Leadership Success Keys
Leadership
Success
Keys
MG Stough
2003
Introduction
Leading is hard work. Leading well is even harder work. Excelling in leadership is extremely difficult, yet, once attained it leads to a life filled with influence and a lasting impact upon your part of the world.
A big paycheck does not make a leader great. A high status position does not make a leader great. Glamor and publicity do not make a leader great. Leader is what make a leader great.
Leaders blaze trails, they leave behind them an enduring mark upon the lives of others. Leaders help the rest of us to reach our goals.
Leadership is in great demand in today's society. It is also more difficult than it has ever been before. So some would say. Actually, leadership is very difficult , yet it has never been easy. In fact, some of our greatest leaders of all time died more than four thousand years ago.
To become a great leader, one must first learn from the great leaders of the past. Then he must learn from the events of the past. Then he must learn from the events of the present. Finally, this new found knowledge and understanding must be applied toward the future. That is what leadership is all about; this is what this course is all about.
I encourage you to become a great leader. In the following weeks, I will endeavor to simplify some of the most profound leadership secrets ever discovered. It is my hope that you will then be able to raise you capacity to lead tot he point where you can become an EXCELLENT LEADER.
MG Stough
Chief Executive officer
Shield ICS
Roma, TX
2002
BEAR KNOWS
" I'm a plow hand from Arkansas, but I have learned how to hold a team together-to lift some of them up, to calm some of them down, to encourage them to find their balance, until they've got one single heartbeat together as a team. I want three things from my boys... from my men! Practice together. Win together. If anything goes wrong, I did it. If anything goes semi-good, then we did it. If anything goes real good, then THEY DID IT ! That's all it takes to lead people to win... to get them to work as a team and to Win For You!"
Paul BEAR Bryant
University of Alabama
Seminar Lecture
1984
Roll Tide!
Part One
Unit One
Chapter One
If you oversee or manage people, then you must constantly engage in four basic leadership behaviors. First, you must appreciate your workers for the people that they are. Second, you must believe that your workers will do their very best in their jobs and in their lives. Third, you must continually praise your workers for their accomplishments. Fourth, you must accept full and personal responsibility for the welfare and well-being of each and every one of your workers. These are four basic leadership behaviors that manage or supervisor must engage in on a daily basis.
The leader, as a manager or supervisor, has a complex and difficult job. The leader must ensure that the worker doe their jobs. The leader must ensure that the workers are appropriately rewarded for their hard work and dedication to the organization. The Leader must also ensure that the Organization achieves its goals and realizes its vision. These are all important activities.
Perhaps, the most important job of the leader, whether he is on the Board of Directors or Supervising the Line, is the recruitment and retention of good, hard-working, dedicated people to work within the Organization. Organizations are nothing more than structures. People are dynamic catalysts of change. Organizations do not increase production output nor do they increase profits. People increase production output and they increase profits... when they are properly managed and supervised.
Chapter Two
In business, politics, government, education, ministry, community, and family matters, it is often heard that there is a great need for more effective and capable leadership. This same sentiment echoes throughout the annals of history.
As society grows more complex in the twenty-first century, the need for leaders who excel in leadership is also increasing. Mental processes and physicals manipulation are just that; they are thinking and doing. That is not enough. Organizations , and the societies within which they exist, have evolved way beyond the historical expectation of driving influence.
Effective and Capable leaders utilize five facets of influence as they mold their world. This creates an environment that is ripe with change and vitality! Truly Excellent Leaders lead with their mind, heart and soul. It is the only way for a leader to succeed beyond a short period of time.
All of us have been gifted with a calling at which we are given the capacity to succeed. It is in this gifted area that we are destined to lead.
The question is, though, how do we determine where we are called to lead? How do we lead? Often, as we discover our calling, it is the result of being thrust into a position of leadership for the first time. We are suddenly overhead in a quagmire of confusion and fear. Without guidance and help in learning how to lead well, we are likely to fail.
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This course endeavors to provide you with the guidance and education necessary to succeed at leadership.
Good Luck.
MG Stough
CEO
Shield ICS
2002
Part Two
Questions
And
Questings
Unit Two
Chapter Three
Answer this question in one hundred words or less.
Chapter Four
Every generation truly believes that it is the first one to suffer through the problems that each and every leader experiences! This is a fallacious belief. Perplexities, difficult situations, fear of failure, confusion, self-doubt, uncooperative people, irritating peers, demanding superiors, jealous or antagonistic underlings... all of these leadership problems are common threads that connect leaders from all eras of time.
Things have often not gone as planned. This leads to a need to discover solutions to problems. There is a thrill to be gained from making a difference. There is a great pleasure in seeing that you have influenced and motivated people to accomplish that which, without you, would have been impossible to accomplish.
It is important to realize that leadership is generic. The same principles apply to most any situation where leadership is needed. That is a key to leadership success.
The problems of leadership are very common. Leaders, however,are rare.
Throughout history, leadership is found. It is the natural social process that responds to personal need. People have been instilled with the desire to lead. People want to work together in order to accomplish tasks. They want somebody to lead them well.
Of course, it is one thing to say that leadership is a natural occurrence; it is another thing altogether to say that leadership is easy. In fact, leadership is one of the hardest forms of work ever engaged in by a human being.
A very important skill for a leader to acquire is the ability to recognize where problems exist that are blocking the process of leadership. A second most important skill that must be developed by a capable leader is the ability to free up the blockages that are preventing successful leadership.
When leaders lead well, they get a lot of credit for doing little or nothing. When leaders lead poorly, then they get blamed and suffer the castigation of their superiors. If a leader gets stuck, then they either get unstuck and receive accolade for their performance, or else they get trapped and receive negative impressions from their superiors.
The strong leader learns to quickly identify conflicts and interference amongst workers, snags in work schedules, and inappropriate or inefficient job assignments. Problems are seen as strategic questions, rather than as questions of power and manipulation within the organization.
The key is to understand how leadership issues flows and to stay out of the way of that natural flow of information and action. A good leader is only needed when things go wrong. Finding out what went wrong and removing it is the job of the leader.
It is the wise leader who learns and applies the 20:80 RULE that Moses discovered. "If the leader fixes twenty percent of the problems with which he is faced, then eighty percent of the snags will disappear from the organization."
Leadership problems occur more often as the result of what the leader fails to see than from what the leader does see.
Many times, leaders blame the wrong cause for the current problem. Close inspection of a problem can eliminate this hazardous reaction, and thus help to solve the situation with less strenuous efforts. It is a difficult habit to break; blaming symptoms than the cause.
There are five basic facets of leadership. Each facet speaks to a specific type of generalistic situation. These facets must be learned.
But to learn them, one must find a teacher. Not just any teacher will do, though. A mentor is needed.
This leads to a new and very important question:
A mentor is one to whom you have been assigned for the purpose of being trained and educated. A mentor has something that you need. Your job is to learn everything that you can from this person's experience and wisdom. It is very important that one learns to recognize the mentor to whom he has been assigned. Otherwise, one might miss out on important life lessons and might fail to reach full potential.
By reaching your full potential you will become a successful leader. Remember, though, it is not easy to reach full potential. It takes a lot of hard work and struggle. There are seven obstacles that prevent a person from reaching their full potential of success. Abundant success cannot be had unless these obstacles are defeated by you.
Stop looking at what you see. Start looking at what you can have. Our world---parents, church, school, friends, government and politicians---act as thought and lifestyle and conditioners. As a result, we sometimes become more problem oriented than possibility oriented. Stop concentrating on your weaknesses. Stop loosing confidence. Stop loosing self respect. Concentrate on your strong points. Often what you consider to be a weakness is actually a plus factor! Do not talk about your weaknesses and faults. Rather, EXPRESS YOUR HEARTFELT THANKS FOR THE GIFTS THAT GOD HAS GIVEN TO YOU. Stop looking at the things that you see, and start looking at what you can have. This is the first step that you must take. Until you change the way that you view life, you cannot be mentored.
A Mentor works directly with his Protege. A Protege is one to whom a Mentor is assigned. The Mentor spends long hours and works with great effort to mold and shape the protege through the linked processes of Instruction, Training, Education, and Correction.
I am a Mentor. You are my Protege. I have committed my life to Instructing, Training, Education, and Correction. People are my life. It is my heartfelt desire to do everything and anything within my power to aid and advance their success, to improve their general state of happiness.
I rebel against unhappiness.
I reject sickness.
I refuse hurt.
Most unhappiness, sickness, and hurt could be avoided if one would simply gain an understanding of THE LAWS OF GOD. Many of these LAWS OF SUCCESS can be found in the Five Books of Moses and the Books of Wisdom that are found in the Holy Bible.
In the next section of this text, many keys to success that can be found in these Books are described for your benefit. By learning and applying these laws, you will begin to correct the flaws and to break down the obstacles preventing your success.
You must condition your mind to think and seek success. You must learn to see the world as your proving ground, not your prison. Take off that dunce cap and put on the winner's hat. The winner reacts differently to life's difficulties.
The way in which we react to situations determines whether or not they are turned into stepping stones toward greater success and happiness.
An unteachable spirit is and unwillingness to change.
Many are stuck and stagnant because they refuse to read new laws and update their understanding. They refuse to implement new and vital informations as they become available.
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge...
Hosea 4:6
A wise man will Hear, and will Increase Learning...
Proverbs 1:5
The most successful businesses are those who adapt to new policies, produce new products, and keep informed. They consult with experts. They analyze their own procedures.
Chapter Five
Change and growth are a major part of prospering. To change and to grow, one must understand not only where he is now, but also where he wants to be tommorrow. This knowledge is very valuable. It determines the potential for Success.
There are two types of knowledge:
Books are filled with information that has been gathered from years of research. Audio cassette tapes are available, costing no more than a price of a simple meal. They contain useful and informative lectures from scholars who have read many books from you! Many magazines are mailed free of charge... and they often contain useful knowledge. I have a simple Belief. GOD placed seeds of greatness within us at birth. It is our responsibility to grow these seeds. Thus,we become what we seek to be.
YOU ARE WHAT YOU HAVE DECIDED TO BE.
Invest in literature and teaching tapes. Feed your mind and your heart! Your mind is worth growing!
Accepting change is a key to Success....
Accept Change !
Listen to new ideas and concepts!
There is always a reason for failure. Cultivate the crucial ability to identify life's bottlenecks and to overcome the obstacles to success and happiness that belong to you !
Intolerance of the Present Condition Creates A Future.
If you do not like your current life, do something to change your future life.
Start knocking down those seven obstacles that are blocking your success. The first step is to accept the teaching guidance of your mentor. If you cannot be taught, then you will not change. Without changeability, you are doomed to failure. Once one has acquired a teachable spirit, he can begin teaching his mind to tear down the obstacles that are blocking successful Leadership Potential. The second obstacle, unpaid vows, is the next point of change that must occur in one's life.
GOD holds a man responsible for what he promises. Ecclesiastes 5:4&5 explain that "Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and then not pay."
People hold a man responsible for what he promises, also. When those promises are not kept, People remember that and use it to define their future interactions with you.
Many times, during times of dyer circumstances, we make promises. Then, when we have recovered from our distressed conditions, we forget those promises. To forget a vow is deadly.
It will kill relationships.
It will kill opportunities.
It will kill careers.
It will kill persons.
GOD and MAN RESPECT
HONESTY
INTERGRITY
FIDELITY
MORALS
VALUES
ETHICS
Are you fulfilling your vows?
Dare to stand up and take responsibility for the vows you have made.
Those to whom you have vowed will favor you for this. You will sleep better for it. Future miracles will become reality.
Keeping your promises makes you trustworthy.
Teachability and trustworthiness provide the foundation for breaking down another success barrier: Unforgiven Forgiveness
The Apostle Mark wrote in his Epistle, "...and when you stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught against any; that your father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses." (11:25,26)
Forgiveness is not a suggestion. It is a REQUIREMENT. It is a releasing of the right to judge and penalize another for personal wrongs. If you do not forgive others for slighting you, then others will not forgive you for your slights against them.
You have received Mercy.
Pass it on.
You have received Love.
Pass it on.
You have received kindness.
Pass it on.
This gives you compassion.
Compassion provides a bridge by which you can cooperate with those who can help you succeed, even when you have had bad experienced with them.
It leads to Professional Demeanor.
Teachability, Trustworthiness and Compassion provide a strong fundament upon which you can stand. It gives you a Professional Demeanor that guides you toward the removal of yet another barrier to leadership success. That barrier is Unwise Associations.
Evil Communications corrupt good manners.
1 Corinthians 15:23
whoever does not increase you will most certainly eventually decrease you.
When a person does not value your time, neither will they value your wisdom.
Reevaluate your life and your friendships. Disconnect from those who hold you back.
Recognize your Enemies and your Opposition.
Those who are more critical than they are complimentary and encouraging.
Those who embarrass and humiliate you.
Those who siphon your time and energy through useless and distracting talk.
Those who take but never give.
Those who use you as their mule but never feed you.
Recognize Your Wise Associations.
Those who speak words that build your faith and confidence.
Those who see the validity and beauty of your GOD GIVEN Dreams and Goals.
Those who get excited about your potential.
Those who remind you of your special gifts and abilities.
Those who seek to help you fulfill your dreams and goals.
Be selective in your associations. The time you waste on losers is the time you could have been investing in winners. This control of your associations gives you morals, values and ethics.
Teachability, trustworthiness, Compassion, Morals, Values, and Ethics provide a very strong foundation by which the next barrier to leadership success: An Unbridled Tongue.
Death and Live are in the power of the tongue: And they that love it shall eat the fruit there of.
Proverbs 18:21
the words that exit your mouth can either build you up or tear you down.
A fool's lips enter into contention... A fool's mouth is his destruction, and his lips are the snare of his soul. The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.
Proverbs 18:6-8
Use your words very carefully.
Words are Forces.
WORDS are a double-pointed spear.
WORDS are weapons of Life and Death.
WORDS ARE FORCES.
Use your words very carefully.
they can build or destroy,
make right or wrong,
create accomplishments or tear down the greatest endeavors.
Words leave a trail of destruction or accomplishments.
They are POWER.
WORDS are the TOOLS
that God has given us
to build up our own Spirits and Minds.
The body responds to words.
Our spirit responds to words.
Words create mind pictures
that our entire Being reacts to!
Speak about the blessings you now possess.
Speak PRAISE as you take the time to taste your triumphs!
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
Matthew 12:37
Every time you speak, you are programming your mind and yourself, and you are creating a mental image of yourself~
as a winner or as a loser~ for others to see.
The NOW that you sought yesterday is the HERE that you are experiencing today. What you spoke of yesterday is what you are going through today.
A bridled tongue provides circumspection and confidence. Teachability, trustworthiness, compassion, morals, values, ethics, circumspection and confidence build a foundation and a wall of protection around one. From within this wall of
protection, the sixth barrier to leadership success can be torn down. That barrier is manifested by Undeveloped gifts and abilities.
Everyone has talents, abilities, and gifts. These differ from person to person.
Recognize the seeds of greatness within you; take the time and utilize the energy to grow those seeds into benefits and advantages of greatness.
See the greatness of your gift. Invest the time it takes to find it. Invest the time and energy required to refine and improve your special gift.
Answer These Life Questions:
*What Do You Enjoy Doing?
*What Would You Like to do Better?
*What takes do you dread doing?
*What brings you the greatest sense of fulfillment?
Answer these questions honestly, and you will be walking down the path toward the sense of worth which thousands have never taken the time nor the effort to find.
Visit your library.
Subscribe to periodicals.
Consult the experts in the Field of interest.
Set-up appointments.
Pray for Divine Direction.
Respond tot he opportunities in your locals community for self improvement and education.
GOD provides the fertilizer; you must plant the seeds and cultivate them to fruition.
By developing one's undeveloped gifts and abilities, expertize and capability are gained. A capable man has self respect. Self respect will not tolerate disrespect from others. Self Respect does not allow disrespect toward others. Thus, self respect that is borne of expertise and capability will always lead to respectability and respectfulness.
Teachability, trustworthiness, Compassion, Morals, Values, Ethics, Circumspection, Confidence, Respectability and Respectfulness build a strong fort from within which one can destroy the seventh and last, of the barriers to Leadership success: An Uncommitted heart.
A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.
James 1:8
A committed heart is a decided heart; the product of a made-up mind. Commitment generates an aura of authority that permeates and electrifies an atmosphere. Commitment attracts people, favorable opportunities, and gives power and authority and creativity to your life.
Chapter Six
A committed heart gives Direction in life; an orient from which one can set goals and standards. Goals and Standards give one the means by which success can be measured. Commitment also gives others a direction in which they should follow.
That is the point of leadership:
Leadership is not telling people where they should be. Leadership is showing people how to get there. If you do not know where you are going, then neither will anyone else.
Commit your life to reaching specific goals. By doing so, you will attract others who have those same goals. Declare that commitment and others will agree; they will turn it into a Mission.
A Mission, then, is the clear and concise statement of one or more people's commitment. Your committed heart gives you and your people mission. Mission is the key to Leadership Success!
This is the result of the Leader's Mind. The leader's Mind exhibits teachability, trustworthiness, compassion, morals, values, ethics, circumspection, confidence, respectability, respectfulness, and mission! That is the personification of a leader's Mind. Your job is to train your mind so that it is refined into a Leader's Mind.
UNIT TWO
Intermediate Concepts
Chapter Seven
Learn to ignite the imagination of your team members. Communicate the passion of your dream to the team. Communicating the heart of the leader into the organization transfers the emotion, the passion, and motivation that drives the leader into the hearts and minds of each member of every working team.
Leadership is a social art. Leaders function as a catalyst for influencing people. Scientific studies have proven that people have a natural tendency to be motivated by the heart, making emotional decisions.
People tend to use emotion as their basis for decisions far more often than they use logic and mental reasoning.
The first step in learning how to communicate the leader's passion and drive into the organization is to recognize the difference between goals and vision.
A goal is an intellectual statement of a desired accomplishment. A goal sets a hopeful objective, and establishes a benchmark of desired achievement. Goals are logical and mathematical in nature. They require nothing more than the investment of work and effort to be reached.
A vision, on the other hand, is an emotionally charged declaration of the overall direction to be traveled in order to reach a future dream. Vision deals with The Big Picture.
Vision ignites the hearts and imaginations of the American Public, The Organization, the Leader himself... EVERYBODY !!
When we speak of communicating vision, we are speaking of guided communication and public-speaking skills. While most question reasoning for dealing with guided communication and public-speaking, when dealing with leadership, the wise will recognize the need for effective communications within the organization. Almost all effective leaders have effective communication skills.
A leader can be persuasive without being visionary. Yet, a leader cannot be visionary without being persuasive. Passionate content is vital for effective leadership. People will always respond to passionate leadership.
Leaders must believe what they impart to others. Passion and enthusiasm play a vital roller in effective leadership. If a leader loses his passion, everyone in the organization loses motivation and ceases to value the dream of the vision.
The leader creates the overall climate of the organization. He either inspires the people, or he discourages them. There is no middle ground in this. Motivation is a condition of extremes. Either a person is motivated or he is not motivated. It is an issue of the heart.
In order to convey a vision, one must first become conscious of the importance of passion and heart. You must have a definite vision and legitimate desire to compel others to promote that vision.
Passion ignites the creativity within people. Vision establishes direction and planning from which goals and time line are developed.
Human beings are incredibly creative, and enjoy finding solutions to difficult problems.
Usually, the solutions are found after the destination is identified and once the people have bought into the possible future that is described in The Vision. The HOW normally results from the identification of WHEN, WHAT, and WHY. Leaders are the catalysts that cause the Team to produce the How by identifying WHAT, WHEN, and WHY for the Team to work toward.
A leader is not intimidated by the lack of HOW. A leader does not have the answers to all of the questions before hand. A leader simply ignites the passions of his workers, encouraging their creativity, providing them with the Plan so that they can come up with the HOW. This is how the dream of the vision is realized.
A leader is a Wise Man. A Man of Wisdom knows the power of words. A man of wisdom knows how to use words powerfully, and uses those words to positively influence his environment.
A leader never releases words of defeat, depression, and discouragement.
A leader never releases words of defeat, depression, and discouragement. A leader constantly and consistently expresses words of hope, confidence, and success.
A leader gets so excited over the triumphant plans for his future, that he does not have time to complain over past losses.
Never speak words that make the enemy think that he is winning. The Enemy lies. The LEADER Tells the truth.
Opposition is a natural occurrence. Successful leaders expect opposition. It is part of their success story!
Adversity has its advantages. Adversity reveals the depth of one's friendships. Adversity forces one to search for more accurate information. Adversity helps the leader decide what he truly believes.
Adversity is the breeding ground for miracles. Never justify failure. Do not bog down by placing blame on others. Reach Up for the Key Out. Successful Leaders are different from the rest of the crowd. They look at the future!
It is all about Attitude; this motivation thing.
The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding tot he simple.
Psalm 119:130
Setting the right attitude is vital to the motivation of those who are beneath he leader. Happiness begins in the mind. The mind is the drawing board for tomorrow's circumstances.
The Leader must motivate himself before he can motivate others. Therefore, get into the right mental attitude. Develop an upbeat, happy outlook on life. Draw a mental blueprint for tomorrow's circumstances. Become a successful overcomer.
Mind management is the first priority of the Successful Overcomer!
Whatsoever things are true,
whatsoever things are honest,
Whatsoever things are just,
Whatsoever things are pure,
Whatsoever things are lovely,
Whatsoever things are of good report;
If there be any virtue, and
If there be any praise,
think these things.
Philippians 4:8
The mind is a formidable tool. Use it to construct a new reality. Use it to create your new reality.
Those who are willing to lose, rarely do! Successful people are unsuccessful people who got angry and fought back. Successful people get tires of failure. They quit allowing themselves to fail.
The day you get angry at your failures is the day you start winning!
Chapter Eight
Winning, Success, and Happiness, all start inside. Success does not begin around you. It begins in your heart, your mind, and your soul.
The leader first sets his mind aright, then passes that mindset on those around him. The leader makes an Affirmative Declaration of Success!...Declares Today Is The Start!...
It is the begging of the most happiest and most productively successful days of his life!
The leader sends signals to his followers that there is no room for failure here. "NEVER QUIT!" That is the motto of the leader.
The leader is constantly and consistently reminds his workers that he and they are "just minutes away from a personal miracle, within reach of an organizational milestone, almost there..." Making up one's own mind is the first step to making up the minds of others.
Make up your own mind and success is only a matter of time !
That is how the leader motivates...
...himself...
...others below him...
...others above him...
UNIT THREE
Advanced Concepts
Chapter Nine
An area of great importance for leaders, one that often causes organizational dysfunction and workplace anomie, if the Administrator-to- team worker relationship. Leadership is often hindered or canceled out by relationships. The method used to lead people is vitally important and should be carefully chosen.
In every organized endeavors, always ask the following two questions:
At the root of most leadership problems is the leader's basic people skills. Long term effectiveness in complex modern organized endeavor requires superior people skills. Leaders are challenged to find an equilibrium between BEING and DOING.
Being too people oriented has two negative results. First, the leader and the workers will find it almost impossible to get to the work at hand. Second, the more talented and capable team members will be frustrates from their inability to direct their energies and expertise toward a specified goal or outcome. Most leaders make the gross error of being too people oriented or too task oriented. Being too task oriented is bad because it tends to alienate everybody. Stressing task and not people causes feelings of dehumanization.
People Skills include the ability to align the worker's strengths and capabilities with the needs and goals of the organization. Being able to place a worker into the right organizational role increases the strength and sufficiency of the organization.
Never underestimate the importance of talent. Never miss an opportunity to encourage the development and refinement of talent. A leader should create a sufficiency of time and a level of safety and security within the organization's environment which produce a comfortable acceptance and capacity to process workplace innovations.
The leader must provide an environment that nurtures the worker. Elsewise, workers cannot be developed into experts. The job of the leader is to bring about change that is beneficial to the organization and to the environment in general.
Unfortunately, since leaders are so invested in the vision of the future, they often fail to realize that those who work for them do not respond to organizations and environmental change in the same enthusiastic way. It is of vital importance that the leader recognize that his people need ample time and clarifyingly informative guidance, in order for them to adjust to most any change that occurs in their lives.
A common mistake is for the leader to misinterpret the reaction of workers to change within the organizational environment. Many times, workers respond very emotionally to change in their environment. It is easy for a leader to misconstrue such emotions responses to represent bad attitudes, negativity, or even subversive revolt against the leader's authority and power.
This is most often far from the truth of the matter. The leader must be careful to recognize normal change-reaction behavior and to offer appropriate support for the anomic worker's return to organizational stability. This produces a healthier change-based organizational evolution process.
The leader must love his people as much as he loves his work. It is very important. Requisite to administrative success is the assurance that as many people as possible are operating with a unified mindset. This is corporate mentality at its best.
Leaders must be able to confront and interact with workers. Failure to confront workers can cause irreparable damage. Mediocre output, and that spells eventual doom to any organization. One mediocre or substandard performer will demotivate other team members. One demotivated team will negatively affect other teams. This will lead to the eventual loss of the entire organization's motivation.
Unmotivated workers must not be allowed to continue in their mediocre condition for any length of time. These people must be dealt with immediately. Find a way to motivate them. Encourage them to reach for the dream with a newfound energy.
Be careful though. Being too confrontational is dangerous.
Confrontation has its place, and outside of its place confrontation is alienation and abuse. Leaders who take joy in intimidating people result in disenfranchised workers who prefer leaving the organization. If workers take themselves out of the organization, then they can take their expertise, and their training, and especially their potential contribution toward the FUTURE of the organization away and then give it to another person, leader, and organization.
A leader must develop good communication skills. This will help to prevent the unfortunate demotivation and dissolution of organizational direction. It is very important that a leader find the correct balance between comfort and confrontation; this will temper the harsh taste of correction.
A good leader does not enjoy confrontation. Confrontation and the need for confrontation even cause a leader to suffer through sleepless nights. Wrestling with the needs to confront workers has the beneficial effect of encouraging the leader to refine his motives.
It also encourages the leader to carefully choose the words that are most appropriate and the attitude that is most proper.
A leader must not allow his people to be sloppy or lazy or ineffective, but the leader must temper his worker-attitude adjustments with compassion. This will reduce worker's fear, anger, and hurt; thus increasing worker appreciation for the leader's advice, concern, and guidance. A wise leader always remembers that when people are afraid, angry, hurt, then they will inevitably reduce or destroy the effectiveness of the leadership process.
Agape is brotherly love that expresses a genuine concern for the well-being of another. Wise leaders recognize the power of Agape in the organization.
Being able to express genuine brotherly love and encouragement to the people with the organization causes a general feeling of goodwill and happiness amongst the workers and administrators. This inevitably enhances the ability of the leader to function as a leader.
Chapter Ten
The number one desire of people is high level of estheme. If a leader fails or refuses to recognize this fact, then his ability to lead is severely curtailed.
When an organization's leaders lack Agape, it shows in the way that things get done. Turnover tends to be very high. The cost of recruiting and training workers is high. The difficulty of finding and training substitutes for those workers who need sick leave far outweighs their usefulness.
Productivity is severely diminished as a result of workers feeling as though they are neither loved, respected, nor valued. People have GOD-given talents that make them valuable; that value should be respected and highly prized by the leaders.
It is bad to treat people as nothing more than performance indicators. Neither is it good to treat them as simply name tags placed in a flow chart. This discourages productivity. To prevent the terminal condition of unproductive workers, a leader must effectively inspire his workers through the careful use of Agape based listening, coupled with compassionate affirmation of worker estheme.
Developing and maintaining positive relationships facilitates the leadership process. Leaders establish the direction and pace of movement within the organization. Leaders model appropriate organizational behavior, indicating what and who is important while identifying what and who is not important tot he organization. Therefore, it is imperative that the leader clearly define people as the most important part of the organization.
Happiness is feeling good about one's self. A leader sets definite goals for himself. Setting goals is not wrong. Worrying about goals is wrong. Goals should be reasonable and balanced. A leader should never set unreasonable goals for himself nor others.
A leader recognizes the six areas of success:
A leader seeks the achievement of each of these six areas of success actively. A leader actively seeks to assist his workers in achieving success in these six areas. It is very important to grow in all six of these areas. This is the methodical pursuit of leadership success.
Nobody ever reaches his potential until he makes his priorities into habitual activities.
A leader involves quality people in his life. He who spends quality time with wise men will become wise himself eventually (King Solomon said this).
A leader invests in himself. A leader spends time, energy, and effort-not to mention money- for the development of his mind. Successful leaders invest in equipping themselves.
A leader is disciplined...
and values TIME. America is obsessed with fun. That obsession for fun is causing deterioration of purpose. TIME is the most expensive resource that can be wasted.
Chapter Eleven
A leader discovers and develops his own talents. It is vital that the leader finds out what he is good at. He should take a good, deep, hard look at himself. A leader is accountable to GOD for developing and refining his skills. A leader's life calling is usually what creates the highest level of joy within him.
A leader cultivates a teachable spirit. The willingness to change is not a compromise of one's principles. A leader must have flexibility and be open to The Truth... especially when The Truth hurts. King Solomon, son of King David, said in Proverbs 1 verse 5, A Wise Man Will Hear..."
Time and Knowledge should enlarge the leader. LISTEN.
Happiness is feeling good about one's self.
Popularity is others feeling good about one's self.
What a leader feels about his self, his character, and his accomplishments determines his real sense of worth and value. A successful leader applies this towards his people, increasing their sense of self worth and value.
Life is not meant to be a schedule of defeats. It is meant to be a parade of miracles. Life was never meant to be an endurance race filled tot he brim with trials. Life was meant to be an endless enjoyment of triumphs. A successful leader applies this to his own life, then to his people's lives, so that he can help them live that endless parade of miracles and joyful triumphs.
A leader never lets bad memories and past hurts and failures shackle him into the Prison of Defeat. A leader smashes the walls of the past down and stands up in happy Triumph! A leader grasps the opportunity to try something new, to progress into the future. That is the key to leadership success... forward vision.
A Leader will never possess what he is not willing to pursue. Every miracle is preceded by the ache and agony of need. Pain and suffering are the vehicles that transport a leader to his greatest miracle.
A leader recognizes that family is an all-important key to success. Withholding good things from those who deserve them, when it is within a leader's power to provide them, is a crime against Family. Friendship is a precious commodity.
Friendship produces shared growth. Friendship produces shared success.
Leaders seek greatness. A leader will never reach the palace talking like a peasant. The leader's conversation reveals whether he is a winner or a loser. Leaders recognize this and refuse to fall victim to their own conversation.
Do Not Allow Yourself To Fall Victim To Your Own Conversation.
A leader does not focus on where he has been. A leader looks at where he is going. A leader's currently spoken words decide his future.
Slavery is unnatural. The mind of man is naturally predacious. It is definitely not natural for a person to possess a mentality of prey. Mankind craves greatness. A successful leader knows and capitalizes on this predacious aspect of his mind.
Success is Happiness.
Happiness is feeling good about one's self.
A leader is a winner. A winner never magnifies his own personal weakness. A winner is one who fell down and then got back up and refused to quit until he reached his goal.
King Solomon identified seven gates to successful leadership:
Obedience
To The Higher Power
Knowledge
Acquisition
Visualization
Of The Future
Forgiveness
Of Past Wrongs
Persistence
of Effort
Sowing
Seeds of Success
Praise of GOOD WORKS
These are the seeds of Faith that a successful Leader sows in his people. Faith unlocks miracles. Faith makes organizations into miracle factories.
Chapter Twelve
Disorder within the organization reduces the capacity of the organization to achieve its goals. Disorder within the leadership of an organization hampers the success of the organization. Any disorder in the leader's life can kill his dreams.
Therefore, a Leader must actively attack the disorder in his life. A Leader must organize his life before he can organize his people into a motivated force for change. King Solomon developed an action plan by which a leader can organize his life. King Solomon's action plan is as follows:
Solomon's Plan of Organization
Decide for yourself
what you want out of life.
Get alone with GOD and
study HIS WORD.
Write down every Dream,
Desire, and Goal that is presently important to you.
Choose
the top three goals from your list.
Be alert to the people
who GOD sends into your life to help fulfill HIS purpose for you.
Be responsible to obey
GOD when HE directs you to use your talents to fulfill the dreams of
others.
Remove the time-wasters in your life; he who does not increase you will most assuredly decrease you.
Part of organizing one's life is the pursuit of goals. The proof of Desire is PURSUIT. The leader always has the ability to achieve his goals by utilizing his available resources to pursue them. However, not all resources are available at all times. This condition is reflected in the image of the farmstead.
A farmer produces harvests. The farmer plants seeds in a fertile plot. Then he cares for and cultivates the crop until it grows unto fruition. The farmer then gathers then fruits of his labors as a harvest. The problem is, however, that the fruits that the farmer holds in his hands are often not enough to be a harvest.
When what is held in the hands of the farmer is not enough to be a harvest, the farmer makes it a seed of future harvest. This is THE LAW OF RELEASE.
One of my Mentors, an expert in Wisdom Studies, explained the law OF RELEASE in this way:
"seeds of faith are like requisition orders to Heaven... They authorize Miracles and Harvests of Blessings to be Delivered into your Life.
When the leader releases what he holds in his hands in pursuit of Dream, GOD releases what HE has in HIS Hands to Deliver that Dream."
Planting small seeds of Faith produces fruits from which larger seeds can be harvested and then re-planted. In this way, small successes grow into larger and larger successes. Those who are faithful in the little things, advance to greater responsibilities and greater Harvests.
If a leader is unhappy at work, it will affect his family life, his health, his job performance, and his job security. The same thing happens tot he leader's people. When he is unhappy, they are unhappy. When the workers are unhappy at work, it directly affects their family life, their health, their job performance, and their job security.
A leader must take the time to plan his career and his life's work. A leader must find what he is good at, what GOD Designed him to do, and then DO IT with all of his heart. This is the key to Leadership Success.
There are other keys to leadership Success; keys that must adhered to in order to bring about leadership excellence.
A leader must know and practice these Keys To Successful Life Planning.
These keys to leadership success were identified by the patriarchs and by the apostles, and by the Christ. These keys have been translated from their original tongues into modern, easy-to-understand language by myself for you, the reader. By applying these keys to your life, your potential for leadership success will be greatly enhanced.
Chapter Thirteen
Effective leaders are effective in every aspect of their lives. This is a sign of the maturity that comes from gaining wisdom through applied experience. To lead well, one must step outside himself and look through the eyes and hearts of those around him. The leader must get beyond himself. Excellent leadership is actually superior servanthood. Superior servanthood has to do with the character of the leader.
Every follower requires and desires a stable and strong leadership model. Character adds stability and strength to one's leadership. Character determines a leader's identity. Leadership is a social art, and so it is important for a leader to have good social qualities.
The influence of a leader's character transcends what they do in their daily work and extends well beyond the way that they solve problems.
The actions of a leader—every action of a leader—, as well as his attitudes, influence and model leadership to all who are within and without the organization.
The moral and ethical decisions that we make are clear reflections of our character. We resort tot these thought patters because they are familiar, comfortable, and habitual. A leader cannot be separated from his character.
This means that a leader's character produces predictable behavior—predictability good or predictability bad behavior.
Workers, as followers, place faith in leaders who model integrity.
The most common character flaw that hinders Leadership success is compromise for the sake of achievement. The absolute goal of leadership is to bring about group task accomplishment. Leaders who have character flaws tend to take easy paths, use short cuts, and pursue questionable solutions for the sake of expedience.
Leaders with strong, stable character require of themselves and others the harder path, the longer correct route, the irreproachable solution for the sake of mortal and ethical principle.
The two basic leadership modus operandi can be seen exemplified throughout history. One produces an excellent leader. The other provides short-term leadership that is destined for failure. People who exhibit strong, stable character finish best in their league.
Leaders who compromise on morals, values, and ethics often run the risk of losing both self-respect and respect and respect from others. "Losing the respect of those who follow you will eventually destroy your leadership ability," says John C. Maxwell (1995). Leaders influence the people who follow them. Leaders make more broad-impact decisions than do their followers. This influence of others creates an amplified reflection of the character of the leader.
Leaders are role models. They are the epitome of a high standard of morals, values, and ethics... or they represent the epitome of a low standard of morals, values, and ethics. Leaders, as role models, serve to teach each generation how to behave. If one does not provide a positive example of how others should behave, then he should resign his role as leader; such a resignation is voluntary.
An organization and its members, and especially its products, will always mirror its leaders. A leader who expresses agape compassion will see his workers expressing the same agape within their own ranks. A leader who is honest will see that his followers also do not tolerate dishonesty. A leader who is unethical will see unethical behavior within his followers. A leader who is lazy and uncaring will find that his followers are also lazy and uncaring.
For this reason, it is vital that the leader live a moral, valued, ethical life. After all, his life will be modeled by everybody around him.
When a person of weak morals, unstable values, and poor ethics enters a leadership position, the results are almost detrimental. Such a person who sets policies, makes man power resource decisions, and serves as organizational role model will inevitably provide a negative influence on the organization. Their character flaws will taint their decisions and their associations. Those who are within the organization will prefer to withhold or even deny their trust.
The followers will replicate the leader's behavior mentality. Those who are outside of the organization will avoid the establishment of strong alliances with the organization. The outsiders will question the wisdom of doing business with the organization.
Weak Leaders make weak organizations.
Weak organizations are not profitable.
Lack of profitability spells disaster for the organization, and especially for its leaders.
A strong Leader exhibits six core qualities that cause others to respect them. These same qualities also cause the strong leader to want to respect others. Each core quality is listed and defined below.
HONESTY
Honesty is not lying. It is always providing full face value and verification of facts.
INTEGRITY
Integrity is trust and belief in a cause without fail, unto the end, regardless of circumstance and without regard for consequences.
FIDELITY
Fidelity is trust and belief in a person without fail, unto the end, regardless of circumstances and without regard of consequences.
MORALS
Morals are the set of definitions of right and wrong, good and evil that society establishes for its own protection.
Values
Values are the set of definitions of right and wrong, good and evil, that the individual establishes for his own protection.
ETHICS
Ethics is the summation of one's morals and values which are being tempered by honesty, integrity, and fidelity. Ethics, then, form one's personal code of honor.
Chapter Fourteen
The leader's personal code of honor guides him through difficult situations. As a Guide Post of right and wrong, this personal code of honor allows the Leader to make difficult decisions without violating the conscience of the leader nor that of any other.
It is very important for the leader to frequently evaluate his personal code of honor, to verify its acceptability. It should reflect the definition of right and wrong behavior according to society's perception which has been tempered by one's personal experiences and enhanced by the leader's understanding of what is or is not acceptable.
By adhering to a personal code of honor, the leader becomes a living model exemplary behavior.
The worker will know and recognize through the actions and speech of the leader what kind of behavior is expected of him. Thus, the leader is the mold from which the organization is formed.
GALATIANS 6:3-6
If a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceived himself. Let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For every man shall bear his own burden. Let him that taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.
If you think that you are better than others, not recognizing that you are just a man like all others, then you are deceiving yourself. Every man must prove himself worthy of respect through his own hard work, and then he will find pride in his own accomplishments, and not in the accomplishment of another person. Every man must suffer through his own proving. Those who are educated and wise should share with the teacher all that they have learned, so that the teacher can help others.
UNIT FOUR
FINISHING Touches
Chapter Fifteen
The Leader is a SEER.
Guided by personal Vision of where the organization should be, the Leader serves the people how to get there. The Leader serves the people with the wisdom that he has gleaned from years of Leading. The People serve the Leader by listening and by applying what the leader has learned from leading others.
Modern leadership research has returned to the understanding that leaders are the sum product of physical, mental, social, and spiritual processes. This last area of concern is one of the most important aspects of the Leadership process. A flawed soul spells disaster for the organization.
In recent decades, the belief had been fostered that leaders should separate their spiritual life from their public life.
Of course, this is an impossible state of being.
One's Spiritual Core cannot be separated from any aspect of his life. The soul influences every aspect of everything that a person does. The soul is the endless font of energy that powers the Leader's drive toward EXCELLENCE!
Recent studies conducted in the United States Of America have shown that an overwhelming majority of organizational leaders acknowledge and accept the presence and controlling power of GOD in their universe. Similar studies that have been conducted in other countries have produced almost identical results. These great leaders, recognizing their own influence in empowering and guiding others through their leadership activities, discern the vital importance of being able to clearly recognize the difference between Godly influence and humanistic influence.
Without spirituality, the Leadership process is severely weakened.
Whenever a Leader relies upon his own earthbound wisdom, earthly power, and human discernment, he inevitably inhibits his Leadership Potential. Leaders have the unique capacity to exercise bast amounts of power and authority on a daily basis. Pursuit of Power is one of the most common Historically Significant reason for the Fall of Leaders. The desire to control one's own Life, and the desire to control the Lives of others, is a real source of destructive potential. It must be tempered by an All-Powerful Overseer who can remind him of how dangerously corruptible his power and authority really are.
People understand who The Leader is according to how that Leader communicates his vision and mission in Life.
A power-crazed Leader will lead his people astray.
A GOD-Guided Leader follows the authoritative influence of Another...
That difference is readily recognized by the Leader's constant inspection of hi own Thoughts, Actions and Motives to verify that they are in Line with the Rules and Regulations of that ALLPOWERFUL LEADER.
The Leader's value system is vital to who he is and how he Leads. It directly determines to where he will Lead as well. Leaders who Lack godly leadership qualities, who are corrupted by self-centered blues, have traditionally caused tremendous pain, suffering, and destruction to humanity. Life and Leadership are like a gemstone. They are too precious to remain unrefined and unpolished.
Life is a valuable treasure and should not be handled poorly; rather, it must be cared for responsibly.
Every Leader must have a source from which he can gain the Honesty, Integrity, Fidelity, Morals, Values, and Ethics by which he lives his daily life. The most clearly defined and dependable source of guidance for Honorable Conduct is the Holy Bible with its Doctrines and Covenants. Taken as a whole without editing and in its concentrated form, The Bible provides time-tested truth for spiritual guidance.
History has proven the worth of The Holy Bible in guiding Leadership Processes. Even the Forefathers of The United States of America utilized its teachings to generate the Leading Political Documents that created our great nation!
Leadership is a Human Process.
It is all about People.
People have souls, Leaders and Workers alike.
The Leader cannot ignore the need of the Workers for spirituality. This need directly influences the morals, values, and ethics; motivations and motivators; and the decisions and attitudes of the People. Leaders, through their GOD-Given Talents and Gifts, have the uniquely powerful ability to influence people. Leaders must not waste any opportunity to merge their godliness with their Leadership.
The inner compass provided by The GOD-GUIDED SOUL is the center from which a Leader derives his personhood, beliefs, values, morals, ethics, attitudes, actions, decisions, directions, associations, relationships, and Guidance in Life.
Therefore, a Leader must first and foremost be the caretaker of the soul. This will make The Leader a spiritually genuine person who can be readily identified with by those who are around him. The GOD=Guided Soul transforms the Leader, and the transformed Leader has a much higher level of capacity to create transformations int eh People and in the organization.
The polished Leader Leads in four directions. It is great wisdom for the Leader to recognize and to understand each of these four directions of Leadership. So then, what are the four Directions Of The Leadership Compass?
First, the Leader Leads in a downward direction. He provides oversight to those who are below him in the chain of command.
Second, The Leader Leads in an Upward direction. He Listens to, Responds to, and influences the Superior Ranks above him int eh Chain of Command through reports, Board Meetings, Staff Encounters, and Stockholder-Directed Memos.
Third, the leader leads in a lateral direction. He communicates and negotiates with peers, holds discussions with fellow team members, and communicates with Equally Ranked others within the organization through carefully planned and effectively executed political transactions.
The final, fourth, direction in which the polished Leader leads is inward. Care-taking of the inner compass, The Treasure Within The Earthen Vessel, is vital to the Leader's success. Failure to watch over and protect the soul results in corrupting, malignant effects within and surrounding the entire organization. For this reason, this fourth direction of Leadership is the most important direction of them all.
Chapter Sixteen
Feeding, exercising, and nurturing the soul enables the Leader to feed, exercise, and nurture the spiritual Life of others.
WORD study, meditation, and Solitary Retreats are vital habits that must be developed if one is to become a polished Leader. The effective Leader recognizes the importance of submission to Higher Power And Authority; Learning; Service; and Following. Never underestimate the importance of Spiritual Discipline. It is an integral pert of the Leader's Mission.
Spiritual growth Leads to Leadership Greatness. Greatness in leadership is a Process. One's experience with emptiness and loss is preparation for the filling by The Holy Spirit.
One's experience with Loneliness develops appreciation for companionship. One's experience with doubt forces one's testing of sincerity develops his discerning abilities. One's experience with waiting teaches patience and the Knowledge that TINE is the Key To WISDOM.
Ecclesiastes III:1 says,
“To every
thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under Heaven.”
This is especially true of the development process by which a leader is formed, refined, and polished. Immaturity is the inability to delay self gratification.
One's self-worth is not determined by his past mistakes, but by his WILLINGNESS to Recognize them. Repentance is the first step toward recovery. Failure lasts only as long as The Leader permits it.
Leaders do not decide their Future. They decide their daily habits. Leaders' daily habits decide their Future.
Yesterday's failure can become the catalyst for tomorrow's success. Leaders do this by:
Accepting
their Humanity.
Admitting
their Mistakes.
Assigning
the responsibility of the mistakes to those who are truly
responsible.
Reviewing
the other possible alternatives that were available at the
time the mistake occurred.
Naming
the people and circumstances that were influencing the Leader when
he made his mistake.
Being willing to taste the pain of one's own mistakes.
One of my Mentors often
quotes a great Leader who was fond of saying,
“IF GOD CUSHIONS
EVERY BLOW,
THEN YOU WILL NEVER GROW.”
Leaders must follow a specific process if they are to grow into Great leaders who enjoy utmost success:
Write
a List of personal lessons that have been Learned and any current
alternatives to problems being faced.
Stop
talking to everyone about your mistake.
Make
restitution with those you have wronged or harmed.
Confess...
Confession is a faith-release mechanism that brings about
total restoration.
Allow
a season of Time for Recovery.
Help
someone else receive their miracle.
Recognize
that your own contribution to others determines GOD's contribution
to you.
Develop
a winning mentality.
Recognize
that your Life will always move in the direction of your strongest
thought.
Celebrate
even your smallest accomplishments.
Begin
DOING THINGS this very moment.
NEVER EVER QUIT!
This is the way that an Excellent leader is formed, refined, and polished. It all starts with a clear and honest evaluation of one's self, followed by an attitude adjustment, and finished off with a new set of daily habits. Leaders know that miracles are not accidents.
The leader also recognizes that he and his People are never as far away from a miracle as it first appears. The leader names his desired miracle. He does this, knowing that one will never leave where he is, until he decides where he wants to be.
The leader confirms his scriptural Grounds for purposing his desired miracle. The leader then ASKS for that desired miracle. The Leader refuses to feed his friendships with doubters.
The leader talks Power_Talk and uses winning Language on a daily basis. The Leader visualizes himself with the completed miracle. The leader never Lets go in the night what GOD promised in The Light.
Leaders recognize that they have value. They also recognize that their people have worth. GOD created them. GOD placed at the feet of the Leader an unlimited wealth of Resources. The leader's job is to use those Resources wisely to succeed.
The leader recognizes that there is a cycle to success. Every time that the leader completes a season of planting, there is a season of growth, then there will be a season of harvest. The Leader creates a season of Success every time he completes an Instruction from GOD.
The Leader recognizes that he will always struggle, especially subconsciously, to become the self-portrait that he believes himself to be. The day that a Leader makes a decision about his Live is the day that his world will change.
The leader's Harvest will always come through the door of somebody in trouble, somebody who needs the Leader's help. The seasons of the Leader's Life will change every time that he decides to use his FAITH!
Leadership is cultivated, just as Success is cultivated. The Leader cultivates success by using his success tools to plant and grow seeds of Faith.
The Leader plants WORDS.
The Leader plants RELATIONSHIPS.
Tomorrow contains more joy than any yesterday that can be remembered.
Leadership is all about cultivating Great harvests amongst the People within the Organization by inspiring the People to usher in great miracles in their Lives. It is not an easy road to follow, that down which the Leader travels. Yet, in the end, it is well worth the trip. Consider the following short story as an illustration of the mind, spirit, and motivation of the LEADER.
Chapter Seventeen
What follows is one of my favorite stories ever told. It is a story of Leadership. It is a story of Leading.
The Leave-Taking
It was time to leave. The carpentry shop had been his home, his refuge, his safety and security zone. He had come to say goodbye, and to smell the fragrance of the lumber and sawdust for one last time.
Life had always been peaceable here...
...safe.
Here had he spent countless hours of joy and contentment.
As a baby and a toddler, he had played on the dirt and sawdust floor, secure in the knowledge that his Father was calmly working above.
Over there, his Father had shown him how to use a wooden mallet and chistle; had taught his young hands how to gently shape the rough hewn wood into a thing of refined beauty. On that very worktable, he had built his very first piece; somewhat rough yet showing great potential.
It was here that his human hands worked and shaped what his divine hands had created. It was here that his body had matured while his spirit awaited...
the right moment...
the right day...
the right direction.
And now the time, the day, the direction...
...they were here.
Did He Want To Stay?
He knew the outcome of his venture. He had seen it and read it before it was written! He was painfully aware that his feet were going to take him out of the safety and security of his home, and down a long and rough road, toward a painful and slow death. A death precursed by those selfsame feet being pierced cruelly and placed high upon a Roman Crucifixure.
He did not have to go.
He could have stayed; could have ignored the call.
He could have postponed it all.
Had he chosen to stay, who would have known? Who would have blamed him? He could have left and then returned at a time when Society was not so volatile, when Religion was not so stale, when People where more willing to Listen. He could have come back when Crucifixion was out of style.
But...
His HEART would not let him. If his Humanity hesitated, His Divinity and Compassion overcame the weakness and dread. His Divine spirit heard the voices, the hopeless cries of the poor, the infirm, the suffering.
He heard the bitterness of accusation from the abandoned ones, the despairing of The Lost trying to save themselves.
His Divinity saw the Faces. Wrinkled, smooth, weeping, and mad; Frightened, even Lost...
...he saw them all. From the Face of Adam to the face of the tiny baby that is being born into the world even as you read these works. He has seen the faces of All in His Divine Spirit.
Among the voices that a simple Carpenter heard on that day in that little shop...
...was your voice.
Your prayers,—spoken screamed, and silent—,were heard...
...even the ones uttered as you whispered into your tear soaked pillow. They were heard before they were said.
Your deepest questions...
...about death,
...sickness,
...loss,
...fear,
...anger...
.....
.....
.....
.....all questions and questings were heard and answered before they were asked.
Your deepest need...
...your need for someone to save you from your predicament; HE met that need...
...Even Before you needed It.
He heard you...
...And he Saw you.
He saw how you glowed in the first moments that you truly knew Him. He saw how you paled in the first moments that you first fell. Yes, the very Face that looked back at you from the mirror today, also looked at Him on that day.
IT WAS ENOUGH.
It was enough to Kill Him.
He left the shop that day...
...because of you...
...because He Loves You.
He laid his safety, his security, and his hammer down on the workbench. He would no longer drive the nails into the wood. Someone else would drive the nails into the wood one day soon. He hung tranquility up with his apron at the nail on the post near the door to the world beyond. He would no longer hang up his apron on that nail in that post. Somebody else would hang Him up on a nail on a wooden post one day.
He closed the window shutters... sealing out the lightness of youth, assuming the mantle of manhood. He closed the shop door as he left, locking up the comfort and ease of simple anonymity. You see, in the end, HE could bear the pain and suffering of your sins far easier than the sight of you hopeless suffering. So HE Left.
It was not easy...
...it Was LOVE.
Why do Leaders step boldly into their future? Why do leaders Lead? Because they can see both the past mistakes, the present sufferings of The People, and the future Joy of THE SOLUTION. The Leader finds it much easier to step forward onto the rocky and difficult road toward The Solution than to remain still and stay surrounded by the present sufferings of his people. That is why The Leader Leads...
...He Loves His People.
© 2003 MG Stough. All Rights Reserved. Neither part nor portion of this document may be copied, quoted, stored, or otherwise reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever, except by express written permission of MG Stough.
This document is a publication of SHIELD ICSE.