You don’t have to learn everything the hard way. I’m sharing
these mistakes I’ve made in hopes that it will help you avoid
them.
1. Not getting the entire story before confronting someone about an “issue”
that had been brought to my attention.
A leader who always believes the worst about the people he leads needs to do a serious gut
check!
We are even told in the Scriptures to get the whole story:
Proverbs 18:17 says, “In a lawsuit the first to speak seems right, until someone comes forward
and cross-examines.”
2. Letting emotion get the best of me and shutting down a discussion when I
should actively listen.
A leader is way more likely to get buy-in if the people he leads actually feel like he listens to
them...REALLY listens to them.
James, the half-brother of Jesus, said in James 1:19, “My dear brothers and sisters, take note
of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.”
Notice he did not say to not become angry, but that we should be slow to get that way.
3. Choosing “the obvious” rather than listening to the Holy Spirit.
Often times this was simply laziness, thus leading me to choose what was easy versus what
was right.
4. Not allowing the people (or department) who would be most impacted by
a particular decision actually have input on that decision.
If a leader wants people to buy in, he needs allow them to weigh in as well!
5. Assuming that everyone on our staff (and in our church) will immediately
receive the decision in the first presentation when it took our leadership
team months to process it.
People need time to process and ask questions. And while some leaders label this “disloyal,”
I actually see it as staff trying to be MORE loyal by fully understanding and appreciating
everything that goes along with a particular decision.
6. Not pressing down on a person when I know they disagree with a
decision.
Some people need to be forced into conflict. A leader always loses when he sees that a
person disagrees with him, but he won’t pull it out of them because he really just wants to
keep the peace instead of being a secure leader.