3 Downsides of Only Focusing on Your Upsides
On a recent Harvard Business Review podcast, Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, CEO of Hogan Assessments, expressed concern that the emphasis on strengths-based coaching may actually weaken leaders. According to Chamorro-Premuzic, despite the popularity of “focusing on your strengths,” there is no scientific evidence that suggests we should focus on our strengths and ignore our weaknesses. And while […]
5 Ways Leaders Can Grow in Self-Awareness
Without self-awareness, a leader is stuck. In fact, the biggest hindrance to a leader’s development is not intelligence or work ethic but a lack of self-awareness. While self-awareness helps us understand what areas of leadership need focus and development, knowing ourselves is something we struggle with. We all have blind spots, areas of struggle we […]
The Biggest Hindrance to a Leader’s Growth
Sitting in an airport for a few hours can easily remind you that people struggle with self-awareness. There is the guy who does stretching exercises in a small and crowed space, the guy who talks extremely loud on his phone, and the person who lays down on the row of chairs without thinking others will […]
Your Greatest Strength Can Be Your Greatest Weakness
Several years ago a leader I served under, a leader I respected, told me that my greatest strengths could also be my greatest weaknesses. He meant this as a word of both encouragement and caution. He was saying, “I don’t want you to lose what you are best at, but I don’t want those strengths […]
4 Lessons from Studying Spurgeon
I spent several days last week in London with authors and leaders from our team at LifeWay. We were there to introduce several Charles Spurgeon related resources (CSB Spurgeon Study Bible edited by Alistair Begg, Steal Away Home by Matt Carter and Aaron Ivey, and The Lost Sermons of C. H. Spurgeon with Christian George), tour […]
4 Problems with the Squeaky Wheel Approach to Leadership
“The squeaky wheel gets the grease” is an expression used to describe the reality that the most noticeable problem often gets the most focus. It can also be used to describe the loudest person receiving the most attention. It is a common expression because it is often how people live and lead. Leaders, problem solvers […]
One Big Principle in Developing Leaders
One big principle in leadership development is to prepare people for their future roles, not their current roles. Ram Charan, in his work The Leadership Pipeline, identifies training people for their existing job instead of their next one as a major gap in most leadership development initiatives. People must be developed for the future, not […]
The Curse of Talent for Young Ministry Leaders
I am over 40, so no longer young, and I failed to make “Gifted and Talented” as a kid so this post is not about me but about young leaders who are labeled as talented, amazing, exceptional, “the future,” and a myriad of other similar adjectives and phrases. In ministry circles, we have seen in […]
3 Reasons Leaders Must Seek Accountability
Leaders can be tempted to isolate themselves, to pull themselves away from the burden of leadership and from people who can be the source of pain, disappointment, and criticism. But the moments we are tempted to run from accountability are the moments we must run toward it. The moments we feel we do not need […]
5 Ways Exercise Helps the Leader’s Mind
I recently read Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain and walked away from the read more convinced in the importance of exercise. While we often think of exercise as critical to a healthy body, it is also essential for a strong mind. In his book, Dr. John Ratey offers a compelling […]