leadership

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on Leadership Sacrifice

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In the season during which Charles Taylor was convicted of war crimes I found myself reading Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s autobiographical book, This Child Will Be Great with great interest.  In January 2006, Johnson was sworn in as president of the Republic of Liberia.

Some of her reflections on leadership and the sacrifice required are below:

I guess the debate is still on over whether leaders are born or made.  I’m frankly not sure how one develops the skills necessary to lead and lead well.  Leadership requires stamina.  It requires a whole lot of acceptance, the ability to remain committed to your cause and to have the courage of your convictions.  It requires understanding that sacrifices will have to be made–and the willingness to make them again and again and again.

The greatest sacrifice of all is putting everything important–the challenge, the needs, your own ideals and sense of responsibility–ahead of yourself.  In effect, to be a great leader is to sacrifice oneself, because if you ever stop to think about your own preservation, your own safety, and your own survival, you will immediately become constrained.  You will cease to act, or to act in the best interests of those you are leading.  To be a great leader means to get to a place where personal considerations and needs become secondary to the achievement of your goal.  That is the greatest sacrifice you can make, but that is precisely what leadership demands.”

This Child Will be Great, p. 309

.3 seconds on the clock and the puck in the back of the net

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Ok, it was breathtaking!  When Detroit’s Zetterberg shouldered his way from the boards to the front of the net to zip one in past Luongo with .3 seconds on the clock in overtime, it was beautiful.  Yes I’m a Canucks fan, but this time we didn’t pull off the come-from-behind-win.  It was the second time in days that I found myself painfully admiring a winning goal in the closing seconds.  Norway defeated Canada in sledge hockey with an arcing shot from Eskel Hagan with just 3.6 seconds on the clock.  With our thoughts headed towards overtime and the possibilities for the next period, it was a shocker!

And therein is the leadership lesson for me.  While there is still time on the clock, there is still “a game” to be won or lost.  The minutes of our lives count and while we still have time, living for the glory of God still matters.  When we are tied or behind by one, urgency, passion, pursuit of Jesus Christ and His Kingdom must be nurtured.  When there is time on the clock there is still time to shape the story.  No one else will do this for me.

No one else will seek strength of character formed through a persistent gaze at Jesus and His Gospel for me.  No one else will prioritize my life, days, and hours with Christ for me.  No one else will put in the behind the scenes effort and learning for me.  No one else will say “no” or “yes” for me.  No one else will push through the inertia to engage in the most rewarding but hard ways of Kingdom living for me.  I regularly pray with the Psalmist, “Lord, teach us to number our days aright, that we might gain a heart of wisdom.”  (Psalm 90:12)

These guys on the ice push through difficulty and pain to the last second for a number of reasons.  But what vision is compelling, shaping, and energizing me?  You?

Timothy Keller on Movement Dynamics

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I have lifted Jay Lorenzen’s notes from Timothy Keller’s talk at the Global Cities Initiative Conference on Movement Dynamics.  This fantastic talk highlights the differences between a movement and institutionalism.  You can listen to the talk here.  The longer an organization exists the greater the pressure or drift to become locked into institutional ways and survivalism.   Jay’s notes are below.

Below is a summary of his points as Tim compared a movement with an institution. Let me suggest that you discuss these “dynamics” with your missional teams and help move your ministry to a movement and keep it from becoming an institution.

DYNAMIC 1: UNITY (THE FOCUS)

Oneness from common vision and beliefs: A movement is driven by a clear vision for a particular future reality, based on common beliefs.

Marks of a movement

1. Organized around a common vision for the future.

2. All leaders and key players share same goals.

3. Forward movement through arriving at consensus or near consensus on next stage in reaching the vision.

Marks of an institution

1. Organized around by-laws and ground rules.

2. Each leader/department presses for own differing agenda.

3. Forward movement through negotiated compromises to form agreed upon ‘strategy.’

DYNAMIC 2: CATHOLICITY (THE OPENNESS)

Emphasis on cooperation across lines: A movement is peopled by workers who put the vision ahead of other differences and learn from and work with people of other preferences, temperaments, and secondary beliefs.

Marks of a movement

4. Leaders have high tolerance for ambiguity and organizational “messiness”; what matters is the cause and vision. Result: lots of cooperation with those outside your organization who share the primary beliefs and vision.

5. Responsibilities of leaders overlap; everyone ‘owns’ the overall organization’s health; result is much cooperation within. Emphasis on ‘roles’ – who you are in the movement. Structure looks more ‘flat’ and like a network of teams.

Marks of an institution

4. Leaders have high need for clarity and compliance; what matters is proper procedure. Result: little cooperation with those who don’t share secondary and tertiary beliefs.

5.“Silo”and turf consciousness; the result is contentiousness. Emphasis on ‘tasks’-what you do in the organization. Structure is more ‘top-down’ like a pyramid of individuals

DYNAMIC 3: SACRIFICE (THE COMMITMENT)

Devotion to God’s kingdom over self or tribe: A movement is peopled by workers who put the vision ahead of their own interests and needs.

Marks of a movement

6. Great sacrifice is tolerated: low pay, long hours, poor conditions. Leaders need less approval and encouragement; self-starters.

7. High level of trust. Less need for accreditation and close supervision.

Marks of an institution

6. Individual needs more important than progress of the whole. Workers need rewards, much accountability from top.

7. Little trust. Constant meetings. time-consuming reporting, long approval processes.

DYNAMIC 4: SPONTANEITY (THE ORGANIC NATURE)

Spontaneous growth without top-down command: A movement constantly generates new ideas, new leaders, and new initiatives across itself—not solely from the top or from a command center outside of it.

Marks of a movement

8. Movement spreads through recruitment from relationship networks. Organic growth through friends’ enthusiasm and an appeal to sacrificial commitment.

9. New ideas are solicited and incorporated quickly. Lots of openness to creativity; freedom to try and fail. Leaders give workers more support than control.

10. Relationships strong; much “off-line” thinking occurs through friendships. Leaders naturally attract and ‘train’ new leaders through relationships.

Marks of an institution

8. Organization grows through formal processes of communication and “sales” appealing to individuals’ self-interest.

9. Innovation is seen as threatening if not coming from top. Great fear of any failure. Leaders keep tight control, give little support.

10. Few friendships; little happens outside of meetings. New leaders have to be recruited through formal processes.

Open Source Activists and Leadership

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J. R. Kerr has an excellent article on Open Source Activists and leadership in LeadershipJournal.net.  Internally I am conflicted.  I love it, crave it, and know that I do things that frustrate it around me.  At Cityview I hope we will keep working on it.  Here is an excerpt:

My generation is hungry for something more than the 15 principles for building a better team or the 21 reasons why you should be a servant leader. They are not content filling a role on a task force for church growth. They are hungry for more. They want a voice. They want influence. They are a generation that isn’t content receiving a vision; they want to be part of shaping and creating the vision. My generation believes in open source influence.

Open source is everywhere and it is changing the world. Thomas Friedman’s book The World is Flat documents the way open source is changing how software is developed and how news is reported. Past generations went to a trusted authority, like the Encyclopedia Britannica, to find answers to their questions. The new generation logs on to Wikipedia, an open source web encyclopedia that doesn’t just provide answers but allows users to contribute their knowledge as well. And the Apple iPhone now has thousands of user-created applications available as a result of becoming an open source platform. The younger generation expects to participate in the creation and formation of products and organizations in a way earlier generations simply did not.

Raising Cross-Cultural Competance in Leaders for the Urban Multi-Cultural Church

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In 2003 I graduated from Golden Gate Theological Seminary with a Doctorate of Ministry.  Its been six years since I laboured through courses and my project, Raising Cross-Cultural Competance in Leaders for the Urban Multi-Cultural Church.  I recently made a digital copy of the project so I could publish it here.  I hope that it may be helpful to others in church and marketplace ministry who desire to increase the depth of their relationships and the fruitfulness of their  leadership across cultures.

Part 1, Raising Cross-Cultural Competance in Leaders

Part 2, Raising Cross-Cultural Competance in Leaders

Part 3, Appendix A, Developing a Christocentric View of the Disciple

Part 4, Appendix B, Cityview Mission and Values

Part 5, Appendix C, The Learning Needs of an Emerging Cross-Culural Leader

Part 6, Appendix D through O

Part 7, Selected Bibliography