Leadership Requires More Than Self-Awareness
A wise and effective leader possesses more than self-awareness; he also has a keen awareness of the team. More than a sense of his/her unique gifting, he/she has a sense of the people on the team, their gifts and potential. Team-awareness enables the leader to leverage the gifts of the team, to hand over responsibility […]
My New Role
For the last three years I have been honored to lead the Church Resources Division (CRD) at LifeWay. As we serve churches in their mission of making disciples, CRD stewards the resources, services, events, and training we create and provide for ministries and churches. Over 500 incredible employees, who love the Bride of Christ, faithfully […]
6 Thoughts on Building a Team from the PayPal Mafia
In his new book, Zero to One, Peter Thiel describes the early culture of PayPal—the company he started with several friends before selling it to eBay for $1.5 billion. Because PayPal was a tech start-up, you might expect Thiel to emphasize free massages, ping-pong tables, and an on-site sushi chef, but instead, he calls those […]
4 Tasks of a Senior Leader
My friend Steve Graves recently met with some of our leadership team and shared four tasks of a senior leader. I found his framework helpful and challenging, and in sharing it with you, I have added some of my own thoughts. So, here are the four tasks that every senior leader must be preoccupied with and […]
The First 11 Minutes at Your Church
If you ever check out multiple churches in a short period of time, you will likely be surprised by the differences in hospitality expressed to first-time guests. In some churches a guest knows exactly where to park, is graciously welcomed, escorted to the children’s area to drop off kids, and introduced to several helpful people. […]
7 Reasons a Leader Feels Insecure
The following comes from Pastor Johnny Hunt. Johnny M. Hunt is the senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Woodstock, Ga., and author of several books, including Building Your Leadership Resume. Since my mid-twenties, Pastor Johnny has been a role model and encourager to me. He loves the Church and loves pastors. I am grateful for his faithfulness, […]
6 Nuggets of Wisdom for Leaders
The following is a guest post by Selma Wilson. Selma is one of the vice presidents of LifeWay, leading our B&H Publishing Group. I am honored to serve alongside Selma and consider her to be an incredible leader. “Plans fail when there is no counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” — Proverbs 15:22 Every leader needs […]
The Most Important Leadership Characteristic
In their landmark leadership book The Leadership Challenge, Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner share that the most important leadership characteristic is credibility. Based on extensive research over two decades, they boldly claim that “more than anything, we want leaders who are credible. People must be able to believe in their leaders.” To Kouzes and Posner, […]
Do You Lack Vision?
The following is a guest post by Eric Mason. Dr. Eric Mason is co-founder and lead pastor of Epiphany Fellowship in Philadelphia, Pa. In addition to his role there, he serves as president of Thriving, a ministry dedicated to aiding ethnic minorities to be resourced and trained for ministry to the urban context. Are you one of […]
Steve Jobs on Leadership and the Idol of Approval
Jony Ive is the senior vice president of design at Apple and is known as the great design mind behind the products at Apple. In a rare interview, Jony shares some lessons he learned from working with Steve Jobs. In the interview, he recounts a conversation with Steve where Steve rebukes him for leading to […]