Face reality quickly

"Leadership can be at its most vulnerable as you create the space for an open and honest assessment of where thing are at"

Sir Terry Leahy, the CEO of Tesco said “If you don’t know where you are, your true situation, then you are lost from the outset. You cannot plot a course forward if you don’t know where you are starting from”. (From leadership by Alan Leighton pg 67)

Leadership can be at its most vulnerable at these times as you create the space for an open and honest assessment of where things are at. You might have to cope with the painful reality that under your leadership not everything has gone well. How you handle these discussions - will either promote honest feedback - or your obviously hurting demeanour, will control the free flow of opinions.
I find that I have to prepare myself for these occasions. One way is to remind myself that as I give opportunity for people to express their legitimate concerns, I am also giving them a platform to express their own personal frustration and disappointments. These may have little bearing on the state of the church. Handling this negativity and the many challenges of leading a mainly volunteer work force can easily make leaders bunker down, only listening to those who are close in, or say encouraging things.

Another way to prepare for these difficult conversations is to understand that a test of your leadership is not that you always make the right decisions, but more is on your ability to face the true reality and lead appropriately from that position. Abraham led his family down to Egypt during a famine and then lied about his marital status, allowing his wife to be taken by the ruler. Not a leadership call you would put on your CV. When the reality check was made, he had the leadership confidence to get them back on track.

Face reality quickly

Sir Terry Leahy, the CEO of Tesco said “If you don’t know where you are, your true situation, then you are lost from the outset. You cannot plot a course forward if you don’t know where you are starting from”. (From leadership by Alan Leighton pg 67)