17 Oct PAPAL “TEAMWORK, TONE, TENACITY™” LEADERSHIP: JOHN PAUL II

Cardinal Karol Wojtyla of Poland was elected Pope on this date in 1978 at age 48; the first non-Italian Pope in 456 years!  He took the name John Paul II and presided over the Catholic Church for 26 years.  A clandestine seminarian in his native Poland during Nazi occupation, he helped many Jews during the Holocaust.  Ordained in 1946, he was recognized for being the spiritual impetus for the end of Communist rule in Poland, and the building of bridges to people of other faiths. One of the most travelled world leaders in history, he visited 129 countries during his pontificate (five visits to the U.S. and the first visit by a Pope to Greece in over 1200 years).  Saint John Paul II was canonized in 2014.  His inspirational style: 

• TEAMWORK:  Took a large number of initiatives to promote friendly relations, practical humanitarian cooperation and theological dialog with a range of non-Catholic religions, especially Judaism.  He became the first Pope make an official visit to a synagogue (the Great Synagogue of Rome) in 1986.  In 1993, John Paul II established formal diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the State of Israel.  In 1994 he hosted the Papal Concert to Commemorate the Holocaust, the first-ever Vatican event dedicated to the memory of Jews murdered in World War II.  In 2000, John Paul II visited Yad Vashem, the national Holocaust memorial in Israel, and later made history by touching one of the holiest sites in Judaism, the Western Wall in Jerusalem,

• TONE:  “Faith leads us beyond ourselves. It leads us directly to God.”

• TENACITY:  “I plead with you, never, ever give up on hope, never doubt, never tire, and never become discouraged. Be not afraid.”

Pope John Paul II was the most motivational pontiff of our lifetime.   Catholics and non-Christians alike grew to love this charismatic leader because of his vast love and boundless care for everyone.  He brought a new age to the church and significantly influenced world events.  As a leader, he was tough but flexible, which allowed him to meet famous and notorious world leaders and address difficult issues that made him unpopular to some. But his genuineness, attempts to foster reconciliation, genuine love for his fellow man and  also had the inner toughness to break down walls make him an exemplar of “T3” leadership, for all faiths!

– Rear Admiral Paul Becker, USN (Ret) is a leadership expert.  He is the CEO of The Becker T3 Group, a platform for his motivational and national security keynote speaking. A former Naval Intelligence Officer, he’s successfully led large, diverse, high-performing teams afloat and ashore in peace, crisis and combat.  In 2016, The Naval Intelligence Community established “The Rear Admiral Becker ‘Teamwork, Tone, Tenacity Award for Leadership” in his honor