LeadershipConneXtions

Responsible Action or Whine Away - Your Choice

There is nothing (okay, not much) that is profound about this short post. It's pretty simple and straight forward. It's terribly dualistic. But here it is.

There are those people who have as their approach to life - responsible action. They see problems. They see needs. They see what is wrong with the world. And . . . they know what needs to be done about those things. They know why it needs to be done. And they are motivated to get it done. So they do it.  These are the people who wind up being called leaders.

Then there are those who see the problems, the needs and what is wrong . . . and they whine. They complain. They criticize. They may even wail and mourn. But they don't take responsible action. They whine.

Okay, like I said, this one isn't profound.  But here is the application. Look at it as a spectrum.

      _________________________________________________________________________
Responsible Action                                                                                                  Whining
 

Where do you tend to fall when you see problems, needs and what is wrong? To be honest, there are more times then I care to admit, that I can get into some whining.

Think about the most recent problem, need or wrongness you experienced. What was your response.

Take responsibility for what you do. And be willing to be responsible for other things you believe are worthy and which affect others.

And if you aren't going to take responsibility, do everyone else a favor and at least stop whining.

In case you are wondering, this is not directed toward anyone that I know. There was no situation that was the occasion for this reflection. (Well, maybe it is directed toward me, just a little.)

There are two more good images below.

Brian K. Rice  
Leadership ConneXtions International  
www.lci.typepad.com

Your Center

Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Matthew 6:21). With these words Jesus clues us in to one of the core realities of life.

Jesus is talking about your center... the center of your life. Whatever is at your center is what fills, guides and forms you. 

• What is that you love most of all?  That is your treasure.
• What is that you desire above all?  That is your treasure.
• What do you think about over and over?  That is what you treasure.
• What do you most want to have and most want to do?  That, again, is what you treasure.

And your treasure is your center. Your treasure is what fills and defines your core, your essence, your soul, your heart.

In one sense, The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis is all about the center of our lives, about what we treasure. An assorted group of people make a "field trip" from Purgatory to the outskirts of heaven to see if they want to relocate to heaven. There is just one problem. The reason they are in Purgatory is because each one has the wrong treasure. Each one has the wrong center. Each one has a malformed heart.

All they need do, to leave Purgatory forever and begin the Journey in to High and Deep Heaven, is to let go of that deadly treasure and desire God instead.

Their treasures are both commonplace and indicative of our own lives. For one it is a child. For another a great project. For another it is fame and status and legacy. For others it is lust... greed... a grievance that will not be released... unforgiveness... art and beauty for its own sake and not God's... the list goes on.

In most cases, they gripped so strongly to these things, these treasures, that they would not, could not let them go. They rejected the offer of Heaven, holding on to their substitute treasures.

Our center is supremely important. It will shape everything else about us. Our treasure is close to being all-determining of the rest of our life. Whatever is in our center - that becomes the idol we worship, the deity we serve, and the (g)od that remakes us into its own image.

My center has been filled with so many different treasures over the years. Even as a follower of Christ, other treasures have taken up that central place and sent me down wrong roads of pursuit. Some illicit treasures have never been a problem. Others seem more like a constant bane and plague on my life. Greed is not an issue. Status is. Material possessions are not a strong allure to me. Reputation is. 

Real self-awareness and constant vigilance about our center/treasures is crucial.

So, the question is not, "what's in your wallet" but "what's in your center."

Brian Rice

Leadership ConneXtions International

If we let culture just happen to us we'll end up fat, addicted, broke, with a house full of junk and no time.  Mary Pipher

I am just about to finish the final pages in my current journal. While I was flying, I was skimming back through many months of thoughts, musings, prayers, ideas . . . and I came across some notes I took when the Administrative Team of LWCC (and they are an awesome team) did a presentation at one of our All-Staff meetings. Their focus was on helping us "de-clutter" our lives. 

The thought from Mary Pipher came from that team. As I re-read it, it hit me once again.

We too easily allow culture to just happen to us. I know I do.  When I just allow life to happen to me as it is defined by our culture, then I get:

fat
lazy,
discontent,
painfully consumerist,
bored,
derailed,
envious,
atrophy, drift, lethargy, entropic . . . 

I could add more but you get the idea.

So it is obvious what I need to do. I need to NOT ALLOW culture to just happen to me.  I need to be highly intentional about life. I need to do it today. And then... I'll need to do it again tomorrow. And the day after that, and the one that follows.

You see... culture is just happening around me every day. It never stops just happening. So I can never stop being highly intentional. I think this is what Paul was talking about when he said:

Be very careful, then, how you live -- not as unwise, but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is (Ephesians 5:15-17).

Two questions, no, make that three:

1. What are you just allowing to happen to you?
2. What is it just doing to you?
3. When are you going to start being highly intentional?

Brian Rice

Leadership ConneXtions International

"Lay It on the Line"

Sometime back I heard Bill Hybels use this phrase.  "Lay it on the line." He was talking about the cost of leadership, the demands of leadership and the fact that leaders have to make tough, risky, faith-needed decisions to engage and move forward . . .  and the outcome is not guaranteed.

Leaders are those who have an unusual degree of vision and a higher than average commitment about that vision.

Vision means change. Change means hard work, risk, the possibility of failure, the reality of being misunderstood and opposed.

Change means conflict and tension and criticism.

All of this is just HARD. And every leader deals with uncertainty in the face of these realities. Perhaps even some fear and anxiety! Second guessing ourselves. Becoming hesitant, tentative, even timid.

We wonder (or at least I do):

• Do I have another leadership initiative within me?

• Do I have the energy and stamina to deal with the opposition and resistance?

• Do I have the faith to move out of a comfort zone?

• Am I willing to pay the price of doing this thing  called leadership?

To be honest, sometimes the answer is No, no, no and . . . no!  Or Maybe, maybe, maybe and . . . maybe.

I have a friend who has an extraordinary vision. I know that word extraordinary is overused and about as powerful as the word "awesome" these days. But that is the word to describe his vision. And this vision is not a "some risk involved" vision. It is high risk, high possibility of failure kind of vision. And my friend is not a testerone fueled cowboy who says "d*** the torpedoes and full speed ahead." He is not reckless by any means.

But he is going for it. Big time going for it. Fully invested going for it. Hold nothing back going for it. It is an inner, Spirit birthed compulsion for him. He has to go for it. And so, he is laying it all on the line.

I have another friend who is in the early stages of envisioning and dreaming. What she sees is exciting and to be honest, and more than a little daunting in its difficulty. Executing the vision (not putting it to death, but pulling it off) will be "tricky."  (How do you like that word? Tricky Leadership! Sounds like a book for someone to write.) Yet, she is resolute, fully committed and moving ahead. She must lead. And so she is putting it all on the line.

If God has called you to lead, then from time to time, you are going to have to put it all on the line in 2009. Are you ready . . . ???

Brian Rice

Leadership ConneXtions International

Hey, I just noticed, that is a catchy, tricky (or more likely - corny) slogan.

All on the line in 2009.

Depression: The Stats

Depression is a very real issue.

Leaders are not immune to this problem . . . and in fact, may be more likely to fall into it by virtue of the demands and challenges of the leadership task.

I came across these statistics on depression in Summer 2008 edition of Contact, which is published by Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. They are from the article by Wendy Murray, "Is Depression Normal?"

Depression disorders annually affect approximately 18.8 million American adults or about 9.5% of the population age 18 and older. 

Everyone will at some time in his or her life be affected by depression - their own or someone else's - according to Australian Government statistics. (Depression stats in Australia are comparable to those of the U.S.A. and the U.K.)

Pre-schoolers are the fastest growing market for antidepressants. At least four percent of preschoolers - over a million - are clinically depressed.

The rate of increase of depression among children is an astounding 23 percent per year.

15% of the population of most developed countries suffers severe depression.

30% of women are depressed. Men's figures were previously thought to be half that of women, but new estimates are higher.

54% of people believe depression is a personal weakness.

41% of depressed women are too embarrassed to seek help.

80% of depressed people are not currently receiving any treatment.

92% of depressed African-American males do not seek treatment.

15% of depressed people will commit suicide.

Depression will be the second largest killer after heart disease by 2020. Studies show depression is a contributory factor to fatal coronary disease.

Depression results in more absenteeism than almost any other physical disorder and costs U.S. employers more than $51 billion per year in absenteeism and lost productivity, no including high medical and pharmaceutical bills.

To see the sources for these statistics you can go to this site - UpLift Program.

If you are dealing with depression, you need prayer, you need spiritual guidance, you need counsel and you may also need medication. Don't beat yourself up if you need to get some help to deal with your depression.

Brian Rice

Leadership ConneXtions International

Self-Awareness and Not Taking Too Seriously Your Own Press Clippings

About two weeks ago, I did a post on denial and the role that it plays in harming our organizations.  You can click here to go to that post.

Here is a related thought. Sometimes we are in denial about the wrong we are doing or the good we are neglecting. Other times we are living in a state of exaggeration about who we are and what we are doing. 

That's a human tendency. We are all Spin Doctors (to some degree) when it comes to ourselves. We have a disposition to believe the good press we get (and give ourselves). I know I do. With enough practice, any of us come easily become a Legend In Our Own Mind. 

Leaders may be especially suspectible to this tendency for exaggeration of self and their success in mission. This reality made it all the more striking when I came across a thought from Sir Edmund Hillary. Hillary was one of the first to reach the summit of Mt. Everest. He eventually was knighted and became a celebrity, but a celebrity who was also a humanitarian. You can read a very nice bio of Hillary here.  Here is the thought from Hillary that hit me.

I was just an enthusiastic mountaineer of modest abilities and determination. I was just an average bloke. It was the media that tried to transform me into a heroic figure. But I've learned through the years, as long as you don't believe all that rubbish about yourself, you can't come to too much harm.

What a concise few sentences teeming with self-awareness and humility! And a good word for all of us, not to believe all that rubbish about ourselves.

Brian Rice

Leadership ConneXtions International

By the way, I came across this in Three Cups of Tea, by Mortenson and Relin, page 129.

 

The Safest Place for Ships...

Here is one worth pondering.

The safest place for ships is in the harbor, but that's not why they were built.  (Anonymous)

Maybe part of our "human" problem is that we spend too much time looking for safe places, and when we think we find them, staying put there. But that's not how we were meant to live as human beings, nor is it the way to a purposeful life.

Some one said, "the only way to discover new lands is to loose sight of the shore!"

So - are you hunkering down in a harbor or out riding the seas, even if they are stormy?

Brian Rice

Criticism

Every year, in the Leadership Foundations Course, we do a session on criticism. We cover issues of constructive and destructive criticism. We help leaders look at their typical responses to criticism. We have them do some "below the water line" assessment so they can understand why they respond to criticism in the way they do. We help them think how to do a better job when they have to be in the role of the critic of others.

Michael Quicke believes that a litmus test of a leader's maturity is how well she or he handles being criticized and how well they deal with personal times of relational conflict with someone who is oppositional to them. Quicke says that nothing will reveal the presence or absence of personal maturity as "quickly" as one's response to criticism and conflict.

He's right!

I've been teaching on criticism and conflict for years.

I've been in settings where I have been severely criticized.

I've done a lot of inner work on my responses to criticism.

And yet - I don't like being criticized. As aware as I am about this, I can feel the defensiveness begin to rise, I can hear the rebuttals forming in my mind before the critic has finished criticizing, and I can sense the flight  (get out of here) impulse kicking in!   And that is after working on this stuff for a long time . . .

How are you doing with the criticism thing these days?

Any destructive critics tearing you down?

Are there any constructive critics giving you necessary feedback?

How are you doing?

Brian Rice

Poetry That Sustains Leadership

Maybe you are like me and don't normally associate poetry and leadership together in the same thought!

Leading From Within: Poetry That Sustains the Courage to Lead by Sam Intrator and Megan Scribner thinks there is a meaningful connection between leadership and poetry.

I have a friend, Aaron, who is passionate about poetry and who is deeply moved by its beauty and images. I have been struck by how poetry is part of his transformation process.

From time to time I read poetry, but find that I have to "work a little" to get into it, or maybe for it to "get into me." So when another friend Byron recommended this one, I thought I'd try it.

It is a collection of reflections by 93 leaders on leadership (usually a one page reflection) and then a page that has a piece of poetry that has sustained them in their leadership.

The main idea behind this book is that leaders need to keep their hearts warm and alive in the process of the challenging task of leadership. For some leaders, poetry is one way to do that.

In the preface, the authors refer to Edward Hirsch, who describes poetry as passionate, private communication from one soul to another (from How to Read a Poem and Fall in Love With Poetry).

I have found some of the poetry to be very moving, while others didn't grab me. Still, I am finding it enjoyable. I read a few of the reflections and poems each day.

Here are a few lines from Wendell Perry (Sabbaths) that I found meaningful, especially since I was just developing a new leadership session that looked at biblical images, including that of the farmer. The idea of hard work, yet trusting in God's grace and providence - this is the essence of farming.

By our ten thousand days of work.

Harvest will fill the barn; for that

The hand must ache, the face must sweat.

And yet no leaf or grain is filled

By work of ours; the field is tilled

And left to grace. That we may reap,

Great work is done while we're asleep.

Whether it is through poetry or something else, the important question is: How do you keep your soul warm, alive, responsive, passionate and engaged with life?

Brian Rice

Cynicism

Seeing Through Cynicism by Dick Keyes was a very good book that I read recently.

I picked it up because I have tendencies toward cynicism and I wanted to get a better handle on this issue.

It was a good book. It is more a philosophical, cultural consideration of why we are cynical and about the consequences of our cynicism.

Here are five reasons why the book is worth getting.

1. You really learn a lot more about the nature of cynicism.
2. He shows that even though cynicism is widespread as an approach to life, it is a self-defeating way to live. To say it this way, we should be "cynical about the claims of cynicism."
3. He has some very good chapters on God's providence and care for us and why we do not need to be cynical about God's activity in our lives.
4. He critiques (in a fair way) the cynicism of post-modernism.
5. He offers an alternative way of living - that of faith, hope and love.

Brian Rice

Listen to Your Life (Parker Palmer)

Parker Palmer is one of my favorite authors and Let Your Life Speak is one of his best books. Here is a lengthy quote worth reflecting on.

Vocation does not come from willfulness. It comes from listening. I must listen to my life and try to understand what it is truly about - quite apart from what I would like it to be about - or my life will never represent anything real in the world, no matter how earnest my intentions. That insight is hidden in the word vocation itself, which is rooted in the Latin for "voice." Vocation does not mean a goal that I pursue. It means a calling that I hear. Before I can tell my life what I want to do with it, I must listen to my life telling me who I am.

Do not read that quote and think that Palmer is leading you down a parth of autonomus self-determination. This entire process is a prayerful, reflective, guided by the Holy Spirit process. What Palmer is describing is the work of paying attention to what Christ has down-loaded into your life; paying attention to your spiritual/vocational DNA.

This is a "kind of" spiritual direction that Leadership ConneXtions seeks to do with leaders. Helping them discern who they are and what their vocation will look like as they live it out faithfully in the presence of Christ and by the leading of the Spirit of God.

Brian Rice

Skin Deep Leadership and White Washed Tombs

My ever vigilant and spiritually alert friend Gordon C. gave me this great quote from a new book, Metamorpha by Kyle Strobel (son of Lee Strobel).  It is on page 47.

"For the first time in my life, I saw myself as I really was, not through a "Christian" lens. I typically saw myself as forgiven, but now I saw myself as greedy, lazy, and unbelieving.

I felt the burden of being a spiritual leader without being spiritual, someone who was wise without wisdom, and a person of depth who had just realized he didn't believe prayer works!

I was a leader because that was the role I played, and I thought I knew how to play it well, but my leadership was skin-deep."

Skin-deep leadership! Role-playing leadership! Image-presenting, appearance-maintaining, spin-doctoring leadership!

I believe Jesus referred to that kind of leadership as white-washed tomb leadership in Matthew 23.

We are called to live, love and lead from the depths of a heart that is experiencing authentic transformation by the work of the Spirit. That will, of course, mean, as Kyle illustrates, a ruthless (but sensitively appropriate) honesty about ourselves to those around us. 

Risky?   Yes!!!

But even more dangerous not to!

Brian Rice

Wonders of Self-Awareness

I bumped into a guy the other day who is incredibly SELF-AWARE! He is a leader in the corporate world, also a strong Christian. I have known him for a while, but not that well. What a breath of fresh air to be with him - humble, determined, focused, open, others centered. I don't spend enough time with people like this guy.

It's life-giving!

- Brian Newman

Emotional Intelligence

You are all familiar with emotional intelligence (or at least aware of the concept). If you want to get a good summary of this topic and spare yourself the time of reading a book length treatment, call 1-800-988-0886 (the office of Harvard Business Review) and order a copy of:

What Makes a Leader by Daniel Goleman, reprint # 98606. 

This is a very nice article, originally in HBR, that introduces the topic in a substantial way.

Brian Rice

Re-engineering and Below the Water Line Stuff

About six months ago, I was flipping through the channels and on one of the local stations a friend of mine (I'll keep him anonymous) was being interviewed by a talk show host. My friend is a surgeon and a senior partner in a medical practice.

I stopped to listen for a few mintes and wound up listening to him for the rest of the program. He was talking about a complete re-engineering he and his partners went through that led to a major change in how they ran their medical practice.

They began thinking they had a marketing problem so they hired consultants to come in and "fix" their marketing and image. The consultants said - yes, you have some marketing problems which we can help you change, but you have some deeper issues that you need help with.

My friend hired another consultant  team who walked them through a challenging and at times painful look at all the "below the water line" issues that were interfering with their effectiveness as a medical practice. They did the hard work, processed the hard relational issues, paid attention to the inner dynamics of the heart and, as a result, they saw major changes take place in their medical business.

Listening to my friend talk about the process, I realized they moved into deeper levels of self-awareness, they chose to be highly intentional about making changes, they made wisely strategic decisions based on their new insights, and more than once they had to surrender and let go of old ways.

This is the "stuff" that coaches and mentors do. We go underneath the surface, past the "marketing and image problems" to the real issues. It works. It leads to good results. It is highly rewarding.

The purposes of a man's heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out. Proverbs 20:5.

Mentors and coaches are women and men of understanding who go into those deep waters.

Brian Rice

Cocooning ... a leadership MUST

I have had a couple of intense weeks of ministry leadership, which finishes tonight with a major meeting I am leading. It's all very exciting and challenging, but I feel like I am coming up for air after being under water for a long time. And I am gasping a bit!

What I need is to "cocoon" for a while, sort of insulate myself, slow down, have good time with God and my family, read a NON-leadership book(!). The next three days I am doing that, and hopefully I will have some renewal in my soul.

- Brian Newman

Max Lucado on Living

Here is a devotional thought from Max Lucado that inspired me.

Your goal is not to live long; it's to live.

Don't live safe . . . live adventurously.

Follow the leading of God. Keep in step with the moving of God's Spirit.

Dream the dream and go for it.

Live large, live free, live well.

Brian Rice

Into "Deep Waters"

This coming weekend I will begin a two-part preaching mini-series entitled, "Deep Waters." I will be speaking at my church, Lookout Mountain. It's a series looking at God parting waters in Genesis at creation, in Exodus at the Red Sea, in Joshua in the Jordan River, and at Jesus' baptism.

This is actually a couple of messages for leaders in the congregation, about the risk and rewards of daring leadership. It's about holding onto hope in the midst of adversity, it's about leading with all diligence even as the odds seem long and the possibilities stark. It's about SPIRITUAL leadership, trusting God enough to lead people into "deep waters" where they find Christ and find purpose for their lives.

Please pray for me as I finish preparation. Thanks.

- Brian Newman