A Great Leader… is Both Confident and Humble

Being a leader brings an entire litany of stresses, challenges, and responsibilities that those who have never been in leadership are unaware of. As a business owner, manager, or boss, the reality of your impact upon the lives of those around you is ever present. If the business fails, these people will be out of jobs, which will affect their families. That alone is a tremendous responsibility.

If the leader leads with a “let’s be buddies” mentality, the likelihood is that someone in the organization is going to take advantage of that, which will most likely hurt others in the process. These types of leaders are vulnerable to the manipulation and dishonesty of the unscrupulous employee. At a minimum, such a buddy attitude can diminish respect for that leader. On the other hand, leaders who rule with an iron fist communicate that the only thing they care about is the bottom line—which also causes a host of problems within the organization, not the least of which is decreased motivation, employee dissatisfaction, and yes, a lack of respect for that leader. Thus leading others, whether in business or ministry, for fun or for profit, requires a delicate balance of humanity (compassion, relationship, respect, genuine concern for the individual, etc.) and business mindedness (concern for the health and profitability of the business or organization), a balance that is difficult to find and challenging to maintain.

When it comes to this type of balanced leadership, a great leader knows herself well enough to be familiar with both her strengths and her weaknesses in these areas and beyond. She is confident in her ability to lead, while humble enough to realize that good leaders continue learning great leadership skills. As a Christian, she will be confident in the assignment she has been given at this place, at this time, and for such a time as this (Esther 4:14b). And she will know that when God calls us to a certain task, He equips us for it. As the saying goes, “God doesn’t call the equipped, He equips the called.”

At the same time, she also knows her shortcomings, and when she blows it, she owns up to her mistake. She does not deny her shortcomings, cover up her failures, make excuses, or blame others when she makes a mistake. She knows that every failure provides a valuable learning experience. And she follows that humility with the determination to get back up and try again, with the intention of doing it better next time.  Though she falls down seven times, she gets up eight! [Proverbs 24:16] And she is stronger, wiser, and better equipped as she does so. Having this perspective also makes her more gracious and understanding toward others when they make mistakes.

It is this combination of confident dependence on Christ and humility that makes her the kind of leader that others respect and even want to emulate. This leader will inspire those around her with her kindness, her confidence, and her willingness to take responsibility for her failures, as well as the honest mistakes of those under her leadership. This grace-full leader will be a great leader in the lives of those around her and she will be an asset to any organization.

Have you experienced any of these scenarios? Do you have questions about anything in this article? If so, comment below. We all grow when we ask and when we share.

Make today count!
Mary

[Copyright Mary Comm, 2015. All rights reserved.]