To be successful today, there are a few things we must have. We’ve always needed them. We need them even more today.
Here are 3 must-haves for success in leadership today:
Efficiency – There is never enough time or enough me. All leaders are pulled in so many directions. It’s easy to get distracted — and distractions are almost always things of lesser value. If you don’t have a plan for each day you’ll waste most of them — certainly not live up to the day’s potential. Today’s leader must learn and master efficiency.
Adaptability – Things are changing fast. Profusion is at an all time high. By the time I learn my phone there’s another update or another phone. And, it impacts every area of our life. If we are not going to change our core values and mission — and we shouldn’t — nor should we have to — then we must learn to adapt our strategies, systems and processes. Doing the same things that previously worked is no longer a sole option. We must embrace change.
Accountability – This is not a holdover from an 90s Promise Keepers movement. Honestly, it’s a growing new concern for me. In my opinion, the focus on strong leadership can be taken to an extreme. We have created some powerful people with limited accountability. Church plants can be notorious for this. How many moral failures do we need to observe to understand this one? If you can create energy around a vision and attain a level of success, a leader can be given way too much individual authority — with no one to speak into the dark parts of the leader’s life. If numbers are good, budgets are met, many pastors are given way too much authority. I see this in business also, but it’s closer to me in churches.
I’m sure there are many more. Those are the three on my mind.
