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Tao Te Ching Verse 17:

Translated by James Legge

In the highest antiquity, (the people) did not know that there were (their rulers). In the next age they loved them and praised them. In the next they feared them; in the next they despised them. Thus it was that when faith (in the Tao) was deficient (in the rulers) a want of faith in them ensued (in the people).

How irresolute did those (earliest rulers) appear, showing (by their reticence) the importance which they set upon their words! Their work was done and their undertakings were successful, while the people all said, 'We are as we are, of ourselves!'

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You are Always Leading

Let's consider the leaders that you have in your life.  Perhaps you’ve got leaders at work, at school, at home.  They typically fill roles like, your boss, your teachers, or your parents, or in my case, my spouse.  Now let’s think about you as a leader.  You don’t have to have ‘people under you’ in order to be a leader.  No, you’re a leader in many different ways, sometimes in different roles.  You are a friend who’s been asked for advice from time to time.  You’ve got relationships where you are looked up to continuously for the qualities you possess.  You may have children or are thinking about having children.  I think it’s safe to say that we are all leaders of different scope, roles, etc.  So as we talk about this verse today, I’d like you to consider yourself a leader.  Ask yourself, how does this apply to me as a leader in my life?

Types of Leaders

Lao Tzu breaks down four different types of leaders here.  He says the first one is one that no one knows is actually there - this is the person who leads with subtlety.  The next type of leader is the one who is loved and revered.  After that are leaders who are feared - they ‘get things done’ because people are afraid to disobey them.  And then the last  type -  the ones everyone hates.

In considering myself a leader, I’ll be honest with you.  Before reading this verse, I thought that being the leader who is loved and revered would be the leader I’d like to emulate.  Whether it’s in my professional life, or at home, or in my social life - I want to be loved and respected.  I thought that was actually the highest form of leadership, actually.  But this whole allow others to not know you’re there thing kind of makes sense to me now.  

And why?  Well, I think it’s because of the whole idea of losing my self that is presented here in the TTC.  LT is always calling on us to abandon identity, like in verse 7.  He calls on us to right-size our ambition in verse 3.  We’re encouraged to allow perfection in verse 9, be useful in verse 11, and serve others by detaching in verse 13.  Most of the verses in the TTC have to do with the letting go of selfish things, so it’s only appropriate that we are urged to lead unobtrusively in this verse.