Moral Leadership Pillar 1:
Let Purpose Lead

Moral leadership cannot be reduced to a simple formula or fixed list of required actions. Rather, practicing moral leadership means embracing a framework anchored in four essential pillars: Let Purpose Lead, Inspire and Elevate Others, Be Animated by Values and Virtues, and Build Moral Muscle. 
The four pillars of moral leadership are often amplified in our HOW Conversations series where we bring together a varied group of experts and leaders to discuss timely issues of our reshaped world through the lenses of moral leadership, principled decision-making, and values-based behavior. 
What it Takes to Let Purpose Lead
Purpose is a word leaders reach for often, and one that carries tremendous weight and responsibility in the room.
Let Purpose Lead, the first pillar of moral leadership at HOW, is an invitation to return to that fuller meaning and put it to work. Leaders gain moral authority when they define a worthy, aligned, and actionable purpose; one intrinsically connected to the direction ahead. Let Purpose Lead is a reminder and a call to action; the phrase gets its power from what follows it.  
Let Purpose Lead… 
  • You. Before purpose can lead anyone else, it has to inspire the people in the room. 
  • The meeting. Opening with purpose at the heart of coming together holds an agenda and the people at the table accountable.  
  • The decision. Options look different when the central question posed is intrinsically connected to purpose.  
  • Restructuring. When roles and budgets are on the table, purpose is what turns high-impact change into a journey people can join rather than a plan they endure. 
  • Innovation. Purpose settles what is worth building before anyone asks whether it can be built.  
Why It Begins with a Pause 
It can be important not to overlook the little word at the start, let. Letting purpose lead asks a leader to yield the front of the room to something larger than personal preference, which is hard to do while already in motion. That is why the pillar starts with a pause. As HOW founder Dov Seidman says, "When a machine hits pause, it stops, but when a person hits pause, they begin." Moral leaders reflect on the current situation, reconnect with their moral commitments, rethink current approaches, and reimagine what is possible.  
What It Looks Like 
In her HOW Conversation around trust and purpose, The HOW Institute for Society founding board member Angela Ahrendts, who led retail at Apple, wanted more from her team than good service. She explains what she hoped they could access:
"I wanted them to rise up and feel that they had a much bigger responsibility and could make a much bigger impact. To me, there's nothing more important. " 
Her measure of the work moved from customers served to the responsibility her people carried, which is what it looks like when purpose decides what success means.
Hear It in Their Own Words 
 
In our HOW Conversations series, the theme of purpose shows up repeatedly in dialogue with leaders from Apple to advertising, education to space flight. Purpose is more than a starting point; it runs through the work, as a through line, and it lights the way as a beacon. Begin with your own pause, then see where the light shines brightest. 
Here are a few conversations that are sure to inspire you: