I have not preached for the past two weeks. Some people asked me, "have you enjoyed your time off." The reality of it is, I have been away from message preparation, but working harder than ever observing our church and it's leadership and ministry teams.
As a result you will see some changes! However, the changes are not what this post is about. This post is about the leadership lesson of observation.
What I do when I observe...
1) I get involved... At the ground level again. This is where our church started... If you are a business owner, this is where your company started. I want to see what the attitude and vibe of the people who work in the trenches every week looks like. What does this do? It helps me to see how deep our vision and values are being driven into our church. This is huge in any organization... If the team is not playing on the same sheet of music, it becomes pandemonium.
2) I ask questions. Like, how you doing? What do you feel? What do you need? What do you think we could do? How is your family doing? These question let me know where I need to start making changes. These questions also clue me in to what is coming down the pipe. I usually know that something is going to happen long before it happens. This is due to asking questions and a intuitive spirit God has given to me.
3) I listen carefully. When someone tells me something, I am not always listening to just what they are telling me. I am listening to why they are telling me what they are telling me. There is always a motive behind peoples speech. This is huge in the art of listening. I believe great leaders are born out of great listeners. Leaders listen more than they talk.
4) I process and start making the changes... Sometimes radical ones happen. Sometimes I just tweak some things. I usually talk to some people I trust before I make the radical changes. Wise council leads to great moves.
How do you back off in the midst of leading? How do you stay connected enough to what is going on, not to letting the organization drift? I'd love to hear!
3 comments:
Awesome insight Clay!!
Observation is key to leading people. Great post. Love your wife, Kim.
As always, a joy to be a part of this wonderful church! With a leader like you at the helm, following God's lead, all we CAN do is follow! So glad you are one step ahead of us! God Bless!
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