Marc* built his first career in international business. He’s a talented networker with a genuine love for people and a deep desire for them to hear the good news. Marc founded Leading with Character*(LC) workshops in 2012 to engage with international students abroad and at home. LC creates volunteer opportunities for believing professionals to testify to the hope of the good news through their personal stories of building careers and overcoming obstacles.
Leading with Character has impacted nearly 15,000 undergraduate, graduate, and PhD across 18 universities in both the U.S. and Internationally. These workshops follow an adult education model using stories as a springboard for discussion and personal application. With nearly 70 volunteer instructors, the program exemplifies genuine care, models servant leadership, and encourages discussions about core values both inside and outside the classroom. In areas where access to the written Book is limited, instructors are the living version.
The workshops had a positive impact, but Marco faced a significant challenge due to the limited time they could spend in person with students. Post-workshop conversations on social media provided additional continuity. A major breakthrough occurred in 2020 when Marco was introduced to a mentoring platform called Giftedness – a framework for discovering and understanding one’s unique talents and purpose. This was the perfect segway to further deepen connections with students desiring individual mentoring. Marco integrated this Giftedness platform into Leading with Character as a version 2.0 enhancement.
The integration of the Giftedness platform was perfectly timed, enabling LC to adapt effectively during the global pandemic, which had disrupted the workshop schedule. Between 2020 and 2021, over sixty-five trained volunteers mentored over 100 students using Leading with Character and the Giftedness platform.
Leading with Character starts with building strong relationships. It then focuses on understanding people, addressing their needs, and cultivating trust – all as the foundation and context for sharing life-giving truth. This approach has proved successful both Internationally and in the U.S. Relationships continue to thrive long after the workshops’ conclusion. Students resonate with what they are learning about themselves, and the volunteers build ongoing meaningful relationships cross-culturally.
Marco cites the importance of genuine heart-level personal connections as essential for the program’s growth and success. Remarkably, Leading with Character continues to expand organically, relying on the power of word-of-mouth and personal invitations, demonstrating that personal connections can fuel growth without relying solely on digital platforms.
*Names changed for privacy.
If you want to learn more about the Giftedness platform or volunteer opportunities with Leading with Character, please write info@buildmde.com, and we will introduce you to Marc.