A couple of weeks ago, I had the honor of interviewing Aubrey Lee, resident director of Merrill Lynch, on the personal leadership philosophies that facilitate his job.

One significant message I received from the gentleman was the idea of questioning whether or not you would work your position for free if it came down to it.

The word free is important when used in this instance simply because it reveals a person’s passion and commitment to accomplishing their tasks. The term free is a variable that can expose people for who they really are and what their motives really are. I’ll give you a couple of examples to illustrate my point.

For 14 of his 16-year career, Hall of Fame basketball player Michael Jordan competed for the NBA title on an average yearly contract of $1.7 million.

This is, without a doubt, low wages for arguably the greatest NBA athlete ever. In response to his meager salary Jordan said, “If I was greedy, I could sit here and cry about my contract, make it a big issue and it would be a valid argument. I don’t do that. I have never griped about other people making more money.”

Often Jordan was questioned on his small contracts to which he would usually respond by belittling the topic and talking more about the game. It became clear that the six-time champion enjoyed the game so much that the pay was unimportant to him.

Under such terrible compensation Michael Jordan was a 14-time NBA All-Star, and won the MVP award six times.

One of the number one complaints with modern-day professional basketball is the shift of motives. NBA spectators believe that the chase for higher salaries has taken away from the essence of the game.

Players spend more time worried about their salaries than competing to add checks to the win column. In fact, just a couple of years ago NBA superstar Vince Carter admitted to playing below his ability in efforts to get traded. Since the shift, marquee players are traded more often than ever before.

Looking at many of our legendary forefathers, we should notice the fact that they possessed aspirations that transcended monetary gain. Had Stevie Wonder spent more time studying money than he did writing music, would we be enjoying the classic songs on the “Key of Life” record today?

Probably not, one thing that history has shown us is that money worship can dilute any product, artwork, or cause.

Looking at the music industry today compared to 20 years ago confirms my point. The music industry has evolved from an expression of art into an industry that is focused primarily on gross record sales. As a result, creativity and talent stands neglected while the notion of music as an art form is slowly being forgotten.

Would you enjoy what it is you are doing if you had to work for free or would you just be going through the motions?

What’s crucial to realize about this concept, beyond anything else, is that people can see through shallow monetary motives and are reluctant to follow such leadership.

Would you go to a church that was focused on financial gain rather than saving souls? Would you want your child going to a school that was motivated by financial gain rather than educating your child? Would you want to go to hospital that cared more about income than helping people?

An effective leader should always have purpose beyond money.

If you have any questions or comments feel free to share them with me by emailing me at arolling@radio-one.com