Let Your Life Speak: Mother Teresa’s Lesson for Leaders

A note to young leaders.

When falsely accused, don’t attack, don’t defend. Just gesture to the trail behind you.

When Mother Teresa opened Nirmal Hriday (Home for the Dying) in Calcutta in 1952, she wasn’t exactly warmly embraced. Local Hindu leaders suspected her of using compassion as a cover for Christian conversion.

Every day, protesters gathered outside, shouting slogans and threatening violence.

The crisis came to a head when a Hindu man she had taken in from the streets, began to recover. Instead of rejoicing, her critics accused her of baptising him against his will.

Mother Teresa said nothing in her defence. Instead, she invited the man to speak. He addressed the crowd directly and told them she had honoured his Hindu faith while nursing him back to life.

That moment disarmed many of her enemies. One protest leader remarked: “This is the first time I’ve seen a love that transcends religion.”

From that day on, her reputation soared. What was intended for her ruin, she turned to her advantage.

No need to plead, protest or persuade.

Res ipsa loquitur – the work speaks for itself.