Washingtons army would have collapsed had he been that kind of fraudbut the point that Cox (n.d.) makes is that he was not a fraud but rather a genuine and genuinely concerned man who wanted to lead because he had the skills, knowledge, ability, and desire to do so. He could marshal the men and rally them around an ideal and a cause that mattered, and he could do so with integrity, by appealing to true virtue and not flinching from reality. He stands as a beacon for all leaders today…
