This week, many people will hear the gospel of the Good Shepherd. The shepherd is someone who works amid the stench of animals, whose companions can’t even speak. It is a strange if not quizzical choice for thinking about leadership. But what makes the shepherd in this gospel a model is caring. This shepherd recognizes each animal individually, doesn’t run away when the wolves (read: problems) arrive.

The sixth century Rule of St. Benedict also offers guidance on what it means to truly lead. Benedict’s vision of a leader isn’t the hard-charging, admit-no-mistakes, type A personalities whose faces might adorn the covers of Fortune and Forbes. In Benedict’s management manual, servant is another word for leader. When I reported for The Wall Street Journal, “servant leadership” were common buzz words. Rarely did I see them in action. Servant leaders don’t acquire companies in order to dismantle them, or load them with debt. They don’t accept bonuses after laying off workers, cutting wages, or causing their company’s stock to collapse. They don’t lunch on an expense account or fly across the country in a private jet while slashing per diems for lower-rung employees who travel coach. They don’t take salaries that are three hundred times what their workers are paid.

Perhaps most revolutionary is Benedict’s belief about the true role of any leader: Above all, they must not show too great concern for the fleeting and temporal things of this world, neglecting or treating lightly the welfare of those entrusted to them. Rather they should keep in mind that they have undertaken the care of souls for whom they must give account.

The care of souls – the well-being of those entrusted to us – is the true calling of a leader. A lofty goal, yes, but a necessary one. Think how differently our offices, newsrooms, factories, or law firms would run if those words served as guides. This week, how can we care for the souls of those we work with or meet?