Leadership is a lot like parenthood. You don’t really know what you’re signing up for until you are smack dab in the middle of it and realize you have absolutely no idea what you are doing.
I’m sure that’s not true for many leaders, but it certainly has been for me at different times in my life and even quite recently. In fact, this blog post is the result of some serious self-reflection after a bit of a leadership fumble. I could have handled a situation so much better than I did. Suffice it to say it was a less than radiant moment.
I want to have fewer leadership fumbles and be more radiant in my roles as a leader. In light of that, I’m kicking off a series on leadership.
If you are tempted to stop reading right now because you don’t consider yourself a leader, wait! Hang with me just a little bit longer. You might be surprised to find that you are indeed a leader.
In this series, we will first look at some different definitions of leadership and then see what God might want to teach us about leadership from biblical examples such as Deborah, Moses, David and Joshua.
How did God choose them? What kind of leaders were they? How did they influence, guide and direct those around them?
Before we dive into the details, perhaps we should start with a very important question.
What is leadership?
I was asked that seemingly simple question in a job interview once, and to be honest, it caught me off guard.
Since that time, I have worked to deepen my understanding of the topic both academically and experientially. Being able to attend leadership seminars and conferences was like a lifeline for me when I felt like I was over my head. Spending time studying leaders in the Bible also brought tremendous insight and encouragement. We’ll talk more about that in a future post.
Okay, back to our question. What is leadership? Some would say leadership is moving people from “here to there.” As a leader, you help people see why they can’t stay “here,” cast a vision for what “there” looks like, and then help move people. This could happen in the work place, at church or even at home.
Others would define leadership as simply guiding or directing people.
However, perhaps the most broad, all-inclusive definition of leadership uses just a single word: influence.
If leadership is influence, then by that definition, we are all leaders to some degree. We all have the ability to influence those around us (and thanks to social media, we can influence those who aren’t around us too!).
There are positional leaders, those who lead people because of a particular role they have or because of a line item in their job description. While other people could be considered relational leaders, influencing people through their relationships without having a formal title or role of leadership.
Think about how you have the ability to influence your friends, your spouse, and your family, all because of your relationship with them.
As I was preparing for this post, I found a quote that both aptly and eloquently describes some of the intricacies of leadership: “The authority by which the Christian leader leads is not power but love, not force but example, not coercion but reasoned persuasion. Leaders have power, but power is only safe in the hands of those who humble themselves to serve.” John Stott
What captures me about this quote is the emphasis on love, example, persuasion and humility in leadership. As we look at some biblical examples of leadership in the weeks ahead, we will see how these elements manifest themselves in their hearts and actions.
In my own life, I believe God has used leadership, far more than almost anything else, to humble me. Unfortunately, I’ve had to learn many lessons the hard way. We’ll talk more about that too in the coming weeks.
What about you? Have you learned some share-worthy lessons in leadership? I would love for you to share your thoughts as we continue the series. Let’s discover together how to be radiant as we lead in our everyday lives.
I hope you’ll join me again next week!
Go Be Radiant 