Tag: Sunset

Better Leadership

“Surround yourself with people who make you a better person.” Author Unknown

Easier said than done, right?

How much better would our perspective in life be if we practiced this?

The idea involves surrounding ourselves with people who know when to encourage and how to approach us when correction is needed.

Leaders should always direct their attention to making others around them better. In order to achieve this goal, we need to know each person well enough to know what will make them better. We need to know when to encourage and how to approach with a loving spirit when correcting others.

Positive Leadership

Our world is immersed in negativity.

We experience it in our schools, work, home, and the church. Just writing these words comes across as negative, so how can we turn it around and maintain a positive focus?

1) Spend time with positive people. Use the time God gives us to be with positive influences.

2) Stop and think. Decide to only say something that builds up others in a positive way.

3) Eliminate excuses. What we say and do is the result of a choice. Choose the positive.

4) Be the most positive and enthusiastic person you know. A positive attitude is contagious.

Find a positive way to lead that is worth your time. (See Philippians 4:8)

A Symbol of Leadership

The gavel represents a legalistic leader, decisive and dogmatic.
The eagle represents a presidential leader, representative and political.
The swastika represents a dictatorial leader, aggressive and autocratic.
The crown represents a kingly leader, superior and majestic.
The lamb represents a gentle leader, patient even when suffering.
The cross represents a sacrificial leader, purposeful and loving.

A symbol is generally a material object representing something abstract. What symbol would represent your leadership?
Would the symbol of the cross, representing the purposeful and loving sacrifice of Jesus accurately describe it?

Our leadership is worth the effort to make certain it is represented accurately and biblically.

Analysis and Communication

One of the greatest challenges to any area of leadership involves communication. When communication lacks clarity, the result brings confusion and frustration. How can leaders analyze and communicate their vision, mission, and values more effectively?

Use easy to understand language. Terminology is important.

Be careful about assumptions.
Do not make the mistake of assuming.

Keep the message concise. Avoid sharing everything. Less is more.

Remember the old K.I.S.S. acronym.
Keep it short and simple!

Consider these ideas when trying to analyze and communicate matters of vision, mission, and values as leaders.

A Spiritual Leader

Paul’s words to the church at Corinth identify a spiritual leader, “Who is led into sin without my intense concern.”

Spiritual leaders are focused on others, it is an outward position of seeking the best for others, above self. No one knew or demonstrated this better than Jesus. From giving up the glory He had with the Father to giving up His life on the cross, Jesus was concerned about sin: yours and mine.

Consider the impact on people around us when we demonstrate concern for the sinful activity that permeates our world.

The task is not easy, but one that makes a lasting and eternal difference.

Fighting Fear

Zig Ziglar once said, “F-E-A-R has two meanings: ‘Forget Everything And Run’ or ‘Face Everything And Rise.’ The choice is yours.”

How do we channel fear in ways that harness its power to move us to rise instead of run?

1. Recognize what we fear. Are we afraid of failure or success, rejection or acceptance?
2. Have the right expectations. Expectations can create a fear of falling short or being overwhelmed.
3. Seek healthy communication. Talk with someone who can help guide us in overcoming it.
4. Remember God is our ally. Knowing who God is and that He fights for us, minimizes fear.

Indifference and Lethargy

We live in a world too often characterized by indifference and lethargy.

Leaders must find ways to prevent and overcome these characteristics in the church.

What does this really mean? It means we must…

1) Increase the desire of God’s people to be together.
2) Fan the flame of enthusiasm for sharing the gospel.
3) Energize the creativity of brothers and sisters in Christ.
5) Strengthen the hands of God’s faithful.
6) Lift up the hearts that are weak and struggling.

When leaders see the opportunity and do something about it, preparing to make the needed improvements, persevering through the challenges, we overcome indifference and lethargy.

Creative Leadership

Creativity can be frightening. Creativity brings change, and change makes us uncomfortable.

We often associate change with a departure from Scripture. Is it possible for leaders to encourage creativity without the fear of this kind of change? Yes.

Create a “safe” environment. People need to know it is okay to discuss and even disagree where there is no violation of Scripture.

Equip people with the right tools. It is difficult for people to creatively develop ideas if they are ill equipped.

Give heed to personal advice. If we want to encourage creativity, then be careful about promoting your own ideas.

Creativity makes a difference. Encourage it!

Humble Leaders

Leadership begins with humility, an emptying process of self. The idea is an emptiness that forces us to look up to the one who can fill us with purpose, direction, and fulfillment.

When the quality of humility is seen by others, there is a genuineness that exists in the character of the individual that draws others to follow and emulate.

Recognizing who we are (and perhaps who we are not) and the need for complete dependency on God is a beginning point.

Once we stop trying to do it on our own and trust God’s sovereign control, we are starting to understand humility.

Project Leadership

As a noun, a project is an individual or collaborative enterprise carefully planned and designed to achieve a particular aim.

As a verb, it is described as estimating or forecasting something on the basis of present trends, the force of moving something forward or outward.

As an enterprise that must be carefully planned and designed, leaders need to give serious thought to the project if they hope to achieve the aim.

As an activity, leaders must be the force that influences others in a way that moves them forward and outward.

Leaders who provide this kind of influence will always provide an example worth following.