Dear Leader,
I trust this meets you in pursuit of wisdom.
One of the critical things I have learnt about leadership is that leaders often face choices that affect not only their lives but the lives of many others. More critical is that many of those decisions they have to make have no clear right or wrong answers and they do not always appear black or white but grey.
So, how does a leader make good decisions in those grey areas?
I have two ideas I want to share in this letter.
- In leadership and decision, you will never get it wrong if you put others first. People all over the world are naturally selfish, seeking their own interest before others. Leaders have to be different. Putting “others” first describes some persons other than you, the person you most likely will disagree with. The person who even will most likely criticise your decisions.
In making tough decisions as a leader, you must choose what is best for others, not what appeals to your own taste. This is what really separates true leaders from others because this is an impossible thing for selfish people and there is no room for selfishness in leadership. Leadership is not for selfish people. It is for selfless people.
So when next you find yourself in a position to make tough decisions, ask yourself: Who will benefit most from this decision, me or others? - This one is very personal to me but would be of value to you.
I live my life with a sense of purpose and I believe my ultimate purpose for being on the earth is to please God and bring people closer to the person of Christ. So, Christ – the person and the principles – is at the center of my life.
With that in mind, when I am in a position to make a tough decision as a leader, especially in grey areas, I am careful that the decision glorifies God, not someone else.
The question I ask is: will this decision please God and fulfill his purposes?
As you journey through life, leadership will not always be black and white. It needs you to make tough decisions but if your desire is always to please God and prioritise other people, you will hardly get it wrong.
These are my leadership contemplations this week.
I’ve learnt that the least person in the order of relevance is ME. It is God FIRST, People NEXT. I am only a channel as a leader. This is the kind of leadership I believe in.
Leaders are servants.
Think about these!
I am rooting for you,
The Great Owete