Jesus Leadership – 2
Power and Communication
Download PDF: Lecture Note -4
Download MP3: https://wuats.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Lecture_Note-4.mp3
Lecture Note – 4
Jesus Leadership -2
Today I would like to think about Jesus’s leadership as visionary , servant leadership and shepherd leadership as well.
Let’s go to topic of visionary as great leader.
III. Visionary Great Leader
“Vision quietly make up our thoughts.” (Thomas Sowell)
Vision is the ingredient of leadership. As one student said, “leaders teach us the right way and make inspiring speeches.”
Vision is like a sign that tells us which way to go;
it is like a that takes us to the form the present.
Leadership expert Warren Bennis said, “Vision captivates the mind.” He describes vision as a must-have for leaders.
Leaders get to know how to make people pay attention through vision , but also learns to be careful with that attention.
Bennis says the following about William Paley, the founder of CBS radio and television.
“Even while sitting in a small office of a nearly bankrupt company in new York, he was not looking at this small desk, but he was able to look at millions of Americans in rural areas.
Many of them were living in homes without electricity. He envisioned audiences when there were no audiences. Not only did he have vision, he knew use that vision.”
By focusing on the vision, leaders influences not physical resources of an organization, but spiritual resources such as the values, the commitment, and the passion of the organization.
Charles Swindol says in his book that “vision is created by faith, sustained by hope, caught fire by imagination, and strengthened by passion. Vision is to look further ahead than what’s in front of you; it is deeper than and wider than .
Are you agree ?
Vision includes wider beyond what is projected, what is safe, and what is expected.
Leaders read, talk, observe, and questions to seek information on how to ignite the vision.
And this vision becomes stronger and stronger to bring to that Vision.”
As Terry Fullam asked, “Who makes the vision? Is it God or man, or is it both?”
Terry said, “Vision is something God has made in working in .
God creates the Vision and we that vision. We must accept God’s vision is to be my vision.
That vision becomes the we strive to achieve as his people.
The vision comes from our efforts to let the of God known to the world.
The vision brings answers from us and awaken our attention.
On the other hand, is something we pursue.
If we are parts that make up the body of Christ, the question is not where I want to go, but
where he wants to me.”
What is the signs of Jesus vision?
It is mysterious, secrets, invisible, but realistic and specific.
Jesus was a pioneer, a visionary who lived for something not seen.
Today’s world is obsessed with things we see, things we count, and things we evaluate.
We have a tendency to ask questions like “how ? How ? How often”, even in the work of God.
As a result, we fall victim to the visible world.
On the other hand, his vision was , and to a degree, secret.
Jesus spoke to his disciples about the secrets of the kingdom of God in parables.
When the religious leaders asked Jesus when the kingdom of God would be upon them, he said, “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation,
21nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is
within[a]you.”” (Luke 17:20-21).
In this respect, vision is the ability to see with .
Faith lets us things our eyes and experiences have not seen, with intelligence and imagination.
Vision is the with great conviction that ‘what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:18).
And then how Jesus vision is:
- His vision was and specific.
Look how many of his parables were related to such common everyday activities as
fishing, sowing seeds, harvesting them, selling and investing, cooking and partying.
His vision was not religious.
Visions were the ways to see the reality of God taking place in our life
Just as Jesus said, he came to the world not to give us but abundance of life, the
leaders who follow Jesus must have that is not just related to matters of religion and
church.
If we truly accept the truth that Jesus Christ lives within his people and his lives, nothing
we do will be worldly.
2) His vision was realistic and fundamental at the same time.
As Jesus helped people to see what customs and systems intended to do through
customs and visions, his vision was .
We must be able to preserve what we already know like habits and traditions, and also to focus on freeing ourselves to learn new things.
During his public life, Jesus positively acknowledged many passed down from the past.
However, when traditions and distorted the law and became tools to commit cruelty against humanity, he fought the battles ferociously.
For example, he went into the temple on the Sabbath and saw a man with the shriveled hand.
As we have heard, the Pharisees intently looked at Jesus to see “if he would him on the Sabbath” so that they can find a reason to Jesus.
Jesus knew their mindset to criticize, and asked, “which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to life or to kill life?” (Mark 3:4).
When they remained silent, Jesus “looked around at them in anger and deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, ‘stretch out your hand.’
He stretched it out and his hand was completely restored.” (Mark 3:5).
Jesus’ fundamentalism called on the people to see what is fundamental.
He kept most of those numerous laws associated with the Moses’ laws, and said, “I did not come to destroy the law, but to complete it.”
But he did ask some fundamental questions. Why do we keep the Sabbath?”
Is it intended to preserve the past? Or is it intended to the people with a chance to serve God and others by giving them true freedom?
So Jesus kept the Sabbath holy, but he did give it a new meaning.
He was angry at the that prohibited the people from looking at an object the way it was.
iV. The power and authority of Jesus as leader.
Leadership scholars like to distinguish power from . They often say that the power is the leader’s ability to control others while authority is the leader to right to exercise that power.
Tony Campolo said, “the power is the ability to make do what you wish even if they themselves do not make that choice. Authority is the ability to make others do what you wish because they know what you request is reasonable and justified.”
And Jesus showed the reign of God through strong words and actions that defeated evil and liberated the people, rather than through rhetoric.
- Power of Words as leader
One of the officers sent over to arrest Jesus came back, shook his head, and said he had never seen a man speak like that. This is because he knew the of his words when Jesus spoke. Simplicity, honesty, and impact could be seen in his words. His words were direct and full of life. His words were simple enough for even children to understand, as if they were picking up rocks on the beach. However, his words also were deep and , so that the scholars may spend their life time trying to understand what they mean as if a miner digs through the land looking for coals under the ground.
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.”(Matthew 25:31) Amen !
- Balance of Authority as leader
1) Balance of .
Jesus was never influenced by pressure; he was able to set his schedule and priorities himself. He did not allow evil spirit and did not “hint” about who he was; he proclaimed. He also did not let anyone influence his next project. When disciples said “everyone wants you there,” he said, “let’s go somewhere else.” He was able to see what the biggest needs of those he met .
2) Balance of .
This emotional balance was always in Jesus, as we can see in the entire gospel. In him, we discover courage and . He was ready to die in Jerusalem; he knew what would happen to him. He showed his at the Gethsemane, sweated in prayer asking to pass this glass if wanted. He was extremely emotional, but he quietly and without hesitation headed to Jerusalem towards the .
3) Balance of ” ” and ” “
Jesus was someone who was together with people but also away from them as well. Those who sought Jesus, they were always able to approach him. But that wasn’t always the case as he spent the crowds away or spent time . He knew how to engage people.
Luke’s story tells us that Jesus spent a lot of time at dinner parties. Some had accused Jesus of being
of food and enjoying wine too much, and this was complete opposite of his cousin John who lived in the desert eating wild honey and grasshoppers.
But his openness also knew of the need to get away from the and spend time alone in a remote place. Of course he spent time alone to pray, but there was a place where he could really feel comfortable and that was the house of his friend Lazarus and his sisters Mary and Martha. Obviously, he went there often to relax and to get away from the crowds, and enjoyed the company of his friends.
Stephen Neil mentioned about the balance between Jesus among the crowds and Jesus alone. “Jesus did not compromise the need for and the need for , these two contrasting needs. He felt strongly about both needs and satisfied both needs adequately.”
Today’s man is afraid of being . Because we don’t know how to be alone, we find it difficult to approach others at times. To find the rhythm of life whether or can be the first step toward saving many diseases that are oppressing today’s society.
For Jesus, being alone also had a very proactive purpose. He did it of course to be away from people, but he also did it to be with the Father .
Luke pointed out a specific place of prayer in Jesus’ life. “one of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles (Luke 6:12-13).” This was part of his everyday life. Spiritual Leaders have to have the balance of both “Together” and “ALONE”
V. Great leader who was also a servant.
Jesus knew the price to pay as a leader and he was willing to give himself. I came not “to be served but to .”
Jesus completely changed the of power.
When Jesus walked towards the cross, he heard his disciples having an animated argument. “what were you arguing about on the road?” They kept silent, but they had argued about who was the greatest (Mark 9:34). He showed his disciples that the greatest in his mind was different from that the world considered the greatest. “if anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.” (Mark 9:37).
Jesus took on the of a servant “To be a great leader, you must first be able to follow a leader well.”(Truett Carthy). By taking on the role of a leader and showing the greatness of the very last, he turned the concept of power upside down.
In Jesus, we see a perfect balance of and servitude. After sharing a meal with his disciples, he got up, brought a towel and water basin, and washed dirty feet of his disciples. Jesus said to his disciples, “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.”(John 13:15). He was a leader of great authority, yet he was acting as if he was a for all. Strength and humbleness, it is rare that we find both of these great qualities in one man. But in Jesus, we see an abundance of both.
Washing someone else’s feet was the job of a servant; no one else did it. Therefore, we must know that this leadership as a servant was not to give up his rights as a human being.
To be a servant does not meant that we being a leader.
Therefore, whenever God calls on you, you should never avoid serving others. This is a mission that needs to be completed with the mindset to serve others.
…………….
Vi. Great Leader as shepherd – Psalm 23
‘Leadership is not about the use of , but to empower others” (Warren Bennis and Burt Naunus, Leaders: Strategies of Taking Charge, pp. 224-225).
The word “shepherd” is a very important biblical term referring to a leader who empowers ours. In the Gospel, Jesus refers himself to a “good shepherd”,
Jesus shared everything , his life, goal, dream, time, vision, learning, future, power, even pains with his disciples . First, let’s sharing of lie.
- Sharing of .
Jesus’ training of shepherds were not about developing leadership with a set regimen, but through sharing his life with them.
- Sharing together
“Follow me and I’ll make you fishers of men.” This is the vision that Jesus wanted to share with those who were with him.
- Sharing spent together
Jesus included his disciples in his daily life and spent time with them. Jean Monet, the leader of EU said, ‘nothing is possible without man and nothing lasts long without a system.”
To Jesus, the system was not just a system, but a , in other words, a community. And this community was very important to him. To be with Jesus means to his purpose, dream, and ultimately his pain.
- Sharing of together
Jesus taught, explained, and trained his disciples. The relationship between leader and education is, “the most prevalent characteristic of a leader is to learn together with the from the environment; in other words, it is an ability to be taught.” (James MacGregor Burns)
“Leader continues to learn; learning is an fuel for leaders.” (Bennis and Nanus, Leadership, p. 188)
Was Jesus the same way? It sounds like a heretical question, but the writers of the bible clearly said, “Jesus grew in wisdom and stature”(Luke 2:52). The Book of Hebrews also said, “although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered.” (Hebrews 5:8).
- Sharing of .
“Go! ! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves” (Luke 10:3)
Warren Benniss said, “to many, failure means the end; however, for the successful, failure means start and the stepping stone for .”
When Peter saw Jesus walking on the water, he wanted to do the same. Jesus told him to come to him, but Peter fell into the water as he became scared. Jesus pulled him out of the water and rebuked him, “you man of little faith! Why did you doubt?” His rebuke was not to intimidate him, but to demand more from him. Peter’s faith would not have grown without the lessons he learned from his taking and failures.
- Sharing of together
Jesus saw what was to come to him and prepared his disciples. You will be able to study by your-self with scripture
Mark 13:8-9
Mark 13:9-11, 13
- Sharing of .
The last stage of Jesus’ leadership training was to give resources and responsibilities to his followers so that they could do the work. He made the same promise he made at the last supper after he was resurrected. He came to those in the same room, showed them his hands and feet, and told them that he was sending them out to the world as Father had sent him to the world. Then he told them to receive the holy spirit (John 20:22).
Now the relationship between Jesus and his disciples became that of , rather than a teacher-student relationship. Not only he was not hesitant to retreat, he himself gave his works to their hands. They were not orphans any more as he would be with them, only not visible. So we are now in the power of Holy spirit. Amen !
Vii. Jesus the Communicator as Leader
7 models of communication as leader
A great philosopher Aristotle explained a permanent principle of effective persuasion in rhetoric. He taught how important it is to combine (the essence of the message), ethos (trustworthiness of the one delivering the message) and (pleading to the inner motivation of the listener). — (Aristotle, The Rhetoric, Trans. Hugh Lawson-Tancred-London: Penguin Books, 1990).
Logos, Ethos, Pathos, they are very important in communication.
we can learn from Jesus about communication as leader
- The clarity of words come from clarity of .
Know where you are heading. Some speakers make us think a shooter without a . They speak without purpose, but Jesus was not like that. He knew from the start why he came and his speeches reflect this truth.
Everything Jesus did and said are related to his cross and resurrection. Jesus shows us that the clarity of words come from clarity of purpose.
- Know the and of words
“The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life” (John 6:63)
“My teaching is not my own. It comes from Him who sent me. If anyone chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. He who speaks on his own does so to gain honor for himself, but he who speaks for the honor of the one who sent him is a man of truth. There is nothing false about him” (John 7:15-18)
“He who belongs to God hears what God says.” (John 8:47)
- Know the of words
Words live , therefore must be handled with care. Words have power and this power is greater than what we imagine when we use them carelessly.
Jesus considered words as reflection of our character. “for out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” (Matthew 12″34).
Just as we know what kind of tree it is by looking at its fruits, evil words reflect evil and good words reflect good heart. Jesus said, “the men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:36-37). Our words are reflection of our .
- Know your .
Jesus knew people different, so answered to Nicodemus “unless he is born again”(John 3:3) , to Samaritan women when he met a Samaritan woman at the well, he promised to give her a . (John 4:10). Wealthy young man – ´When a wealthy young man came to him and asked how he would be able to receive , Jesus did not speak of living water to him. He said to sell everything he has, believes in, and depend on, and give it to the poor. Then follow him. (Mark 10:17-23).
Zacchaeus, a short man who climbed a tree to see Jesus, was also a rich man. His greed for money obviously came from his inferiority complex. Therefore, Jesus did not tell Zacchaeus to sell . he has; instead, he went into the house of Zacchaeus.
Born again, living water, eternal life, and salvation; these are the message that Jesus wanted people to understand.
- Learn the of words
The common element in his conversations is story, metaphors, and questions. His metaphors were small stories, closely related to his great philosophy. His metaphors were abundant, diverse, and specific. Everyday life can become the storage of lessons. Jesus also used to know what the listeners were thinking. When you study the book of Mark, you can see that Jesus asked a lot of questions before explaining things to his audiences. We must learn how to speak like Jesus.
- Know .
His acute awareness of the right time is shown throughout the story of Jesus. There was a time when he was staying in Galilee instead of to Jerusalem. One of his brothers who did not believe in him yet urged him to go to Jerusalem during the holidays, but Jesus said, “The right time for me has not yet come I am not yet going up to this Feast.”(John 7:1-9)
But after a while, Jesus said to his followers, “the hour has come for the son of man to be glorified. It was for this very reason I came to this hour.” (John 12:23, 27).
- Get to the .
When Satan tempted Jesus at the desert, his response to each of his attacks was unbelievably . He did not try to lecture him or engage him to an argument, he just quoted the bibles that got right to the point of each temptation. “Man does not live on bread alone” “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” “Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.” (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10).
You can read the below material that I mentioned by your self. And then Let’s go to topic of Jesus struggle as leader.
Look at the time when the young rich man came to Jesus looking for eternal life. He did not praise him for searching for eternal life, but he revealed his obvious weaknesses and said, “one thing you lack, go sell everything you have and give it to the poor.” (Mark 10:17-20).
The most obvious example would be his meeting with the leader of that society, Nicodemus.
Nicodemus came to Jesus and tried to flatter him. “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God.” Jesus suddenly said, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again” (John 3:2-3). This sounds like such a crazy answer to what Nicodemus said that it almost makes me laugh. But Jesus knew exactly where Nicodemus was coming from.
The Gospel describes Jesus in diverse and in a wide variety of situations. In this situation, Jesus showed an amazing ability to speak in terms that could easily be understood by the audience. He was extremely harsh to the cold and insensitive religious leaders, and he was strong but gentle to the woman caught in adultery. He taught his disciples in simple and direct ways but he also intentionally used metaphors to confuse the masses. In short times, we see that he drew out the thoughts Peter never had been able to express and then he called him Satan.
Jesus also showed his ability as a charismatic and adept speaker. Sometimes, he spoke as a rabbi, and sometimes as a great teacher who explained his philosophy to the crowds sitting at his feet. When he argued against his enemies, he led their attacks to go sideways like experienced advocates and attacked them in a way they could never reciprocate. Sometimes, he drew out inner most thoughts and demands from those who sought his advice like a great counselor or doctor. He became a great listener during those encounters. When we look at the time when Jesus stopped at the well and spoke with a Samaritan woman, we see that the women spoke just as much as Jesus did. He talked like an old friend at dinner parties, but he became extremely upset and spoke like a prophet to those who could not answer to the demands of God. He cried before Jerusalem and said, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, But you were not willing.” (Matthew 23:37).
John who was the one of the closest friends of Jesus said in the introduction of the book of John looking back at the times he spent together with Jesus, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The World became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:1, 14).
Viii. Jesus Struggles as leader
“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.”
“Just as rain and wind make mountains, problems make leaders” (Warren Benniss).
To lead is to . In a world like today’s, in a history that we know, to choose the path of a leader is to choose a path of struggle and conflicts. Why is that? It is very simple. Leadership always brings about , and it always requires bringing people from one place to the next, from the old way to the new way, and from the of the past to the danger of the future.
Leadership always is about change, and change is always bound to bring criticism, therefore, leaders must anticipate opposition as well as followers. John W Gardner says, “We can reasonably claim that a willing participation into a battle when required is an absolutely necessary component of a leadership.” (The Tasks of Leadership Papers 2, p. 16)
Let’s think about conflict.
- Distinguishing different conflicts
Jesus felt great pain as he was swept into a great conflict, but he was uniquely free from internal conflicts. Because there was no internal conflict, he was able to respond to different situations of conflict creatively, flexibly, and freely.
In the Gospels, we see that there are four parties against which Jesus waged a war. They were, Satan, religious leaders, his followers, gentiles or spectators. In all four conflicts, his weapons were grace and truth. However, he used these weapons a little differently based on the characteristics of each conflict, and we can categorize these conflicts into:
1). Conflict(Mark 1:21-26, 9:14-29). (Mark 8:32-33).
2). Conflict with (Mark 2:16). (Mark 3:22)
3). Conflict
4). conflict (Matthew 13:54-55).
- Spiritual of Leaders
- Leader’s ability and .
“….Is it right to pay taxes or not? Should we pay or shouldn’t we?” (Mark 12:14-25). His answer to this question is a brilliant example of his ability and awareness;
- Knowing their .
“Jesus knew their hypocy” (Mark 12:15)
- Bad intention and being aware of danger.
“Why are you trying to trap me?” (Mark 12:15)
- the direction of attack
He told them to bring him a coin and asked them questions to divert the attack. “Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?” To answer questions by questions was a method he used often.
- Seeing the of the problem
When they told him the portrait was Caesar’s, Jesus answered, “give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”(Mark 12:17). He was able to bring out the fundamental point of the problem. The problem was not whether to pay taxes or not, but rather where you remain loyal to.
- Questioning the conscience of the .
When they deserted him and John the Baptist, he was going back to the question of whether they were obeying to the authority of God or not. Mark pointed out that the enemies of Jesus were surprised and did not dare to question him any further (Mark 12:34).
In summary, Jesus handled the conflicts he could not avoid by confronting them and turning them into his own opportunities. His strategy was to confront them at the and to retreat at the right time.
- Confront conflicts with grace and truth
Conflicts are difficult, however, God is more interested in our character than in our safety.
After difficult times, after being scarred by conflicts, we can make the same confession as J Wallace
Hamilton made: “I am sure that most of us, when we look back, acknowledge that whatever character
we have formed comes from conflicts. Conflicts happen to us through the strengths hidden deep inside
of us. These strengths lie so deep inside of us that we did not know they were working when we were
struggling with problems in our life. The weight of life makes us move forward.” (J. Wallace Hamilton,
Wirt and Beckstrom, eds. Living Questions for Christians, p. 40)
Assignment: see email sent earlier.
An appendix
- Leadership can be acquire .
Leadership is not something you are born with. The principles that become foundation of leadership can be acquired later in life . If the desire to become a leader is accompanied by these principles, nothing can stop you from becoming a leader.
Leadership is not to be discovered, but to be developed .
There are natural born leaders.
However, in order to maintain the leadership at its peak, you must develop those qualities necessary for superior leadership.
People often confuse leadership with management. Management is the process during which plans and goals of an organization are fulfilled. On the other hand, leadership must be able to provide vision and motivate people.
No one wants to be managed; they want to be led. Have you ever heard of “all world manager ?” You probably haven’t.
However, you probably have heard of an “all world leaders .” You probably have heard leaders in education, in politics, in religions, in communities, and in labor.
They are not managers; they are leaders. So It can be said:
*It is the job of a worker to know how to work.
*It is the job of a teacher to show others how to work.
*It is the job of a manager to make sure that job gets done.
*It is the job of a leader to encourage people to exceed their own expectations.
Bruce Larson points out an interesting fact about a crane of Sandhill in “Wind and Fire.”
*There are three prominent characteristics to this large bird that handles intercontinental flights:
First of all, they take turns being a leader; no one can be a leader all the time.
Second, they select a leader who can fly through strong winds.
Third, while one bird leads, the others follow by making sounds of encouragement.
All of us can become great leaders by developing our own potentials.
- Leadership is the power to influence.
Everyone has influence on others. Sociologists have claimed that even the most introvert can influence more than 10,000 people in their lifetime.
Let’s think about an example. A mother of a family can have the most influence on her children in the early hours, before school and during breakfast. The mother decides what her children will eat and wear to school. But when the school starts, the situation will change. The child who has been influenced by his mother can become a person who can influence his children. The parents can be influenced by the server telling them about the day’s specials when they get together for lunch. And when and where they have their dinners can be influenced by their individual schedules.
- Priority of a Leader
1) If there are too many priorities, you become powerless.
All great leaders learn how to say no to the second best to say yes to the best.
2) If you put too much on trivial things, you end up with a huge problem.
Robert McCain said “The reason why most important goals are not met is because people spend too much time taking care of the trivial matters.”
There was a newspaper article about 300 dead whales. These whales were chasing after a school of sardines and ended up in a small bay. Frederick Brown Harris wrote the following editorial about this incident: “A small fish led the giants of the sea to death. Whales were after small gains and ended up in a tragedy. They were using their great powers for such small gains.”
Often, we see people failing miserably for something so small.
The tragic example of that is the Eastern jumbo passenger plane that crashed into the Everglades in Florida.
It was the famous flight #401 and was on its way from New York to Miami, full with vacationers. As they approached Miami International, the gauge that tells whether landing gear is functional was not lit.
While they were checking to see if the landing gear was in fact malfunctioning or it was just the light bulb issue, they were flying over the Everglades.
The pilot discovered that it was the light bulb issue and tried to replace it. It wouldn’t budge.
So the co-pilot sitting next to him got in the act and while they were wrestling with the light bulb, they didn’t realize that the plane was losing altitude.
Ultimately, the plane crashed into the wetlands, and tens of people died because of it.
While the veteran pilots were tinkering with a $0.75 light bulb, the plane crashed along with its passengers.
3) Schedule and urgency allows priorities.
- A leader’s attempt for positive changes
1) a problematic leader ?
* superficial understanding of the people
* lack of imagination
* personal problems
* passing the buck
* complacency
* not organized
* quick tempered
* afraid to take risks
* anxious and defensive
* not flexible
* not able to cooperate
* dislikes changes
A religious leader of a middle eastern mysticism made the following confession:
“In my younger days, I was a revolt and my prayer to you was also revolutionary. ‘Please give me the power to change the world!’As I am getting older, I realized that I spent half of my life without being able to change a single person.
So I changed my prayer.
‘Lord, if you allow me the grace to change those around me, my family and my friends, I will be satisfied.’As I become an old man and realize that I am nearing the end of my life, I realize how foolish I have been. So my only prayer is this:
‘Lord, please allow me the grace to change myself.’ If I prayed like this from the start, I wouldn’t have wasted my life and would have been able to change the lives of many.’
2). leader leading the change
- When leaders change, the organization changes
- Change means growth
- Unless you change, you can’t expect growth
3). History to refuse changes
For example, people completely trusted the words of Aristotle who said, “the heavier the object, the faster it falls to the ground.” Aristotle was considered the greatest think of all time and it was unimaginable that he would be wrong.
So they needed one brave man, a man brave enough to conduct an experiment to see if a heavier objects falls faster than a lighter object.
But nearly 2000 years after Aristotle died, not a single person conducted that experiment.
In 1589, Galileo gathered scholars underneath the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Then he climbed to the top of the tower and dropped a 1-lb object and a 10-lb object.
What do you think happened?
Two objects fell to the ground at the same time. But the scholars trusted Aristotle’s theory so much so that they denied this fact even though they saw it with their own eyes. They still claimed Aristotle was right.
Galileo proved the theory of Corpenicus that “the earth is not the center of the universe; rather the earth and planets are circling around the sun” with a binocular he developed. As a result, he was arrested and spent the rest of his life on house arrest for trying to change the people’s beliefs.
4). Why do people resist to change ?
- because others lead the changes
- because their routine gets interrupted
- because of their fear of the unknown
d because of their pessimism
e because they lack respect for their leaders
f because they demand commitment
5). Changes will take place
Our question should not be “should we change?” We must question “when and how will we change?” To keep up with the pace of change and to apply those changes within the organization is the never-ending challenge to a leader.
For example, leaders must know about the following information that is summarized in the thesis of Dr. Richard Caldwell.
He compared a few changes during the 1950s and those during the 1990s to 2000s:
The 1950s and the 1990s to 2000s)
Savings / Consumption
Delayed Satisfaction / Immediate Satisfaction
Clarify / Ambiguity
Investment / Speculation
Harmony with neighbors / Focus on individual life
middle class / low class
export / import
Common Good / Individual well being
Mother & Father / Nanny & Daycare
Press Conference / Paparazzi
Accomplishment / Publicity
Knowledge / Secret
Manufacturing / SectorService Sector
Duty / Divorce
“We” / “I”
- Not all changes are constructive, but without changes, there is no development
- It is not too late to change
Max Depree said, “As long as we remain as we are, we must remember that we can never become the person we want to be.” If you give up changing, there is nothing more to expect out of your life.
When you think of the name “Alfred Nobel”, what pops into your head? It may be Nobel Peace Prize, but this is just the second phase of Alfred Nobel’s life. Alfred Nobel was a Swedish chemist who accumulated a tremendous wealth by developing dynamites and weapons used in wars. When his brother died, one newspaper printed an obituary of Nobel by mistake. The newspaper obituary stated that Nobel was a man who made a fortune through countless deaths.” Nobel was shocked to hear this and decided to devote his fortune to commemorate the accomplishments that benefit the human kind. Nobel was given a chance to look back at his life that not too many people have and lived a life that changed the people’s impression of him.
- Leader’s Problem Solving
1) The size of a man is more important than the size of a problem.
2) You must change the perspective rather than the problem
3) My problem is not really my problem.
The real problem is making trivial problems real problems by responding to them in an undesirable way. The important thing is not what happened to me, but what I do to them.
Franklin Roosevelt, Helen Keller, Winston Churchill, Albert Einstein, Mahatma Gandhi, are just a few of the 300 most successful people in history, and ¼ of them were either handicapped, deaf, etc.
The other ¾ were either poor or from broken families.
Too many are intimated by the problems. Then how could the successful overcome these problems?
They refuse to make excuses for their failures. They used their handicaps as the stepping stone for success. They knew that they could not change their circumstances, but they knew they had a choice in how they react.
A church choir decided to do a fundraising car wash to go to a competition.
They worked without a break in the morning. But it started raining in the afternoon. No one came to the car wash. One member of the choir put up this poster: “Car Wash!! (then she put an arrow pointing up at the sky) and God will rinse it for you!!”
LA Times printed the following satires “If you are smiling every time something goes wrong, you are either an idiot or a car repair technician.” You want to add this, “or you are a leader.’The problem may stop you for a while, but you are the only one who can stop that problem permanently.
4) A leader is judged by the size of the problems he solves.
Based on the size of a man, the problem may appear larger or smaller.
5) A leader’s attitude
G.W. Target said the following about the two men in the same hospital room in an essay called “Window.”
They both had serious conditions. Entertainment, such as television, radio, or books was not allowed to them, but their friendship grew through several months of conversation. They talked about everything they had been interested in, not only their private life, but about their families, their work, vacations, etc.
They were confined to their beds, but one had his bed near the windows. He had to sit up on his bed for an hour a day for treatment. For that one hour, he described what he saw through the window to a friend next to him.
He described in great detail about the outside world, with lakes, parks, and interesting people.
Soon, hearing him about the outside world became a source of strength for this guy. One day, he also was listening to his friend telling him about the outside world. All of a sudden, he began to feel that it was unfair that his friend was able to see the outside world that he could not see.
He was ashamed of himself for thinking this way and despite that, he kept thinking about that for a long time and he could not shake the thought. This started hurting his health and he became worse as his complaint grew.
One day, the friend sitting next to the window woke up, coughing up a storm. He often had difficulties breathing. Even though the guy knew that his friend was fighting for his life right next to him, he did nothing but staring at the ceiling.
The next morning, the friend died. A few days later, this guy asked the nurse to move him to the bed next to the window. His request was granted right away. He wanted to see the outside world, so he struggled to sit up on his bed. But there was nothing but a wall. It was a wall without any writings or pictures. “There was nothing but the wall on the other side of that window.” This is a story that tells a meaningful story about a man’s attitudes1.
Beware of those who have an attitude of know-it-all. They not only have blind spots, but they also refuse changes.