My guess is that, for most of you, what those people did and how they behaved—in other words, the example they were (or are) for you, has had the more lasting and meaningful impact. Certainly, no one is inspired in a positive way by the hypocrite or by the unprincipled. No one proudly admits, "I want to be like them." Paraphrasing Emerson, What you are speaks so loudly I cannot hear what you’re saying.

If you think harder about it, I believe you will agree with me that as human beings we are inspired far more by the power of positive example than by commands or threats. This is not to say that those who have wielded great power at the point of a gun have not had profound impact. But doesn’t it mean so much more to us to earn the respect of others as opposed to commanding it? How much have we really won, if others pay attention not because they want to but because they have to?

I can think of so many things I wish more people would do. I wish they would value education more highly and read to their children. I wish they would show more concern for those around them in need and do something about it. I wish they would work harder at being the very best at whatever they’ve chosen as their life’s work. I wish they would take more seriously the responsibilities of being free citizens in a democratic society. I wish they would show more respect for the lives and property of others. I wish they would be better neighbors, more caring friends, more honest politicians, more responsible business associates.

I suppose we could devise all sorts of laws that would coerce more people in these directions and that would penalize them if they failed to comply. But that approach, frankly, leaves me with a feeling of hollowness. The bottom line is that there are limits to how much you can do to people to make them good. I really don’t want a society in which people do the right thing just because they have to, when they really don’t want to. And I believe strongly that the most effective teaching method—and at the same time, sadly, the most underappreciated teaching method—is the power of positive example. It isn’t a quick fix, it doesn’t promise instant gratification, but in the long run, it makes all the difference in the world.

Forcing a person to go to church doesn’t make him religious any more than forcing him to stand in a garage makes him a car. You don’t make a person truly loyal by forbidding disagreement. You don’t make a person charitable by robbing him at gunpoint and spending his money on good things.

The test of a true leader, it’s often been noted, is not how many people you can coerce into submission or intimidate into silence, but how far others will go to follow you because they are attracted to your mission of their own free will. And the attraction is the power of your example.