Pence: Leaders should be humble, exercise self-control

Vice President Pence shared advice Wednesday with a group of students in Chicago on how to be a leader like President Trump, saying a leader must be humble and exercise self-control.

During a speech at the National Student Leadership Conference, Pence said in order for a leader to be like the president, they must listen, be humble, have a character people respect, work to serve others and learn from other leaders.

“I truly believe that to reflect humility is to approach leadership every day as a learner and as a listener,” Pence told the students, according to a White House transcript of his speech.

{mosads}Pence pointed to a meeting during Trump’s transition into office, when the president-elect “listened intently” and probed “virtually all of the high-tech entrepreneurs and executives in America.”

The vice president told the students they should strive to be “servant leaders” who work on behalf of others.

“I urge you to be servant leaders, driven by a calling to support and to serve others — not by selfish ambition — as the animating force of your career,” he continued.

Pence also advised that they should “respect those who have been placed above you.”

“Honor them. Learn from them. Follow their example. Give them the honor that they are due,” he added.

And as his last piece of advice, Pence advised aspiring leaders to “practice discipline and to practice self-control” in order “to become the kind of woman and man that people will respect and people will follow.”

Throughout the speech, Pence heavily praised his boss.

“Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, we are in the midst of a great national renewal. We are seeing the return of security and prosperity for our nation and our people,” Pence told the students. 

His effusive remarks about Trump’s leadership comes at a time when reports say Pence appears to be distancing himself from the Trump administration.