He held the mantle of leadership. It was trust God or die in the wilderness. Joshua trusted God. There were several lesson of leadership seen in the life of Joshua. First, spiritual leadership demands that we walk by faith.
Leadership can be lonely.
But the man God uses reckons that God will be with Him. He often trembles at the task set before him, but he has a deep conviction that God will lead him through the troubled waters. It's that assurance that enables him to take that step of faith. Second, when Joshua took that great step of faith, God exalted him. He didn't exalt himself, but God exalted him.