Step Up, Keep Stretching and Lift that Lid!

Leadership is a great thing.

John Maxwell says heaps about leadership.... all good stuff.

His side-kick, Dan Reiland, says great stuff too.
Dan has this great fortnightly email called Pastors Coach. I have referenced it before.. and I tried to find this great quote he used in 2008 in relation to church board members.... but I can't find my blog entry.

Anyway, here is a cut n paste.....

If you are a pastor, my encouragement is that you give a copy of this article to your lay leaders. Let them mull over what I have to say, and use it as a springboard for dialogue on what's important for board members in your church.

Here's what I say is important for board members to know:

1. Don't Step Up Unless You're Ready and Willing to Step Down

When my pastor, Kevin Myers, first talked to me about the possibility of serving as a member of our church's board, he explained something that I will never forget. It has since become a foundational principle for me in any kind of leadership. He said, "As long as your leadership is good enough to help the church, you belong on the board. But if the church ever outgrows your ability to lead, you will have to step down."

My purpose on the board is to serve the church and my pastor; not for it or him to serve me. For that reason, I've always held on loosely to my position on our board of elders. I'm acutely aware that it is a privilege to serve in a church where God is working, and I feel lucky to be where I am. God could have chosen anyone to serve Him at 12Stone, yet He picked me. I strive to live a life worthy of the calling I have received (Eph 4:1). And I am determined never to stand in the way of what God is doing at the church.......

What a thought:

"As long as your leadership is good enough to help the church, you belong on the board. But if the church ever outgrows your ability to lead, you will have to step down."

That means as leaders we need to keep growing and streching. So we need to add a good dose of "stretch" and "lift" to our "step up."

And then Steve Penny wrote this great blog post today. I have cut n paste the whole lot.

He talks about the challenge of change as a leader. Here goes.....

WHY CHANGE IS SO CHALLENGING

I find change a challenge.

Having led churches now for over thirty five years one would think that the process of change would become easier with the passing of time.

If anything the change process becomes harder as our years increase. Whether years in life or in a location or job, the challenge of change can often be much harder as time rolls on. Let me tell you why!

FIRSTLY – Change challenges relationships.
Probably the hardest thing to do in life is to move forward when so many around you do not want to arise to go forward.
The choice of a greater tomorrow or more of the same is sometimes as simple as the choice to say farewell to friendships that have become counter productive to you growing up and pressing on in life.

I find that a leader must reinvent themselves at least every seven years and do the same with their team to continue going forward and expanding.
Having applied this principle for years it has helped me see people who have hit a lid in their roles and don’t know why or how to fix it.

Many people can be very effective for a season and then when the organization grows beyond them, they go into a protectionist mode and try to cover the fact that they are now not coping as well as they used to, or being as effective or fruitful.

SECONDLY – The security of familiar surroundings can often be a huge barrier to arising and journeying into unfamiliar territory.
I sometimes think that a good crisis or two can be the catalyst that propels us forward out of our familiar surroundings toward the unfamiliar horizon of our future..
Never despise the tough times in your life as they often force us to become very creative in how we go forward in life.

THIRDLY – The power of positions can become a huge stranglehold on us if we are prone to see achievement as the filling of some position or achieving of some title.
Positions can be very fleeting and should never be seen as a safe place in life. A position should only ever reflect the productivity of a role, and never the attainment of an office or title.
Never allow positional authority to operate in your organization as it will destroy initiative and drive out the young entrepreneurs who are the secret to your future success.

FOURTHLY – The loss of a dream will cause your life and/or organization to grind to a halt.
Focussing on debt reduction and not on future vision will sap people of faith and enthusiasm.
Dreams drag us through the dust of the mundane.
Great achievements are always the result of great dreams.
Dreams demand change as they challenge the status quo of our everyday lives.
However only change the things you need to change on the journey – dont change the journey itself.

Stay true to what you really believe on the inside.

SET YOUR VISION IN CONCRETE – AND YOUR GOALS IN SAND.

Steve Penny


Did you get that?

"I find that a leader must reinvent themselves at least every seven years and do the same with their team to continue going forward and expanding."

Hmmmm.

I need to keep adding a good dose of "stretch" and "lift" to my "step up!"