Recently I heard from Andy Stanley at a #Leadercast event.
I’ve yet to hear an Andy Stanley teaching that didn’t make me laugh, challenge the way I think and leave me resolved to change something. That day was no different.
Speaking about bold leadership, Andy defined bold leadership in a simple word picture…
A middle school girl in pursuit of an iPhone.
In this scenario you will see the 4 characteristics of bold leadership:
- Clarity – she knows exactly what will make her life better
- Focus – she has unreasonable focus around that which will make her life better
- Stubbornness – there are no alternatives to that which will make her life better
- Resourceful – she will find a multitude of creative possibilities that will result in receiving that which will make her life better
As Andy unpacked this word picture, I couldn’t agree more. I have a middle school girl and there was a time that she was without an iPhone. It was a time of great injustice in her life… but her parents finally saw the light and the injustice was made right.
[bctt tweet=”Bold Leadership is clarity around an unreasonable commitment to what should be. -Andy Stanley”]
Here are my take-aways from Andy’s talk, where it hits home for me and changes I want to make in my leadership moving forward.
“Bold leaders refuse to be cowed by how.”
That statement hit home with me because my over-wrung fear of failure wants to ‘how’ an idea to death before it even gets off the ground. When someone around me presents an idea, I’m faced with two opportunities.
- ‘How’ it to the ground and ensure it never has a chance at working.
- ‘Wow’ it into conversation giving it ample opportunity to work.
There are really 3 ways I ‘how’ an idea away. Maybe you do this too:
- Been There, Done That – I’ve tried that idea before and it didn’t work. Or maybe it worked but not to the effect I desired. Either way, I can ‘poo-poo’ an idea away based upon past experience. The problem with this response is how it affects the person who suggested it. It yanks the wind from their sails and I’ve all but guaranteed they’ll hesitate to bring me their next idea. And the next one might be a game-changer.
- No Budget – One of the biggest factors in ministry is budget. There are only so many dollars available and it’s our job to use them wisely to make ministry happen. I will ‘how’ an idea away because I think we can’t fit it into our budget. But I can fail to remember that when people get behind an idea, they can be highly creative with limited funds.
- No Margin – I can be overly protective of people’s time. Maybe that’s because I have my own challenges with taking more on than I should. I can ‘how’ an idea away because I think the one that suggested it shouldn’t add another plate to spin.
All 3 of these are idea-killers and they diminish the creative capacity that exists within those I lead. And I cannot continue to lead in this way. So, I’ve resolved to make some changes. Here are some thoughts on the changes I wan to make:
Meeting Prep – I go into every meeting, coffee or lunch with an agenda…. my list of items that need to be addressed. But part of my mental agenda needs to be an agreement to listen. To listen for ideas that will make our ministry better. If I’m watching for them, I’ll be more likely to recognize them.
Say ‘Wow’, not ‘How’ – This was Andy’s direct suggestion. Rather than meeting an idea with the question ‘How?’, respond with ‘Wow’. If I refuse to shoot down bad ideas, I increase my chances of hearing more. And the next idea could be a game-changer.
Ask ‘What if..?’ questions – There is so much value in getting beyond the ‘borders’ of budget/time/volunteer constraints and simply dream. [bctt tweet=”What if I had all the volunteers I could want? What would I do differently?”]
Can I be really transparent? I want to be known for bold leadership. For choosing to do what is hard because its the best thing to do. I want to be as unrelenting as a middle school girl in pursuit of an iPhone.
What about you?
