More Frodos please

One of my favorite leaders of all time is Frodo Baggins.

Huh? The hobbit?

To me, he shows tremendous character to resist temptation throughout his journey to Mt. Doom. He faces danger, fear, criticism and even death. And he faces a mountain of temptation along the way.

Here are the points where he could have turned back during his journey:

• Gandalf gives him the ring and advises him to take it to the next town.
• On his way, he is attacked by the Nazgul warriors and nearly dies.
• He steps up and decides to take the ring to Mt. Doom himself.
• He watches as Gandalf, his dear friend, falls into a pit and he is unable to rescue him.
• His teammate Boromir, turns on him and tries to take the ring.
• He escapes and eventually decides to continue on the journey alone.
• He finds a guide, Gollum, who eventually betrays him.
• He gets stung by a massive spider Shelob
• He is taken prisoner by orcs.
• He is rescued by his friend and they reach Mt. Doom where the ring gets destroyed*

He had so many opportunities to quit and return to his safe comfortable existence. Why, on Middle Earth, did he keep going?

Because of his why.

He knew that if he didn’t continue, he would be living in a world of chaos. Sauron would come back and destroy the world as he knew it. In a sense, he had to keep going.

At this point you might be thinking: “This is just fiction. I don’t have to be that good. One time won’t hurt anyone.”

And you might be right. You might not be able to fight off all of the temptation. You may slip up and make a mistake. Even Frodo succumbs to temptation at the end and wants to keep the ring to himself.

But my point is: What’s your why that will keep you from straying? What are you leading for? And, importantly, what kind of leader do you want to become?

Because if you’re just in it for the money, fame or power, then forget being a leader. You’ll take any chance to take a bribe or sleep with the secretary or commit fraud. Honestly, we have enough of those leaders right now. We don’t need any more.

More Frodos, please.

*Author’s note – I recognize that Frodo eventually succumbs to temptation and wants to keep the ring for himself. But, he gets his finger bitten off immediately after he puts it on. Maybe there’s some form of justice in that. Interesting, no?*