I believe exemplary leaders should be UNDERSTANDING, UPLIFTING, UNIFYING, UNBIASED, UPSTANDING, UNWAVERING, UNSELFISH, UNFLAPPABLE, and UNRELENTING most but not necessarily all the time. Also, I believe they shouldn’t be too UPBEAT or URGENT. For sure, they shouldn’t be UBIQUITOUS or ever-present; there are times when it’s best for leaders to be gone or absent. Some lists include UNIQUE, but I don’t think it’s an essential attribute for an exemplary leader. Likewise, I found no lists that included UMBRELLA, but I believe an exemplary leader must function as an umbrella and protect team members from external negative forces and influences. Team members must know their leader “has their backs” and lets people know that all successes are due to the team members and that all failures land on the leader’s back. So, which of these attributes is the winning U-word?
My finalists are UNDERSTANDING, UNSELFISH, and UPSTANDING. If you consult a dictionary, you’ll find that UNDERSTANDING can be a noun or an adjective. As a noun it means having the ability to understand or comprehend something; as an adjective, it means being sympathetic, tolerant, and forgiving, as well as having good judgment. Don’t you want your leader to be UNDERSTANDING — as a noun and as an adjective? Likewise, don’t you want your leader to be UNSELFISH, prioritizing the mission and needs of the team over personal gain? Finally, don’t you want your leader to be UPSTANDING, to be morally strong, highly principled, unquestionably ethical, and possessing the greatest integrity? I do! I want my leader to possess all three attributes. Unfortunately, too few do.
We are living in a time during which many leaders lack understanding. Many are selfish, and many fail to be upstanding, So, I decided I would send a signed copy of Why It Matters to the first person to submit an entry of UNDERSTANDING, as well as the first person to submit an entry of UNSELFISH, and also to the first person to submit an entry of UPSTANDING. That’s right; there are three ways to win this session of the Alphabet Game!
Would you believe it? There were no winning entries. Should I write a sequel to Why It Matters and title it, It Doesn’t Matter? Perhaps people will do better with the letter V. We’ll see!
Next: Leadership ABCs—V
Rules for the game to receive a signed copy of Why It Matters: 1) limited to U.S.A. mailing addresses; 2) limited to a single selection for the word; 3) cannot submit entry sooner than one week before the blog is posted on LinkedIn; 4) be the first correct entry I receive; and 5) send entries to me at johnaustinwhitejr@gmail.com. The earliest you can submit your V-word entry is 12:00 am, EDT, May 20, 2026; the latest time is 12:00 am, EDT, May 27, 2026.
