What is Real Leadership?

What is Real Leadership?

I have had a chance to think about my leadership/management “style” a lot lately. I have been challenged about how I lead and what I do well and what I need to improve on. Mix that with some of my TV viewing and I get an interesting juxtaposition of thoughts.

I enjoy watching a couple different TV shows that talk about leadership – that may not be what they are aiming for, but it is what I watch them for – “Undercover Boss”, “Shark Tank” and Trump’s “Celebrity Apprentice.” These are interesting when you watch and listen to what is going on. One of the main takeaways that I have noticed is that to be a good leader you really need to talk, and listen to your employees. You need to develop enough of a true relationship with your employees that they trust you enough to share the hard stuff with you. If there isn’t any trust, you may only get lip service, or they will only tell you what you want to hear, and suddenly you are going down roads that you shouldn’t be travelling.

I noticed how on the “Boss” sometimes the CEO is absolutely surprised at how “corporate” is making things so difficult for the rest of the employees, and they never knew it. They listened to their boards, or a select focus group, but never got down to the employees to see how these changes and policies were affecting the rest of the company. I have been struck by how often the employees have said that the reason they never spoke up about policies because “they never thought anyone cared.”

On “Shark Tank” and “Apprentice” I have been amazed at how much goes into building relationships to form trust for creating business partners, or teams for a task. There is a lot of communicating going on, and listening, and sharing expectations and understandings, and backgrounds. These are a lot of key components to developing high performing teams or companies.

My thoughts are mixed in that I have been told that I need to stop working on these “soft skills.” I have been told that these are areas without a lot of “real” impact. As I think about it, and observe the areas, I think that these are the areas that really help to improve the climate and culture of the work place. When these are in place, employees are more productive, more creative, more resourceful in finding ways around problems.  Seems to me that when companies ignore the relationship area of the workplace, that things go “south.” Why would you want to ignore them and harm your business?  Strictly focusing on the hard skills and the things that can be measured, leave you vulnerable to missing the boat on some great innovations and great team members that can help grow the business over the long term.

Thoughts?

The Meanderings of an older Mind

Ahh! The joys of growing older.  Your brain can flow all over the place.

I sit in my house tonight and have been just thinking about “stuff.” Old time rock and roll, education, my kids.

Hmmm, shouldn’t call them kids. Brittany is a college graduate about to start her first teaching job this fall in IL and is looking for an apartment and all the stuff that goes with that.  Danyne is about to be a sophomore at ONU and is living and working at ONU this summer. Colleen is a freshly minted high school sophomore interested in getting her driver license. Where did the time go?

I still feel 18. My hair isn’t quite the same shade it was then. (Darlene’s is! How is that possible?) I am still in school – granted it is for a Masters, but it is almost 30 years after I got my bachelors. Why’d I wait so long? This has been fun! Taxing, strenuous, challenging, but fun. Why did I wait? Oh yeah, Life happened – work, kids, church responsibilities, school board stuff. Only four more months and I graduate. What a deal!

I was thinking this afternoon, that it was good that I got off the school board. Lots of stuff going on that I am glad I don’t have to deal with, but I am seeing what my yard is like for the first time in 17 years. Pretty sad. I didn’t know what it was like to sit in the back yard on the little swing like chair my mother in law got us and play with the dog. Amazing. It is pretty nice. Did you know sunsets are pretty neat when seen from outside and not from within a board room?

Well this isn’t really very thought provoking tonight, but I thought I needed to keep something fresh out here.

See Ya!

John

Why Should Everyone Know Jesus?

I just drove by a sign outside our church’s bus garage. It was from long ago from an attendance emphasis the denomination had titled “Everyone Ought to Know Jesus”. I was probably Sunday School Superintendent during that six week emphasis. It sparked a few thoughts. Help me out with these.

This is a great thought, and is certainly true. But I was struck by the thought “How do we let everyone know about Jesus?” We say people need to know that He saves them from their sins, He will give them a new life, new freedom. But how do we really let them know? How do tell them without so much jargon and words that really hold no meaning to them?

My curiosity is aroused because many who are lost, in the diverse and very accepting world of today, don’t see it that way. They don’t see a need for a new life (they have a good job, bills paid, new car (or nearly new) good friends); they don’t agree with the concept of sin and the thought that a loving God will really pass a judgment against them. They see Christian’s attitudes and beliefs as intolerant.

How do we make the loving God we believe in relevant to people who don’t see the need?

Could it be by making our service in the community more relevant to the needs in the community? Do we need to be bolder in our witnessing? Do we live more relevant lifestyle evangelism of just watch how I live? (Does that take us off the hook to actually verbalize our faith?) Is it about the music sung in the worship services? (look in different research and you can find that people are looking for more traditional music like they had growing up, or look elsewhere and they want music that moves them and is similar to what they hear on the radio – so what is it?)

What is the great answer to how to let them know?

I don’t have any answers. I have suspicions based on some years of observations and interactions with many people (churched and nonchurched).(And let me say upfront - I am not perfect in any of these - I am still a work in progress)

I think it starts with truly caring and loving people. I think we care about them, their sicknesses, their concerns about teens that are acting up and they are at their wits in, we are concerned about the issues of dealing with aging parents, we show we care about with the many needs brought on from unemployment or underemployment. We don’t need to beat them over the heads with what they should do, but we need to be supportive.

We need to weave our faith into our everyday life so that talking about what we are doing with the church and the things of faith are woven as naturally into our conversations as our talking about the latest TV show, movie, or sporting event. It seems that by being a natural part of people’s lives and offering patterns/ models of alternative ways to handle the stresses and challenges of everyday that we open up opportunities to answer the questions “Why should everyone know Jesus?”

What do you think?

Welcome to my thought processes!

This does not claim to be deep, or anything wild. But it will be periodic postings that share some of my thoughts. This is also a first attempt at blogging and an attempt to see if I can generate followers and perhaps use this as a tool to branch into a new ministry.

I am in the process of chasing my MBA through my alma mater Olivet Nazarene University. One of the courses is entrepreneurship and starting new ventures. Not just business, but items that you want to do to help create meaning and significance. I am using these thoughts to look into a ministry that allows me to come alongside churches and help them see the potenetial for growth and ministry in their community.

This entire process is really exciting me. This is a kind of start up business I can get excited about!

Let me know your thoughts!

John