Over the last 60 years, radical individualism has reshaped not only our society, but also how many leaders imagine leadership itself.
It has taught us to focus almost entirely on our own group.
Our own congregation.
Our own organization.
Our own audience.
Our own success or survival.
And in some ways, this made sense. Many groups have faced real pressure, rapid change, and declining trust in institutions.
But there has been a cost.
Leadership Used to Include Relationships Between Groups
Human beings survive through cooperation.
Not only within groups, but also between groups.
For most of human history, leaders understood that part of leadership involved navigating relationships beyond their own community:
- neighboring tribes
- nearby towns
- other faiths
- economic partners
- civic institutions
A healthy society required not only strong groups, but strong relationships between groups.
But radical individualism slowly narrowed our imagination.
Leadership became more and more about managing and protecting “our people.”
And less about helping groups live together.
The Fruits of Isolation
We are now living with the consequences.
People are lonely.
Groups are isolated.
Communities increasingly encounter one another through media, stereotypes, and political conflict instead of real human relationships.
Many groups now believe other groups have abandoned the civil contract itself.
That they:
- cannot be trusted
- do not care about others
- are threats to society
Fear grows quickly in that environment.
And fear makes cooperation harder.
Rediscovering an Older Responsibility
Today, many leaders are beginning to rediscover something important:
Part of our responsibility to our own group is helping our group relate well to other groups.
That does not mean abandoning our traditions or convictions.
In fact, it often means going deeper into them.
Many leaders are asking:
- What resources does my tradition hold for living in a pluralistic society?
- How do we remain grounded in who we are while respecting others?
- How do we prepare people not only to defend their group, but to contribute to the common good?
These are deeply important questions.
Beyond Speaking Well About Others
In this moment, it is important for leaders to speak well of other groups.
That matters.
But it is not enough.
People need direct experience with one another.
Not just statements.
Not just online conversations.
Real human encounters.
This is one of the great lessons interfaith and interreligious leaders have been learning for decades: trust grows through repeated, structured, human connection across difference.
And we are now applying those lessons more broadly across differences of:
- culture
- tradition
- class
- identity
- generation
- and place
Leadership in This Moment
Leadership today requires more than caring for our own group in isolation.
It requires helping our communities build relationships beyond themselves.
Because renewing the civil contract will not happen only person to person.
It must also happen group to group.
A Small Next Step
If you are a leader, consider asking:
- Which groups does our community rarely encounter directly?
- How has isolation shaped our imagination?
- What would it look like to help our people build thoughtful relationships beyond our own group?
Because part of renewing our society begins here:
Recovering the idea that leadership includes helping groups learn how to live together.