If we want to maximize the God given opportunities of our lives then it’s essential that we operate in our strengths.  Marcus Buckingham defines a strength as “consistent near perfect performance in an activity.” This is a simple but profound description of a strength.  When we operate in our strengths results come easy, our work is almost effortless and we experience a deep sense of satisfaction and joy.

While I’m a big proponent of knowing and developing strengths, yesterday I sat down and did an inventory of my weaknesses.  It was a very insightful and helpful exercise to begin my week.  As leaders there are times we need to focus on our weaknesses…not to develop them but to design systems and structures to minimize their influence in our leadership.

As you begin your week give this a try…

• Write down your top three weaknesses
• Look at your top performance priorities for the upcoming week
• Review your schedule for the upcoming week
• Decide how can you minimize your weaknesses and maximize your strengths to produce the intended results for the week.

Today’s Leadership Challenge: Write out a Strong Week Plan where you are functioning 80% of your time in the areas of your strengths.

There is no shortage of opportunities for each of us to do good things.  And not just good things but significant things that will have eternal impact.  While this can be exciting for a leader it can also be debilitating.  The leader who naively says “yes” to every opportunity will soon find himself frustrated and ineffective. Choosing to narrow the focus of our lives is a difficult discipline, but essential to maximizing the impact of our giftedness.

If you feel your a little scattered lately here are a few questions that might help you narrow your focus:

• What’s the ONE problem in this world that God wants to use me to do something about?
• What’s the ONE thing I’m doing today that will make an impact in that area of need?
• What’s the ONE gift or strength God has given me to make a difference in that area of need?
• What’s ONE thing I need to stop doing to make me more effective in my mission?
• Who is ONE person that can regularly check on my progress and hold me accountable for staying focused?

Take ONE hour today to process these questions.

When leaders allow themselves to be overwhelmed by uncertainty fear will grip their spirit and stall progress toward their calling and mission. Ultimately fear is rooted in a belief that God is not in control. So when a leader is struggling with anxiety it’s a matter of changing their mindset more than changing their circumstances.

One morning i was meeting with an individual who talked to me about the problems he was facing and expressed a sense of defeat in the overwhelming odds against him.   Later that day I had another meeting with an individual who held a similar position and was facing similar circumstances.  But instead of talking about the problems he was facing he told me about the opportunities in front of him.  He acknowledge the challenges yet spoke with hope and optimism as he anticipated the hand of God to move in his situation. Both men were facing financial difficulty, relational challenges and lack of resources.  The only difference between the two was their perspective.

Paul told the Philippians “Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 1:6) Paul expresses a strong confidence that the work God has begun in us will be brought to completion, perfection.  He’s certain of it.  That Greek word for “confident” (peitho) means persuaded, already convinced. I’m reminded of that every time I begin to feel fear and uncertainty.  My circumstances may not be what I would like but I can be confident that God is in control.  And when the conviction that God is in control grips my heart it changes the way I lead.

When you invest in the development of your own leadership everybody wins.  Bill Hybels (Global Leadership Summit 2010)

Personal development isn’t just about improving our leadership, it ultimately raises the level of leadership in the whole organization.  When you grow others grow.  While there may be many obstacles that prevent us from being perfect leaders, there is no excuse for not being a growing leader.  Leaders who are not practicing self development make repeated mistakes, maintain poor leadership habits and lack the leadership wisdom that will enable them to adapt to a changing culture. But leaders who develop the discipline of personal growth are making constant adjustments, learning from their mistakes and developing leadership wisdom that will sustain their leadership over the long haul. But our self-development not only impacts the way we lead but it impacts the leadership of those around us.  I’ve always believed that growing leaders grow leaders.  Here are three keys to making sure that “everybody wins” through your personal leadership development.

• Commit yourself to a daily leadership growth plan. If it’s reading one chapter of a book a day, researching a leadership topic on particular blogs or asking veteran leaders key questions, try to learn something new everyday.
• Carry a notebook and write down one new thought or insight every day.
• Put what you learn into practice.  The best way to learn something new is not to think about it but to do it.  Find ways to apply your new insights right away.
• Teach others what you’re learning.  Each time you share what  you’re learning you reinforce those principles in your own mind and you help others on their leadership journey as well.

Today’s Leadership Challenge: Discover one new leadership insight today and find a way to put it into practice this week.

Fear is not a quality many leaders long to develop in their lives.  But I do believe there is a healthy dose of fear that every leader needs. Today I was reading Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.” The Hebrew word for knowledge means wisdom, discernment, understanding, skill or perception. These are all things that I long for as a leader. One of my constant prayers is that God would give me “Leadership Instinct”. I define leadership instinct as the wisdom to act in the right way at the right time for the right reason. Solomon says that type of instinct starts with fearing God. Why? Because God is all wise and all knowing. And He shares His mind and heart with those who love and revere Him. So I must move forward throughout my day with a healthy fear of the Lord.  And as I do it’s more likely that I will hear His voice, know His heart, do His will and be the Leader He has created me to be.

What does the fear of the Lord produce in my life? According to Proverbs fear of the Lord…

• Gives me Knowledge 1:7
• Gives me Knowledge of God 2:5
• Gives me a distaste for evil 8:13
• Gives me Wisdom 9:10, 15:33
• Adds length to my life 10:27
• Aids in living a righteous lifestyle 14:2
• Helps me Avoid evil 14:16, 16:6
• It is a fountain of life 14:27; 19:23
• Produces an atmosphere of security in my home 14:26
• Brings wealth and honor 22:4
• Keeps me from being envioius 23:17
• Brings blessing 28:14

Not a bad list of benefits!  Move forward with fear.

Do you ever find yourself in that place where you’re desperate to see the hand of God in your life?  You’re confused, hurting, bored or anxious and you just want to see God do something in your life.  Many of you have been asking about the story behind my calling to make a transition from Seacoast to help start up a new church planting network based out of Atlanta called The Launch Network.  Below is the video where I shared my story with Seacoast Church at the First Wednesday service in July.  In this message I share how God worked in my and Cindy’s heart to prepare us for this new challenge. If you are longing to see the hand of God in your life, I hope you find our story encouraging to your own journey.

First Wednesday July 2010 – Mac Lake from Seacoast Church on Vimeo.

In yesterday’s post I wrote about, ”Day One of a New job“.  I’m happy to report that my first day at West Ridge Church went great.  I walked into a pimped out office with new furniture, cool lamps and snacks!  Tons of staff  members randomly popped in to introduce themselves.  But the thing that suprised me was the level of enthusiasm I felt from the staff about starting up The Launch Network.  Pastor Brian has done a great job casting the vision to the members and the staff for this new church planting network.  Overall it was a very encouraging day.

So once you make it through day one what do you do with the rest of your week?  Here are a few things to think through.

Gain an Understanding of the Corporate Culture – Corporate culture is “the way we do things around here.”  If you don’t understand the culture of your new organization you could find yourself fighting against it rather than working with it.  Refrain from saying, “The way we did it at (your former place of employment).” Instead work hard to ask questions, listen and seek to understand the vision and values of your new place of employment.  This week I’ve scheduled four one on one appointments with long standing staff members in order to help me understand the DNA of West Ridge Church.  Next week I have several appointments with younger staff members in order to connect with them and gain an understanding of how they view the organization.  Week one is just the beginning of learning the culture, it will take a long time but if you approach it with intentionality you can raise your learning curve significantly. 

Make Priority based Decisions - Being new you will have a lot coming at you, people wanting to meet with you,  new opportuntities, tasks that are “urgent” and expectations from a wide variety of people.  The temptation will be to please everyone.   However, one of the downfalls of many new employees is to over promise and under deliever, which hurts your crediblity with the team.  So keep your top 3-5 priorities in front of you where you look at them every day and make decisions based on these priorities not the pressure you feel to please others.     

Identify Key Partners – To make things happen quickly it will be important that you identify who you will be working with.  This may be volunteers,  team members, or staff from other departments.  Regardless of who it is you will need to build a team of people that work together to accomplish the vision.  Spend time early on meeting with these individuals getting to know them and allowing them to get to know you.  Don’t be so anxious to “get it done” that you miss the relational connections.  While you are committed to building a specific program or vision, the most important thing you can build when you’re first starting is TRUST.  Take the time to get to know people, their gifts, strengths and passions then you will be able to place them and utilize them in their gifted areas where they will flourish the most. 

Connect, connect, connect – Spend time with people.  I’ve heard it said, “People are your greatest asset”.  But that’s not really a complete statement.  The truth is, people’s strengths, wisdom, experience, passion, gifts and influence are your greatest asset.  The only way to discover these are to spend time getting to know the people you work with.  Don’t forget that it’s not just getting to know their story or their strengths, it’s getting to know their soul.  Discover the fresh things that God is doing in their life and how it connects with God’s purpose for bringing you into your new position.  Connect, connect, connect.

What else would you focus on in your first week in a new position?

Its not an uncommon for a leader to hurt someone’s feelings, rub someone the wrong way or mis-communicate to those they lead.  If you follow a leader it’s likely you have been offended by them at some time or another.  How you handle that offense speaks volumes about your character.  When a leader has hurt your feelings you have three options:

1. Remain Silent
2. Complain to others
3. Talk to them about it.

Okay, let’s break down each of these options to determine which approach we should take.

OPTION #1  REMAIN SILENT - While this may seem honorable to some, it’s extremely dangerous.  Those who take this approach actually undermine authentic community and can develop a spirit of self-righteous pride.  If a leader has offended or hurt you, not dealing with it allows resentment to build in your heart.  And if the leaders actions were truly wrong then not addressing it allows that potential blind spot to persist in their leadership character. Remaining silent hurts you and the leader in the long run.  Solomon declares in Proverbs 10:18 “He who conceals hatred is a liar.”    Be careful, your silence may not be as honorable as you think.

OPTION #2 COMPLAIN TO OTHERS – Many people feel justified using this approach because they were truly wronged.  However, complaining to others spreads discontent and division among the team.  Even the most subtle complaints to co-workers undermines the authority of the leader and weakens the unity the organization.  Someone one told me, “If you speak poorly of an individual, what would make tha person you are talking to think you would not speak poorly of them as well.”  When we speak negatively about others it diminishes peoples confidence in our character.  Solomon gives warning in Proverbs 16:27-28 “A scoundrel plots evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire. 28 A perverse man stirs up dissension, and a gossip separates close friends.”

OPTION #3 TALK TO THEM- The reason most people fail to confront is they view confrontation as a means of recompense rather than reconciliation.  Viewing the confrontation from a selfish perspective (What am I going to get out of it) will only build walls and create a defensive spirit in most leaders.  But a Christ Centered perspective of seeking reconciliation and restoration is more likely to produce an open spirit within the person being confronted.  When they sense a humble spirit with a selfless motive walls of defense will melt and it’s more likely to produce a healthy, productive discussion.  Solomon reminds us in Proverbs 27:6 “faithful are the wounds of a friend.”

Hurt? Offended?  What’s your next step?

A few months ago I had the chance to hang out with Dwight Mason, senior pastor of Newpointe Church a 3 campus multisite church near Canton, Ohio.  Dwight is passionate leadership and the spiritual health of leaders.  In this 3 minute video Dwight shares why we hit spiritual growth walls and what we need to do to push through the wall as spiritual leaders.   Make sure you check out Dwights blog by CLICKING HERE.

Let me ask you a question. What do you think of when you think of the disciple Peter?

• He tried to walk on water and sank
• Jesus asked him to pray for a few hours and he fell asleep
• He rebuked Jesus for talking about dying and Jesus told him, “Get behind me Satan”
• He wasn’t going to let Jesus wash his feet and Jesus said, “Whoa you don’t understand!”
• He impulsively chopped the ear off of the soldier who was arresting Jesus
• Or perhaps his biggest failure, he denied knowing Jesus not just once but three times

 There’s more written about Peter than any other disciple and it’s amusing that Scripture is not shy about recording his failures. But Peter didn’t let his failures stop him, he evidently knew how to fail successfully.
 
Don’t let your failures stop you.  Sometimes the difference between living a great life for God and living in mediocrity is how we handle our failures.