Eeny, Meeny, Miny, You!?

Selecting Gift Appropriate Leaders

Imagine: You are home with your children. Your security is instantly shattered as you awaken to the breaking of a downstairs window. Instantly you mind screams “intruder.” You heart pounds, your mind races, as you think about your children two rooms away. You dial 911 as you listen to footsteps ascending the stairs. You have never felt such fear. You run to your children’s room, grab them, and hide in the closet. Moments later the rescue workers arrive. They are dressed in fireproof suits, air tanks strapped to their backs, hoses in hand. Although they are able to scare the attacker away, they were ill equipped to take him into custody. They had the wrong set of tools, the wrong training. Sure, they were able to knock the attacker down with the water from their hose, but it ruined your house and the attacker got away. You suppose that was a sufficient outcome… You grow concerned, but begin to laugh as you thank the firefighters for rescuing you and notice that your neighbor’s house is on fire and it’s the police department, guns drawn, that is desperately trying to extinguish the flames.

Choosing Leaders Wisely...

The above story illustrates the importance of our spiritual gifts and why we should find out what they are, use them, and enjoy them. Of equal importance, as leaders, we must be aware of the gifts and abilities of our direct reports. Being aware, and practicing our gifts bring an exciting level of contentment to our life. Indeed, it is the use of our gifts that allow God to work through us in powerful and extraordinary ways. The scriptural mandate to be a light in the darkness is not given to use devoid of the means to accomplish it. Father equips each and every believer with the necessary gifts to accomplish the tasks He has placed before them in life. The responsibility then is upon each Christian to identify, hone, practice, and experience the fullness of that gifting. As a leader of your organization, you will sometimes see the gifts that others possess long before they do. Capitalize on that insight.

It is crippling to many organizations that so few of their members have made an effort to identify their spiritual gifts. It is, perhaps, one of the main reasons why the church has lost its impact on society to the degree it has. It is also why so many of our organizations have reached a plateau or are in decline. Organizations grow in dysfunction because members are (with an honorable heart) volunteering to serve the organization in capacities that are not specific to their gifting. Members are responding to presented needs in the organization with the heart to serve, but they should seek to be preemptive not reactive.

In such a scenario, the need is filled by a warm body, not by a specifically gifted person. This usually exasperates the volunteer and the task is completed to a less-than-ideal degree. Mediocrity is killing us! We need to step back a moment. Step back and evaluate why the need was there in the first place. If we have the confidence that Father will supply our every need, we must ask: Why did the need have to be presented? What caused the deficiency?

I understand that what I am about to say will evoke criticism, and I agree that this “ideal” may never be fully realized, but at the same time we need to set our expectations for ourselves as high as possible that we may achieve our utmost for the organization. Here's what I believe.

"The need was brought to the congregation because someone who had the gifting to meet that need had not yet realized their spiritual gifts or, worse still, refused to fulfill their God-given assignment in the organization."

Consequently, another member of the congregation (someone less qualified) stepped up to fill the deficiency. It’s that simple. The church needs to return to effectiveness and clarity of purpose and such an endeavor begins with the individual pursuit and use of ones spiritual gifting.

If you lead your organization, administer a spiritual gifts test to all of your direct reports immediately. Then, assign, re-assign, or remove responsibilities accordingly. That grouch you have in charge of hospitality... really needs to go!

Being Great

There are those times in life when you encounter greatness. It takes your breath away. It’s one of those things when everything comes together in perfect harmony and you find yourself in the midst of something that just feels right... and you are inspired.

I had such an experience when I was called to do a business seminar for the leaders in an organization that hires me from time to time. I had worked as a freelance marketing adviser for this company in the late ’80’s but it had been years since I had been there to consult. I remember telling the then-owner (after our first meeting) that I would not advise on their ad campaign. He was shocked, and then I clarified.

It was early in my career and I had left an art director position for a company in Los Angeles to strike out on my own. I knew what it meant to represent the company which I had worked for and was greatly successful in driving campaigns to increase market share and product awareness, however, I knew little of this new company.

Back to the story. He was shocked. This Ad Guy who he had paid travel expenses to come and advise said that he would not. I could see his discomfort. Then I clarified. I would not advise because I knew little about their product. So he suggested that I spend the afternoon in the conference room with his in-house marketing staff and they could show me product, advise me on how it worked, and show me the previous ad campaigns they had run.

I shocked them again. During that meeting I refused to see any earlier campaigns (standard practice for me) because I did not want to be influenced by their previous attempts. Nor did I want to see the trade magazines they placed before me because the reason they were hiring me is that they wanted an outside evaluation of their product. Frustrated, the marketing team asked me; “So, what do you want?” My reply was simple.

“I want to build it!”

I scheduled an appointment (the next Monday morning) to work on the factory floor and actually build the product on the assembly line. I needed to know the nuts and bolts. Shock again!

Hear me. While I worked on that line, I understood the product deeper than most of the executives that had asked me to come. In fact, when it came time to advise on the ad campaign, I also advised on several product enhancements and a very small but beneficial change to the assembly line work flow that would save a small, but not insignificant amount of money every year. But I had to get under the hood to see those potential improvements. Their shock gave way to excitement.

Now I started this piece talking about greatness. I’m not talking about me, I’m talking about that company.

Returning years later to hold a seminar for their leaders, I walked into a completely different environment. The greasy carpet, the smell of a factory, the noise and the unprofessional receptionist had all been replaced. Instead I encountered what amounted to a professionally decorated sanctuary of a waiting room, and an attentive and extremely professional host. Furthermore, the noise and smell of the factory had given way to a gentle classical masterpiece playing during my very short wait. In fact, as I walked in I was surprised to see an LCD screen that welcomed me (and a short list of other scheduled appointments) by name. Something had changed. Someone had gone under the hood. Someone had entered the business with the eyes of a first-timer, and it was the new owner.

Before any employee knew who he was, he scheduled an appointment to meet with the staff, posing as a prospective new client. What he saw and experienced shook the company to its foundation, but also to greatness. He trained, fired and hired employees to mold the organization to his vision of excellence. He modeled it from the top and it showed. From the office of the CEO to the receptionist who offered me a bottle of water during my short wait, everything was a harmony. The corporate culture had changed. It had been defined. Now, they had asked me to come back to train his lead staff. He had heard of my day “on the line” and years later told his key people to get me back.

Today, he leads a company of excellence... And yes, he still calls me to advise from time to time.

Modeling Personal Accountability

As a leader, you have an obligation to model personal responsibility. Personally, I like the old phrase:

Your talk talks and your walk talks, but your walk talks better than your talk talks.

The attitudes we express, the actions and behaviors that we model, all illustrate to our direct reports the type of behavior that we believe in and expect for the organization. The leader that personally commits to transparency in their leadership style will instill confidence and excellence in their team.

One of the hardest things you can do is a leader is to self evaluate. Giving those whom you lead the opportunity to evaluate both the organization and you as their leader. Placing yourself in this situation is both humbling and trying. I have found that a yearly evaluation serves the organization, and me as a leader, in that I learned things about myself, seen from someone else's perspective, that if addressed make me a better leader.

As I prepare the evaluation, there is one ground rule that I put in place, and it has to do with respect. This ground rule serves to create an environment where communication can happen at the highest level, avoiding hostility and/or hurt feelings. The reality is that there are things that others see in you as their leader that you are unaware that they see. In many cases, you may not even know they have that perception of you. You need to know!

Those things can hinder your effectiveness, or even disqualify you as their leader. It is your job as a growing leader to explore, unearth, and improve upon those things. The problem is, unless you solicit feedback that enables you to see those things for yourself, you may never know that they exist.

Here is my ground rule

I tell everyone that their evaluation of me, or any individual in the organization will be personally reflected upon, that I will take what they have to say to heart. I promise them that I will act on any constructive information that they give. For that reason, I ask that all responses be respectful, and seeking the best good of the individual. No flaming allowed.

This understanding has led to a lifestyle and organizational culture that allows my direct reports to feel comfortable telling me what I need to know. If it is personal, and they are not comfortable telling me directly during the course of the year, they wait until the yearly evaluation. That is fine with me. I have shown that no comment, respectfully given, is ignored and that I move on every constructive recommendation. In fact, I go public with the evaluation.

It was hard for me to publish one year’s evaluation when I had the following comment: “The DoM needs to spend more time on the team building he talks about, and less time personally taking on as much as he does.” OUCH! However, by making these comments public, it serves the organization in multiple ways:

1) It shows that I take comments seriously.

2) It puts accountability to the forefront (they will wait to see if I start building teams).

3) It inspires them as they see the teams being built.

4) It gives me an item of improvement to report upon.

5) It makes me a better leader.

By the way, when you are open and transparent, and your people know that you will take evaluations from them anonymously, and that you will act upon them, they feel that they have a voice.

Rest assured, if you as a leader do not give your directs a voice, they will find their voice elsewhere. Usually it will be laterally, and then the problems really start…

You're Better Than That!

Click the link at the bottom of this note to watch a GREAT clip!We live in a society that blames everything on everyone. Even the stereotypical psychologist, while his patient begins to recline on the couch, asks; “Tell me about your mother?” As if she was the reason he just murdered eleven children in the elementary school.

This culture is defined by the lack of taking responsibility for our actions, and the feeling of entitlement. “We are entitled to success.”

Not so! If you are a leader, you are accountable.

I hear from business leaders, pastors and other organizational leaders all the time. When I speak to their organizations, there is (at times) an immediate excuse for the number of people in attendance. “You know, there are several people on vacation at the moment.”

Evil me wants to say, “Yeah right… Admit it... It's all slipping away and you don't know what to do about it!” But in that moment I realize it is my responsibility to act with the few in the same manner I would with the many, and then talk to that leader at a later time to get him to the point that he is comfortable where he is at; knowing he has done everything he can do. Knowing that he exemplifies a leader of excellence.

That’s what this clip is all about. I want you to watch it. I hope that after you do, you determine within yourself to stop making excuses for your failings. We all have them. Stop making excuses and get on with what God has empowered you to do. Remember my life slogan… It’s simple.

“Everything with Excellence”

These are the words that I try to live by. Today, so far, has been a good day…

http://www.nambcc.com/lesson/video/rocky.php