Derek Clark was unwanted before he was even born, burned with hot water, shoved face first in to a toilet in an effort to kill him, ran tests on in a psychiatric hospital, moved in and out of foster homes, was adopted, lived rebellious teenage years, lost his sister, brother and best friend all in the same year, went through a traumatic event revolving around their church friend’s daughter Ellie and as a result hated God. It was only after the tragic drowning of Ellie, her miraculous revival and her parents’ attitude towards God during all of it, that he returned back to God. He speaks about his return to God saying that he heard, deep down within him, God say “Derek, I didn’t abandon you, you abandoned me”. Since then he has been devoted to God, praising him in everything he does.
Listening to Derek Clark my understanding of leadership was completely changed. I’ve either learned about leadership as a skill acquired upon birth or one that is developed through time. However, I never thought of the path towards becoming a leader as being dark. Previously, I always imagined the path towards leadership as working through a company, gaining skills, showing growth on those gained skills and applying them in becoming leader of, in this case, a company. Never had I imagined the path to leadership this dark. Derek Clark overcame adversity and all of his demons in the past and is now a motivational speaker and a leader to those who have under gone a similar upbringing and to all. He is a voice for people who feel like they don’t have a place in this world or that God has abandoned them. He, as a leader, can bring people out of this darkness they find their selves in.
Listening to the speaker I have realized, more than ever, the relationship between personal values, integrity and ethical leadership. Derek Clark demonstrates the relationship that all of these term have in the portrayal of his message. To be an ethical leader, one is concerned about the rights of others, thus being related to trust, honesty, and fairness. Integrity can also be a trait of an ethical leader, which can all fall under one’s personal values. Derek is an ethical leader by being honest in his message of his journey and through that shows us his personal values of trust, integrity and humility. Derek is as real of a leader as I have ever come across. He is honest about his upbringing, his struggles and his doubts and shows how if he can make it out and find his way to God, those who he impacts can do the same.
From this speaker, I have learned a lot about leadership and how it’s not always a trait given at birth or developed over time. I have learned that, more than a learning process, leadership is a journey. A small percentage of people develop leadership skills through working in their career, an even smaller percent is born with leadership traits. The majority of people become leaders through their journey in life. I have realized that when given a series of misfortunes, one can do one of two things: sit and sulk or grow and learn. Only leaders, through these trials and tribulations, can not only grown and learn, but use what they’ve learned to inspire others to do the same.