When asked about Freemasonry and what it does, perhaps the most popular answer is that Freemasonry makes good men better, but how does it accomplish that goal?

The fact that every Masonic meeting opens and closes with prayer has often led to unfounded allegations that Freemasonry is a religion. It isn’t of course, Freemasonry is open to good men of all religions, but it does say a lot about the type of men who are attracted to our Fraternity. The first step in improving the nature of any group of men is a belief in the inherent goodness that lies within them. In Freemasonry that common belief is that we are a Brotherhood of men under the fatherhood of God.

Prayer really works and I can prove it:
In Freemasonry you are taught the importance of looking to God for his blessings in everything you do. This is very important because it frames the character of a Freemason. You may lie to yourself and others but no rational thinking man can lie to his creator. If we are to implore God’s help, then what we are about to do must be right in his eyes. This act is essential in any attempt at self-improvement and operates on several levels to help us succeed. The moral and ethical implications are self-evident, but there is a powerful practical side to this act as well.

Sometimes even analyzing a problem will not resolve it. Let’s face facts - every day we face problems to which we must find solutions and how we go about finding solutions will determine how successful we are.

We all know  doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different answer is one definition of insanity, but did you know your conscious mind is hardwired to do just that when you are problem solving?

Here is how our conscious mind works. When we attempt to solve a problem and fail, the failed solution becomes part of the problem. Why? Because it is now in our conscious mind and this makes the original problem even more complicated; however, when we implore God’s blessing we are not communicating with the 5% of our brain we refer to as the conscious portion of our mind, but the rarely tapped resources of the 95% of our brain we do not use, our sub-conscious.

The principal is the same as telling yourself before going to sleep that you need to get up at 5 am for an early appointment, or when you write down your goals and read them every night before going to sleep. When we pray we turn over the problem to God and our subconscious, which means we get the benefits of using the other 95% of our brain to work out a solution to our problems. Can you think of a better way to start any important project?

Bonding and trust, the first step in becoming a leader:
By being blindfolded and led into a room and there being handed over to a person he has never met, the candidate is taught the benefits of teamwork, learning to trust someone else with his own welfare.

Building trust is the basis for all cooperative efforts whether it is an executive committee performing a difficult negotiation or a Navy Seal combat team. Each team member has to know that the other team members trust his judgment, and in turn expect him to trust them. This is not a skill learned from books, but one that comes from practicing discipline, coordination, and reliance on each member of the team. In Freemasonry, this process starts with the candidate’s first step into the unknown, and like every other skill he is about to learn, will take several years to fully develop.

The beginning of discipline and the development of integrity:
Before any person can learn to lead he must first learn to follow orders or instructions. If you have ever served in the military you will always remember your very rude entry into military life, whether it was your first day at a Military Academy or your first day at boot camp, the experience was very much the same and it seemed to last forever. You were stripped of your personality, told when to speak, eat, sleep, how to dress, from your close-cut hairstyle to your underwear, and what and when to do anything. You were now the lowest of the low and your only purpose in life was to conform to what is expected of you as part of your team.

Obviously, that sort of behavior does not work in an organization where every member is a volunteer and is free to leave at any time. In Freemasonry, the learning of discipline occurs at a much slower pace. Those who are not suited for the leadership process do not get asked to leave but are allowed to participate at whatever level they feel comfortable. Those who adapt and show a willingness to learn can gain entry into a seven year training program where they learn to become executives so that they can run a Lodge or a business in the most successful manner.

Much is said about a Freemason taking oaths to maintain secrets, but little is said as to why that is important as an interpersonal relationship skill. The penalties of violating those oaths are symbolic, but there have been times past where the fraternity has been persecuted, and indeed there are countries today where the disclosure of a person being a Freemason can lead to arrest or worse. It was the Freemasons who liberated the people of South America from slavery and oppression and helped countries like Italy become a sovereign state.

One might relate these vows of secrecy to those WWII slogans such as “loose lips sink ships”, but they still serve a practical purpose. They develop not only discipline but also integrity. Can this team member be trusted to live up to his word? If he says he will do something, can he be relied upon to accomplish the job? No other attribute is more important in the development of a leader than that of being known as someone people can trust.

The servant leader:
A candidate for Freemasonry is pointed to the Volume of Scared Law of his own particular faith, and told that within its pages he will find the duties he owes to God, his neighbor, and himself. In each of these duties he is instructed to be first a servant if he is ever to lead. The willingness to put aside one’s own ego and sense of worth to serve and render assistance and relief to a Masonic Brother in distress has become one of the tenets of Freemasonry and a test of a Brother’s ethics, moral character, and most importantly leadership. When we expand this concept into a leadership style, we are living up to the very best in Freemason teaching.

Every form of religion has scripture that instructs us to follow this principle. For Christians it is Mark 9.35 "If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all." It is the most successful form of leadership, but it is also the hardest to assimilate and takes constant practice.

There are several other techniques Freemasonry uses to make good men better, but we will wrap up with perhaps the least understood advice given to any Freemason - learn to subdue your passions.

Think about what that really means. How many times have you given in to your passions when angry or upset only to regret it later? When our blood is up every little annoyance adds to our anger and we overreact, injuring our loved ones and friends who just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Many times the damage we do while in the control of a rage can undo decades of effort and good intentions in a moment, and many times the damage is irreversible.

Learning to subdue your passions is a proven way to improve your personal and business relationships. It is a lesson too many of us learn too late.