I’ve said it for years, “Leadership development is best done in the context of relationships”. I honestly believe if we neglect the “be with” element of leadership development we will not be effective at developing high quality leaders.  Why?  Because we can teach someone a leadership principle in a class setting and lodge it in their mind.  But it’s only through relationship with another leader they get to see that principle lived out in real life leadership.

I’ve heard it said that “leadership is better caught than taught”.  Each time I watch a seasoned leader live out a critical leadership principle I have the opportunity to process what that would look like in my own leadership.  Paul told Timothy “imitate me as I imitate Christ”  You cannot imitate what you do not see. Modeling is one of the most essential yet overlooked ingredents in leadership development.  And the only way to have a model is to “BE WITH” a leader you can learn from.

Who will you invite to “be with”, observe and learn from your leadership this year?