“In periods where there is no leadership, society stands still. Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better.” – Harry Truman, former U.S. President.
If you had told me 6 months ago, or even 3 months ago that we would we quarantined at home with “shelter in place” mandates, I would have argued that you were off your rocker or looking for some new conspiracy theory to debate over a cup of coffee or at during a water cooler huddle.
But here we are in April of 2020, living through a global pandemic.
There have been many opinions on how we got here, we are not short of opinions right now, but I submit to you that this did not happen overnight, and that in this country, in our businesses, our churches, in our institutions, what we are really facing is a crisis in “leadership”. We lack leadership! We don’t know what to do!
As defined by Wiki, “leadership” is the ability of an individual or organization to guide other individuals, teams, and organizations … so what we are crying out for right now are “leaders”, who can lay aside their own selfish motives, ego, and agendas to mobilize the human race towards recovery and more importantly, reinvention of ourselves. (We will not go back to our “old ways”.)
History has demonstrated repeatedly that “real leaders”, mere men and women, who will selflessly tackle hard problems, identify opportunities, and problem solve in times of peril and uncertainty, emerge during crisis. I submit to you that these transformational leaders are all around us, waiting to be activated so that they step up, step out, and step forth.
Having literally studied great leaders, served, and obsessed over leadership best practices over the past 10 years, and even more so in the past few years, here's my observation of characteristics of great leaders:
- Humility: They recognize that even though they have some of the answers, they do not have them all.
- Vision: They can see the end at the beginning. They articulate the vision so clearly that others can see it and run with it.
- Perspective: They see problems as opportunities. Their language is “the glass is half full”
- Courageous: They are willing to face great difficulty, even during opposition.
- Coach/Mentor: Skilled in mobilizing the proper resources to move toward “progress”.
- Accept Responsibility: Even when wrong, they accept responsibility. They don’t point blame to their teams, they own it!
- Continuous Development: They are in a constant pursuit of improving themselves and those around them. They resist “status quo” and mediocrity.
If we observe Jesus' model, he trained his leaders up close and personal. Even during times of crisis, He used them as teachable moments. For three years, the Twelve were in a learning environment. They not only learned new ideas, but they developed new skills and abilities. They were teachable, because they saw a large gap between Christ’s leadership and life and their own. Progressive growth came through trial and error. Jesus was teaching them to lead in His absence.
This is not the time to point fingers at what others are not doing well, especially in our teams and organizations. This is a time for "answers". A time to seek the Lord like never before for strategy, a time to sharpen ourselves, a time to take inventory as leaders, a time to mobilize other leaders, and more importantly to work towards becoming the best leader we are capable of being. I heard Pastor Toure Roberts say recently, "Leaders do not grow by accident...it comes through deliberate commitment to growth."
Ponder this thought. What are you doing deliberately become a better leader? What are your blind-spots? What things about your leadership approach make you cringe? Make a list of areas where you are either struggling or need to improve. Develop your own leadership development plan and connect with resources that can help you improve. Stay connected to us for Leadership Intensives, which are boot camp style courses designed to provide critical training for leadership.
Leadership Nugget: The Chinese character for "crisis" consists of two symbols. One means "danger," the other "opportunity." Crisis typically hides inside great opportunity. Opportunity is only visible to those who really want to see it. What do you see? Do you see problems or do you see opportunities to emerge as one of the leaders that were are in desperate need of?
Author: Kimberley Basnight, Partner, Strategist, ChurchStarter Trainer
Kimberley Basnight has worked in corporate America and the church for more than 30 years. She has been inspired and influenced by numerous thought-leaders, educators, entrepreneurs, and ministry leaders who surrounded her as a young woman, and often aspired her to live a life where her actions and contributions would someday inspire and impact others. Kimberley loves to train leaders in leadership and digital strategy.
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