About Modern Servant Leader

About This Site

The Modern Servant Leader logo in it's full display. It is one large triangle comprised of 4 small triangles. Each of the three corners are blue triangles. In the center of the three is a fourth triangle, upside down and colored bright orange. There is a mirror reflection of the triangles and the words Modern Servant Leader across the top triangle.

History of Modern Servant Leader

Founder Ben Lichtenwalner first began sharing servant leadership messages under the website domain of Lichtenwalner.net in 2004.  The Modern Servant Leader website was officially created in 2008 as a tool to increase servant leadership awareness and as a tool to support those developing these principles. Since then, I am honored to share it has become one of the top leadership blogs, globally, and the top blog focused on servant leadership. 

 

We do not accept guest posts or advertising. We will, occasionally, promote products we believe in and use or advocate for servant leadership professionals. 

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Background

How Ben Came to Advocate Servant Leadership

Sitting in the CxO’s office, I was stunned. He just asked me to covertly backup another person’s data before he fired them. This was the fourth senior level manager he would fire, less than a year after hiring them. The cycle was now complete for a third time, as his entire department had turned over three times in just under two years. As the technology leader for the organization, one of my unfortunate responsibilities was supporting these practices. This leadership style, or lack thereof, was in stark contrast to other methods I experienced to achieve success. That moment was the start of a long, winding path leading to the creation of The Modern Servant Leader website.

 

After experiencing success under many different circumstances and leadership styles, I recognized a key differentiation between leadership styles I supported and those I did not – sustainability. Although I did not yet know the name for it, I recognized servant leaders achieved the greatest success with an ability to sustain that success. In contrast, non-serving leaders used fear and borrowed from the future to obtain success in the short-term, often resulting in low morale, high turnover and limited sustainability.

Ben Lichtenwalner, founder of Modern Servant Leader, stand in front of a skyscraper in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Ben wears dark blue jeans, a light blue sports jacket and a pink button-down shirt. He faces the camera and smiles.
Benjamin Lichtenwalner-founder of Modern Servant Leader

No longer could I support these practices. No saint myself, I had allowed my skills and expertise to be used in support of leadership practices that offended me and it was time for change. With this background, I committed to researching leadership practices, naming my own beliefs and ultimately promoting the awareness and adoption of these practices. As a result, I was thrilled when I read about servant leadership. I found that servant leadership captured the source of true leadership, delivered sustainable results and aligned with my own values and beliefs.

 

After years of studying servant leadership, comparing it to my own experiences – both good and bad, I wanted to share what I learned with others. Thus, The Modern Servant Leader (ModernServantLeader.com) was born. This site is dedicated to spreading the awareness, adoption and support of servant leadership practices with an emphasis on modern trends, challenges and technology. If you have any questions, suggestions or other feedback, please, let me know.

Thank you for visiting the site. I hope you find something here that helps you in the development of leadership practices for yourself and your organization.

Accolades

Alltop

Modern Servant Leader is listed among the best leadership blogs with Alltop.

The Alltop Logo - Orange background with the letters ALLTOP each on a separate sort of tab. A subheading reads All the Topics All the Time.

Blogrank

Blogrank awarded Modern Servant Leader the top blog for servant-leadership and one of the top 30 of all leadership blogs, globally.

The Blogrank logo is a sort of maroon magnifying glass on the left and the word blogrank.

Generon International

Modern Servant Leader was listed as a top 15 leadership blog by Generon International.

The Generon International Logo is a maroon background with white lettering that reads GENERON.

Center for Management & Organizational Effectiveness

The Center for Management & Organizational Effectiveness (CMOE) recognized Modern Servant Leader as both a Top 100 Socially-Shared Leadership Blog and a Top 30 Hidden Gems Leadership Blog.

The Top 100 Socially Shared Leadership Blog badge is a red ribbon-lookin award.
The Top 30 Hidden Gems Leadership Badge is a Red Ribbon-looking graphic.

Leadership Digital

Modern Servant Leader is featured among the top leadership websites on Leadership Digital.

The Leadership Digital Badge is red with white letters reading Leadership Digital with a black box and white letters above it reading Featured In.

Serve To Lead

Serve to Lead, a great resource on servant leadership itself, recognized Modern Servant Leader as a Best Blog for the 21st Century.

The Serve to Lead Best Blogs for the 21st Century logo has those words in Green and Blue text on a white background.

Skip Prichard

Modern Servant Leader has been recognized as a top leadership blog by Skip Prichard.

Skip Prichards Top Leadership Blog Award is red with those words in white letters.

MP Star

MP Star Financials has recognized Modern Servant Leader as a Top Small Business Leadership blog.

MP Star Financials - Top Small Business Leadership Blog
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