On Leading Well

Category: Leadership

  • I Was A Prodigal

    I was a prodigal.

    Sure, I masked my inner rebellion with excellent grades, modest athletic achievement, student leadership positions and a high degree of socialization. But the truth was still there.

    I was a prodigal.

    I ran from God. I ran from reality. Chasing wine, women and song helped me gain over 15 kg my first year of college and cut my grade point average nearly in half.

    Some of my friends reached out to me. They helped me see that I was leaving a wake of strained and broken relationships behind me. They didn’t judge me (well, some did). A few close friends demonstrated that they cared more for me than for my approval. They spoke hard truth with radical grace into my situation.

    I was a prodigal. These friends were the arms of a loving father, reaching out and waiting for me to return. To forgive. To invite me to more.

    Thanks, friends. It is in your honor that I pray for prodigals on this annual Prayer for Prodigals day, June 2. You can pray for them too. If you want more information, or have interest in journeying with others who are wrestling with a prodigal, visit here.

    After all, we’re all prodigals in need of radical grace, aren’t we?

    Read Jesus’ version of the story here.

  • Curiosity (or lack of it) Killed the Leader

    One of the most crucial aspects of leadership is curiosity.

    Curiosity presses into the unknown with playful willingness. Curiosity notices big things and little things. Curiosity fuels connections and creativity.

    Curiosity is essential to authentic leadership in a knowledge economy. And it can be risky.

    I’m not talking about false bravado or “take this hill or die trying” or “let’s bet the whole organization on this killer project” type of leadership. Unmitigated risk-taking doesn’t reflect true faith or appropriate respect for partners in the mission.

    I am talking about the courage to risk asking hard questions about uncomfortable topics, then allowing others the space and safety to honestly answer. When teammates do this, we make room for the Spirit of God to work. We open the windows and let fresh air into the room. We move away from groupthink behaviors (such as silently nodding in agreement when we have evidence or convictions to the contrary, or worse, believing that because we’ve been together for so long we can’t possibly fail) toward a healthy, if temporarily uncomfortable, embrace of reality.

    Last week during a team meeting, one of my mates took a courageous risk by asking two hard questions – about my leadership of the team. By God’s grace I was able to listen. I received both encouraging and uncomfortable feedback regarding some recent decisions I’ve made and actions I’ve taken. The next day I asked Paul, my coach, to help me discover some of the gaps between my intentions and the impact I was having on a few folks. We’re all better off because someone took a risk.

    Here’s a quote from two of my favorite leadership authors that captures the spirit of curiosity:

    “Leaders peek behind the curtain to see what’s hiding there. They see the future as a picture puzzle and figure out how all the pieces fit together. Envisioning the future is about paying attention to the little things.”

    —from The Leadership Challenge, 4th Edition by Jim Kouzes & Barry Posner

    What question are you waiting to ask that might open up some new conversation with your family? In your job? In your own personal attitudes or behaviors? Ask it, and don’t be afraid to chase the truth.

  • Share the Lead to Share the Load

    We are watching a fascinating leadership transformation in the Middle East. A dozen countries are experiencing political turmoil as protesters have flooded the streets, wanting their voices to be heard. Interestingly, they are not following a high-profile personality or even a named leader. One news report offered the term “crowd-led.” These crowds, or movements, don’t want merely to be represented, they want to participate – to share leadership – in shaping their nation’s future.

    I believe these protests represent a shift in how the world thinks about and experiences leadership. Gone are the days of the in-charge, know-it-all, autocratic leader. Traditional leadership theories tend to focus on a leader and his or her character, vision, roles and skillsets. However, in recent years a growing number of influential thinkers view leadership as an activity that can be shared or distributed among members of a tribe, group or organization.

    What is shared leadership?
    Many questions coming from my organization’s recent restructuring revolve around the definition and practical expression of shared leadership. I’ve found Executive Coach Marshall Goldsmith’sdefinition helpful:

    “Shared leadership involves maximizing all of the human resources in an organization by empowering individuals and giving them an opportunity to take leadership positions in their areas of expertise. With more complex markets increasing the demands on leadership, the job in many cases is simply too large for one individual.”

    For us, this in no way diminishes the role of a team leader. Rather team leaders must now think differently about how they will attract, retain, develop and release a talented team to accomplish the mission. This desire to share the burden of leading with others who have greater expertise is crucial, particularly as our emphasis is shifting away from teams comprised of full-time staff members to teams of volunteers.

    Is It Biblical?
    Last year as I read through the Bible, God showed me several examples of shared leadership. Here are a few:

    • God’s initiation to create humankind (“Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Genesis 1:26).
    • Jethro coaching Moses to share his workload with trustworthy men who could lead thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. (“you will certainly wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you…you are not able to do it alone”) Exodus 18:18-23.
    • Joshua’s commissioning by Moses included sharing decision-making authority with Eleazar the priest, “who shall inquire for him…before the Lord” (Numbers 27:21).
    • King Uzziah, a five-star talented achiever who refused to share leadership with the priesthood, ultimately suffered leprosy, shame and dethroning as a result (2 Chronicles 26).
    • Barnabas and Paul, in their church planting strategy, rapidly selected and anointed elders (never a single elder) in every church (Acts 14:23, Titus 1:5).

    How Does It Work?
    When I train with my bike club, we all recognize that it takes 30 percent more energy for the lead rider to ride out front–deflecting the wind and setting the course. Riders who draft behind the leader reap the benefit of a reduced headwind and do not have to work as hard. This allows them to save energy or recover until it’s their turn at the front. Typically, on a two-hour bike ride we will rotate the lead every three minutes.

    During a recent bike ride we faced a stiff headwind. One poor guy tried to ride up front for too long and he was slowing down the pace of the whole group. Finally someone yelled out, “Hey guys, ROTATE!” signaling it was someone else’s turn to lead the paceline; our frontrunner needed our help. Gutting it out for too long may appear noble, but it slows everyone else down.

    As you can imagine, Steve Douglass (our organization’s president) has exerted more energy to deflect primary headwinds and set our God-given course. Our Executive Team realized this as we began to better define our roles and goals.  As we’ve discussed and mutually agreed upon ways that some of us could share the leadership burden, we’ve discovered that we can do more, with less stress. For me personally, I find my heart growing in willingness to trust my team members and experiencing much greater passion for our mission. I like that.

    Make It Practical
    Goldsmith suggests ways to share leadership and maximize talent. Here are a few:

    • Give power away to the most qualified individuals to strengthen their capabilities.
    • Define the limits of decision-making power.
    • Cultivate a climate in which people feel free to take initiative on assignments.
    • Give qualified people discretion and autonomy over their tasks and resources and encourage them to use these tools.
    • Don’t second guess the decisions of those you have empowered to do so.

    What steps could you take to live out shared leadership within your ministry or workplace context?