Leadership Lesson: Building Up Your Team
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"A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver."
(Proverbs 25:11)
Ashley and I had dinner with our son, Bryant, and his wife, Kyndall, last Monday evening. Many of you know Bryant, as he has written devotions for us here at DFEA several times while I was traveling. He said, "Dad, when are you going to talk about leadership?" I responded that he listens to Carey Nieuwhof, who is a great speaker and author on that subject. Bryant said, "Yes, but I would like to hear about leadership from you too." Well, that got me thinking. So, this week, I am writing about leadership principles that I have learned as a pastor, board chairman, and president of a non-profit organization.
Jim Collins' landmark book, Good to Great, taught me many valuable insights and lessons on leadership. One of the important truths that really spoke to me is how the greatest leaders in business are not egotistical tyrants, but men and women of integrity and humility. I know there are plenty of examples of people who have gone on to accomplish much in their businesses and professional life while not exactly being humble or ethical, but by and large, as my friend Lt. General Wright once told me, "All the great ones, whether fighter pilots or pastors, are humble."
It takes true humility on the part of a leader, whether a pastor, CEO, president, board chairman, etc., to build up his or her employees or team members. Healthy companies and churches are led by healthy leaders. (A classic book in this area of leadership is John Maxwell's Developing the Leaders Around You.)
A sign of a healthy leader is the ability to compliment and sincerely build up those with whom he or she works. I read an article last week by Carey Nieuwhof in which he shares leadership insights from Adrian Gostick. He writes:
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Not showing gratitude as a manager is an act of stupidity.
Many older managers have the mindset, "If you still have a job, you should be grateful. Especially in these hard times." This mindset is extremely counter-productive, especially among the next generation. Workers want to know they are doing a good job, and telling them once a year at a performance review just doesn't cut it.
Adrian argues that it's a stupid decision not to show gratitude because there are very few things that we know are an accelerator in business, but showing gratitude is one of them. People today are desperate for recognition, and you will see a massive return on your investment if you invest an hour or two a week in encouraging your team.
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(Source: https://careynieuwhof.com/episode361)
In our devotions this week, I am sharing what I am calling "Leadership Lessons", insights I have gleaned from leading in various capacities. It is a tremendous joy, privilege, responsibility, and yes, at times, a great heartache to be a leader. Many men and women in leadership today are truly scrambling trying to figure out what to do next.
Leader, do what Solomon says in our Scripture verse for today: speak those sublime words to your people and watch them shine. Be kind and compliment those who serve on your team. When you see them doing a great job, tell them, brag on them, and help build them up. I assure you it will mean the world to them and will be an overall blessing to you and your organization.
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