Special series: Leadership matters
In the “Leadership Matters” series, guest articles explore the dimensions…
Leaders need leaders
Why leadership should be a shared journey, not a solitary pursuit.
|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
CAMPBELL, CALIF. — Whether you’re CEO of a Fortune 500 company, elder or minister in a local church or head coach of your child’s travel baseball team, leadership carries unique responsibilities.
Some decisions rest with you alone. Some burdens are yours to bear. As a result, leadership can be surprisingly lonely.
This is part of a series of guest columns on church leadership. Read the rest here.
When leaders are honest enough to let down their guard, one of the first things they talk about is the loneliness of leadership. Too often, however, they speak of it as though it were simply part of the job description — an unfortunate reality that cannot be changed.
While leadership can be isolating and, at times, lonely, it does not mean leaders have to go it alone. In fact, they shouldn’t. Isolation makes leaders more vulnerable to poor decisions, creates blind spots, limits their effectiveness and ultimately becomes a disservice to the people they are trying to lead.
Leaders need leaders.
Throughout Scripture, we find leadership presented as a shared journey, not a solitary pursuit.
God gave Moses a Joshua. He gave David a Jonathan. Paul had Barnabas, Silas, Timothy and Titus. And when Jesus sent out the 72 disciples, he sent them in pairs.
Related: Special series: Leadership matters
We know this but often fail to prioritize it. For your own health and longevity, and for the good of the people you lead, let me encourage you to move this higher up on your priority list.
Specifically, take two steps.
First, find a good coach or mentor. Leadership can be a heady thing, but the best leaders are humble enough to know they are limited by their own experience, background and perspective.
Leonard Allen, dean of Lipscomb’s College of Bible & Ministry, announces the Pastoral Leadership Program.
Whether you have been leading in your current role for four weeks or 40 years, there is someone out there who is a few steps ahead of you.
Find that person. Set up a regular time to meet. Seek insight about current leadership challenges.
Brainstorm new ideas. Invite honest feedback. Establish growth goals for the future. If you need to hire someone to serve as a coach, spend the money. Especially if your leadership fire is little more than a glowing ember right now.
A good coach can inspire, equip, challenge and encourage. More importantly, a good coach can help you stay in the game when you are tempted to quit. The right mentor may add years to your effectiveness and longevity.
A coach can help you become a better leader. Friends help you remain a healthy one.
That leads to the second step: Build deep friendships with fellow leaders.
“Build deep friendships with fellow leaders. No leader feels like they have time for this. Yet few leaders make it to the finish line healthy without it.”
No leader feels like they have time for this. Yet few leaders make it to the finish line healthy without it.
For more than 20 years, I have walked through life and ministry with six other leaders who have blessed my life beyond words. They are talented, insightful, hard-working, Jesus-loving, people-loving men who have graciously shared their lives with me.
These men have laughed with me, cried with me, challenged me, corrected me, encouraged me and prayed for me. They are my friends, not my competitors — except when we step onto a golf course or pickleball court.
Elders Casey Long, left, and Mark Johnson, right, pray over Gregg and Pam Strawn before the longtime preacher’s retirement after 38 years of ministry at the Circle Church of Christ in Corvallis, Ore.
There are three Texans, three Okies and one Californian in our group. Distance and the pace of life require intentionality and commitment to keep our relationships strong. But the benefits have so outweighed the sacrifices that we are determined to make it work.
Every Thursday we gather on Zoom to catch up. Each year we attend a conference together. We also try to spend three days together annually at a retreat in the mountains or by a lake.
Every time we gather, I feel more alive. The beauty, laughter, honesty and love refresh me in ways I cannot fully describe.
Perhaps you are thinking, “That sounds wonderful, but I don’t have friendships like that.” Not yet. But don’t forget who you are. You are a leader. Pray for God to point you toward the right person — or people.
Take the initiative. Create a plan. Extend an invitation. It may feel awkward at first. Keep showing up. Keep sharing. Keep listening. Keep loving.
“Leadership will always have moments of loneliness. That comes with the territory. But that doesn’t have to mean isolation.”
Leadership will always have moments of loneliness. That comes with the territory. But that doesn’t have to mean isolation.
Find a mentor. Build meaningful friendships with fellow leaders. Invest in those relationships before you desperately need them. The people you lead deserve a healthy leader. And healthy leaders rarely make the journey alone.
SHON SMITH serves as the preaching and teaching minister for the Campbell Church of Christ in California. For feedback about the series, email [email protected].
