Leaders Worth Following

by Tim Howard

If you are a leader, you have people following you! I believe it was John Maxwell that said something to this effect: If you think you are a leader and no one is following you – you are just out for a good walk.

I‘ve followed several great men and women over the years and have been helped greatly by them in the process of my maturity. They led in such a way as to elicit from me loyalty, faithfulness, a willingness to sacrifice and a strong desire to follow them.

How do you develop a team that people want to play on? To reword the question; How do you become a leader, people want to follow?

One key word is “Environment.” We all create a certain environment, atmosphere or aura if you will, that other people can see, sense and react to. How many of you find yourself rejoicing when a certain co-worker calls the office to say they won’t be in on a specific day? Be honest!  If you rejoice when they are not present, it’s because they have created an environment that’s not very pleasant. The opposite is true as well. We miss someone because they create an atmosphere that is enjoyable.

There’s a sign that reads: “All people bring me joy, some when they enter and others when they leave.” That sums it up.
 A good atmosphere or a good environment keeps the morale high and when the morale is high, people want to follow the leader and they look forward to playing on the team. One of the greatest challenges a leader will ever face is not merely to complete a task but to create an environment conducive to love, joy, peace, and camaraderie.

Here are four ways to create an atmosphere on the job, in the home, at the school, and a myriad of other places that will help to create in people a desire to follow your leadership.

1.   Be a person of integrity. Open, upfront and honest! The environment this creates will allow openness from others and build a safe place for free expression. Authenticity is a must!

2.   Treat people in the same way you want to be treated and don’t show favoritism. Everyone has value and is uniquely made. In Genesis 37, Jacob showed favoritism by loving one son more than the others. Result: The family members resented each other and negativity grew. A competitive and comparative spirit enters and the temperature becomes very cold when you favor some over others.

3.   Compliment your followers more than you criticize them. How many of you would admit: When the boss asks you to step into his or her office, the first thing to go through your mind is this question: “What did I do wrong?” Focusing on the good and giving some praise now and then can build the morale and create a positive attitude.  Look for the Gold. You will never find the gold in people if you only focus on the dirt surrounding them. And by the way, we all get dirty. 

4.   Talk WITH people, not TO them! You can talk to people, at people or with people but when you do the latter of the three, people will respect you because you are actually listening to them. Communication was always intended to be a dialogue, not a monologue.

I encourage you to be a leader worth following!

Leaders and Followers

by Tim Howard

If you choose to do everything alone, you don’t need leaders but if you choose to do life - with a team mentality, you will need quality leaders and committed followers.

Paul the Apostle was undeniably one of the greatest leaders in the New Testament. His credentials were impeccable. He was courageous, creative, consistent, educated to the highest level and committed to doing whatever it took to succeed. If you want a picture of a driven, demanding, strong and determined leader, then study the life of Paul.

 There was one major weakness, however; Paul wasn’t a good follower!  At least until he had an encounter with Christ on a narrow, winding, dirt road in route to an insignificant place called Damascus.  That’s not surprising because God is like that. He meets you when you least expect it, when you least deserve it and when you’re on a road to nowhere…

The account reads like this in Acts 9. When Saul got to the outskirts of Damascus, a blinding flash of light suddenly dazed him. Being stopped in his tracks he fell to the ground and heard a voice: “Saul, Saul, why are you out to get me?” He said, “Who are you, Master?”  “I am Jesus, the One you’re hunting down.  I want you to get up and enter the city… While Saul was picking himself up off the ground, he found himself stone blind. They had to take him by the hand and lead him into Damascus.

This man had vision! He saw what he wanted in life and was in hot pursuit of it. He would not be deterred or denied. But then... God engaged him and everything went black. Lights out?  He couldn’t see. He needed help. It was so dark he had to follow the lead of someone else.

If you are too big to follow you will always be too small to lead! 

The best leaders are the ones who have learned to follow well. A Roman soldier understood this concept. He said in Luke 7:8, I am a man under orders and know how to obey. I also give orders. I tell one soldier, ‘Go,’ and he goes; another, ‘Come,’ and he will come.

The first thing Jesus asked His potential leaders to do was: “Follow Me” Why? Because when you follow, you learn if you listen.

The word ‘Disciple’ in the N.T. means: learner or follower. Jesus didn’t recruit members for an organization; He invited people to have a relationship by following Him.

In ancient times, there were few higher learning institutions. Instead, those who wanted to learn a skill or a philosophy attached themselves to a journeyman or a teacher and spent significant time with them to learn the trade. In the case of those learning a philosophy, the student would follow the teacher for years, traveling wherever they would go, and the teacher would expound as they walked, teaching the intricacies of the faith. The disciples of Jesus did just that. Wherever Jesus went, the disciples would follow, and Jesus would show them things and teach them as they moved across the land. The disciples listened, learned and as a result, became great leaders.

 We’ve all heard variations of that old idiom: “Too many chiefs and not enough Indians.” “Too many bosses and not enough workers.” That may or may not be true in certain situations but I do know this for a fact. If you want to be a good leader, you must first become a good follower. We need both, quality leaders and committed followers.

You Are A leader

by Andrew Cromwell

Most of us don’t feel like leaders. When it comes to the “L” word, we believe that it must apply to someone else, but certainly not to us. We think of leaders as the people who have an important title and are in charge of lots and lots of people. We think of them as the ones who are always sharply dressed, super smart and walk around with a take no prisoners attitude.

And while these things might be hallmarks of a leader (emphasis on “might”), the truth is there are leaders of all shapes and sizes. True, we are not all called to be leaders of thousands, but I do believe that we all can be leaders.

First, we must lead ourselves. This, above all is probably the most challenging of all leadership tasks. The Roman philosopher Seneca said, “Most powerful is he who has himself in his own power.” The day we stop blaming others for our lot in life and start taking charge of our own emotions and actions is the day we start taking up the role of a leader. 

People who lead themselves are constantly seeking to understand themselves more so that they are not hostages to their own out-of-control emotions. They seek out new experiences so that they can grow. They ask others to give them constructive feedback. They learn how to identify the warning signs of anger, depression and worry long before these destructive emotions have taken over, and they stop them dead in their tracks.

Second, we must lead the people around us. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the only leaders are the ones that have titles on their door or business card. Leadership is simply the ability to influence those around you. You don’t need a title to influence your friends -- you just need their trust.

I can’t emphasize this point enough. Too many times, we take a backseat in situations that are crying out for leadership because we say something silly like, “it’s not my job.” We take ourselves out of the game and sit on the bench without ever taking a shot. 

This world is begging for people who will stand up and speak the truth. People who will say what needs to be said. People who will row against the current rather than just give up and float downstream. 

You don’t have to be the smartest person in the room (actually, all the research shows that it is not great intelligence that makes for great leadership). You don’t have to be the person with the biggest paycheck. And you certainly don’t have to be the person wearing the nicest suit. Instead, you need to be willing to step out and take a swing. 

The pastors in the Kings County would love to help you influence your family and community for the good.  Why don’t you give them a chance this weekend?