The President of the Multidisciplinary Finance Professionals (MFP), Dr Prince Oyebade Oyedepo, FCA, JP has harp on passion beyond position in leadership.
He made this assertion when delivering a lecture on the topic titled, passion beyond position: reigniting the flame to lead with heart, resilience and commitment when rewards are few at the leadership retreat of Ibadan & District Society of ICAN under the Chairmanship of Mrs Salome Olabimpe Ajayi, FCA held today, Saturday, 31st October, 2026 at Asake Suites, Bodija, Ibadan.
According to him, leadership drives an organization to be successful and makes visible impact. They are mostly celebrated when this happens. The success and impact of organization comes to fruition by enormous responsibilities played by the people at the helms of affairs. Apart from the physical responsibilities, they engage in emotional and critical thinking beyond imagination. They train and build those behind them on how to achieve success through direction, scheduling, motivation and other strategies. They also lead by example cases to achieve results.
Leaders are frequently required to manage competing expectations, make decisions under uncertainty, resolve interpersonal conflicts and remain accountable for outcomes influenced by factors beyond their control.
The motivating factors in most cases are the passion to serve and the reward system. The passion is key and the reward system is equally fundamental. The two are compensation to them for the arduous responsibilities.
However, some circumstances may arise to put to test the willingness of the leaders to serve.
Some of these circumstances include when responsibilities increase, resources diminish, recognition becomes scarce and the demands of leadership exceed its immediate rewards. In such moments, a fundamental question arises: what sustains a leader’s passion when the rewards of leadership are few, but the expectations remain high?
It is against this background that the idea of reigniting the flame becomes significant. It means renewing the conviction, energy and sense of purpose that enable leaders to remain effective when enthusiasm wanes and circumstances become difficult.
Three interrelated qualities are central to this renewal; leading with heart, resilience and commitment. Together, these qualities provide a foundation for leadership that remains humane, purposeful and effective under pressure particularly when rewards are few.
The MFP boss opined that the concept of passion beyond position is founded on the understanding that genuine leadership is not defined solely by the title, authority, the office an individual occupies or the entitled rewards, but by the purpose, commitment and personal conviction that influence how that individual performs the tasks of the office contributing to the advancement of the organization and the society.
He identified the relationship between passion and position as follows:
Passion
• Passion supplies the inner drive, personal conviction, enthusiasm and commitment to exercise the responsibilities of position.
• Passion determines how position is used
• Passion provides ability to remain purposeful, responsible and committed to making a difference, irrespective of circumstance.
• Without passion and a clear sense of purpose, a leadership position can become merely an avenue for exercising authority, enjoying privileges or pursuing personal recognition.
Position
• Position provides the platform and formal authority through which leadership responsibilities are exercised
• Position creates opportunities for passion to produce results
Without passion, position becomes ineffective and inefficient. Without position, passion becomes useless and dormant.
The two are related and inseparable. They are essential in the school of leadership.
According to the MFP top brass, developing passion beyond position requires a conscious shift from viewing leadership as a way to enjoy some privileges attached to an office to understanding it as an opportunity to make meaningful contribution to the organization and the society.
It involves cultivating an attitude to remain committed irrespective of immediate rewards.
The following are important ways through which individuals can develop and sustain this form of passion:
i. Discover and connect with a clear sense of purpose
ii. Cultivate intrinsic motivation
iii. Demonstrate initiative and take responsible ownership
iv. Develop a service-oriented mindset
v. Strengthen personal character and discipline
vi. Commit to continuous learning and personal development
vii. Build flexibility and the ability to adapt
The journey of leadership and professional contribution is not always characterised by favourable circumstances. Individuals may encounter disappointment, limited resources, inadequate recognition and resistance to change. Developing passion beyond position therefore requires the ability to be flexible and adapt when challenges arise.
He further mentioned that effective leadership is demonstrated through character, competence, building relationships and consistent pursuit of goals. These are virtues to sustain leadership zeal.
However, in order to achieve the virtues, the following qualities should be cultivated;
i. Integrity and ethical consistency
ii. Effective communication, collaboration and empowerment
iii. Emotional intelligence and empathy
iv. Discipline, accountability and dependability
v. Courage, and adaptability
vi. Humility, teachability and continuous learning
He stressed that the reality of leading when rewards are few manifest in two ways;
i. The gap between responsibility, effort and reward
ii. The gap between emotional drain and reward
What sometimes happen in such situation?
When responsibilities and challenges are high, but rewards are few, leaders may face three broad choices: persevere. adapt or step aside.
According to the anti-corruption czar, limited rewards can test a leader’s patience, weaken motivation and create uncertainty about whether continued effort is worthwhile. The answer, however, is not to abandon responsibility at the first sign of difficulty.
Reigniting the flame of leadership involves recovering the purpose, habits and convictions that enable a leader to remain effective when circumstances become difficult.
The following are the three pillars of sustainable leadership:
i. Leading with heart: putting humanity at the centre of leadership
ii. Leading with resilience: remaining effective through adversity
iii. Leading with commitment: remaining faithful to purpose
He presented and explained the sustainable leadership flame model (SLFM) to buttress his paper. In his words, “the sustainable leadership flame model (SLFM) developed for this paper is an integrative conceptual framework that draws on established leadership and organizational theories to explain how purpose, character, motivation, heart, resilience and commitment interact with practical leadership behaviours and institutional support to produce sustainable leadership outcomes in spite of limited rewards.
He further Interpretated the concept of the table as thus:
Purpose: Gives leadership direction, Character: Gives Integrity, Motivation: Gives Energy, Heart: Gives Humanity, Resilience: Gives Capacity to recover, Commitment: Gives continuity, Organizational support: Provides the condition for the flame to remain sustainable.
In conclusion, the MFP President stated that Leadership is often most clearly revealed not when circumstances are favourable, recognition is readily available and rewards are abundant, but when responsibilities remain demanding, resources are limited and the appreciation for one’s contribution is uncertain.
It is in such moments that the true meaning of leadership beyond position becomes evident.
This paper has established that leadership is not defined merely by the authority an individual exercises or the office they occupy, but by the purpose they pursue, the character they demonstrate, the people they influence and the lasting value they create.
The discussion has shown that effective leadership requires more than enthusiasm or the willingness to accept responsibility. It demands integrity, vision, emotional intelligence, discipline, humility, courage and the ability to inspire confidence in others.
These qualities provide the foundation upon which leadership zeal can be sustained. However, possessing them is not enough; leaders must continually nurture their motivation, remain open to learning, reflect on their actions, adapt to changing circumstances and translate their convictions into consistent and responsible practice.
A critical lesson from this discussion is that leading when rewards are few should never be confused with accepting exploitation, neglecting personal well-being or remaining silent in the face of persistent injustice.
Leaders must therefore recognise when to persevere, when to adapt, when to seek support and when existing conditions require constructive change.
Similarly, organisations must acknowledge that commitment cannot be demanded indefinitely without providing the resources, fairness and recognition that make effective contribution possible.
The guest speaker cited several scholars and references to buttress his presentation.
The leadership retreat had in attendance, the Chairman of the district Mrs Salome Olabimpe Ajayi, FCA, Immediate Past Chairman Mrs Funmilayo Omisore, FCA, Vice Chairman Mr Yemi Oyetunji, FCA, Elder of the district who also presented a paper at the event, Mr Adetunji Adepeju, FCA, other EXCO members, Chairmen of standing committees, Mrs Stella Oyedepo among others.
