Saturday, October 05, 2013

More Articles on Leadership: Undesirable Traits, True Calling, and Networking


5 of the Worst Leadership Traits I’ve Observed

Someone asked me a great question recently. It came from a young pastor. He appears to be doing a great job leading, but he wants to do better. I admire that. I hope he (and I) continue that attitude throughout his career (and mine).

His question was this:

Knowing what you know now about leadership, what would you say are the biggest traps to avoid? What are the worst leadership traits that you’ve seen limit a leader’s potential to lead well?

That’s a hard question, because depending on the circumstances I think there could be many different answers. I wrote the “most dangerous” traits previously, but this question seemed different to me. It wasn’t addressing the dangerous traits, as much as the ones that were just bad. You can have these and perhaps still see some success as a leader, but they are still bad leadership traits….the worst. And they keep one from leading well. Eventually, they may derail a leader if not addressed. Keep reading

Also see
8 Most Dangerous Leadership Traits

Three Leadership Felonies

These malpractices will destroy your credibility. Keep reading

Check your blind spot

We know how important it is to check the blind spot when driving. It is one of the most important lessons we learn in driver's education class. Failing to check the blind spot could easily result in an accident.

After years of insistence and persistence from my wife, I finally purchased blind spot mirrors for our cars. Now, I don't know how I got along without them all these years. And I don't know why I waited so long. They have literally saved my life more than once.

There are, however, other kinds of blind spots in life that are equally important. The truth is that most of us have huge blind spots when it comes to understanding ourselves and seeing ourselves as others see us. It is easy to recognize the faults and shortcomings of others and fail to see our own. Keep reading

My Big Demotion

Finding my true calling meant stepping away from the leading role. Keep reading

5 Ways To Prepare for Any Conference or Networking Event

My position affords me the opportunity to meet influential church leaders, thinkers, and writers. One such leader is Leonard Sweet. One day, as I made a trip to the airport with him, he said something I refer back to often:

“The greatest distance between any two numbers is 0 and 1.” It struck me as an accurate mathematical description of the power of networking in ministry. There is no power in zero. It’s a place to begin, not a place to stay.

We cannot multiply our influence until we connect with others.

I am not convinced, however, pastors or church leaders understand how to maximize opportunities for connection (like conferences) in order to improve themselves and innovate new approaches to ministry.

Since Catalyst is coming up, and fall tends to be a season full of networking opportunities, I thought I would share some thoughts I have about maximizing these events.

No matter what conferences you are are attending this fall, or what other opportunities you have to connect with others, I have 15 suggestions for how to maximize your opportunities and use them for growth and progress.

Today, I’ll share five suggestions you can use before the event. Tomorrow I’ll share suggestions for during the event.

In a few days, I’ll share suggestions for after the event. Keep reading

5 Things You Should Know About Networking At a Conference

Since I’m such a huge advocate of the value of networking, and I’m traveling to Catalyst this week, I thought it would be fun for me to share a few tips I believe can increase the impact of your networking opportunities.

I often have people ask me how to capitalize on networking events, so I thought I would share some tips I’ve learned over the years.

If you’re planning to come to Catalyst, these tips would be great for you to use at the event. If you’re not planning to be at Catalyst this year, use these networking tips for any other conference or event you have planned this fall.

In case you missed it, yesterday I shared five things everyone should do before an event.

Today, I’m sharing tips for during the event. Here are my thoughts.... Keep reading

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