“If I were in charge, I would do it differently. I would ___________________”
This is a well-meaning phrase I’ve heard hundreds of times with countless variations.
But now as a coach to leaders, I often hear:
“I am in charge, and I don’t know what to do.”
The chair you sit in makes a big difference.
All leaders face moments of uncertainty that’s part of leading people where you’ve not led before.
A common misconception about senior leadership is that the higher you rise in the organization, the more authority and freedom you have to follow your dream and lead your vision.
In fact, the opposite is true, the higher you rise in any organization, the more you give up your rights and the fewer options you have. You sit in the chair you do to serve others.
Further, the higher you rise in responsibility and authority, the more people you report to, not less. It may not be in a formal reporting structure, but you are responsible to them nonetheless.
Whether in business or the church, there is a long list of people who senior leaders answer to from stakeholders to the board of directors.
It’s ideal to understand senior level leadership before you step into it, (know what you are getting into) but more often it’s learned from mistakes, forged by failure, and strengthened by personal resilience.
It’s difficult to communicate the nuances of leadership at that level, (responsibility, pressure and decision-making) but what can be described with clarity are the unique skills and abilities that are required.
Some of the six skills I’ve listed may seem like any leadership role would need them, and to a degree its true. But for a seat on the lead team, these skills are practiced at a higher level. They carry more pressure, greater responsibility, and weightier decisions at a macro level perspective of the organization.
The critical (and encouraging) factor is that because they are skills, they can be learned. And because they can be learned, you can improve in any or all that you lean into and practice.
6 critical skills to lead at the exec level:
1) Translate vision into strategy.
A clear and compelling vision does not come easy. The process begins on our knees, gains conviction through burden, gains traction through artful and sincere communication, and proves viable through results.
It’s not enough to dream a dream. The ability to translate vision into a workable strategy is a non-negotiable skill for any successful organization.
This begins with the ability to select, trust, develop and work with a leadership team. I’ve never met a senior leader who can do this by his or herself.
If you can do it yourself, your vision is too small.
A strategy is a clear and concise plan of believable, actionable and measurable steps, that if executed well, result in the accomplishment of the vision.
This is not a simple endeavor, but doable at any size of organization with the right exec leaders.
2) Communicate faith and hope.
The skill to communicate what you believe at a heart level is a must. Further, it needs to become natural to you. It can begin as a skill to practice, but over time, with repetition, it becomes second nature.
Your faith in a person’s ability to become their best self, according to God’s design, often exceeds the person’s faith in him or herself. Your ability to communicate the hope of a better future for a large department, campus or the entire church is vital.
Faith and hope also include the idea of communicating calm in a storm and a positive outcome.
The key is that faith and hope must be sincere. As a senior leader, it doesn’t work to mechanically craft and communicate the next vision. You must own it, internalize it and believe it at a soul level.
Faith and hope as a leader are based on your personal walk with God. You have faith and believe, but only God has the power to transform lives.
3) Raise up, develop and empower capable leaders.
If your vision is big enough and bold enough that you can’t do it yourself and can’t do it without God, you will always need more and better leaders.
Entire books are written on this topic, but for this post, it’s important to acknowledge the non-negotiable and never-ending need for more and better leaders both on staff and among the volunteer teams within your congregation.
With staff and volunteers, it includes the ability to identify, connect with, encourage, inspire, develop and empower others to lead. And the larger the church the more this must be done through layers.
It is also necessary to let go of key responsibilities and trust others to carry them well, and in a manner that is clearly aligned with the vision of the church. The inability to trust and let go so others can lead derails your church’s ability to keep reaching more people for Jesus.
Amplified Leadership, a book I’ve written, will be very helpful to you in the process of developing more leaders.
4) Demonstrate self-leadership and cultivate spiritual vitality.
If you are or desire to be a senior leader in a local church, self-led spiritual growth toward maturity is a must.
Your first responsibility as a spiritual leader is to pursue God. The aim:
- Connect with His heart
- Learn His voice
- Trust His heart
- Follow His lead
The strongest leaders are those who are quick to admit their flaws and weaknesses. They acknowledge their desperate need for God’s wisdom, guidance and spiritual power.
The good news is that self-awareness and personal security help us get honest with God about who we are and how much we need Him.
Good leaders have good mentors and coaches, but self-leadership is required for discipline and consistency.
Those you lead depend on your authentic and growing walk with God.
5) Solve problems and make difficult decisions at intricate levels.
The weighty and more complex, (often organization-wide), problems to solve are multi-dimensional, grey rather than black or white, and do not present a clear or obvious answer.
In fact, they often present multiple options of which others you serve will likely have strong and differing opinions.
Sometimes senior leadership can seem more like a dance than a clear direction. It’s more art than science and requires intuition, discernment and judgment calls.
There are times you must choose from two less than ideal options. Another way to see it is no matter how good the decision, there’s a group who will not be happy.
The ability to make a difficult decision when you will disappoint people in the process is an essential skill for any executive leader.
If you make a decision and no one objects, would do it differently, or gets upset, you just made a decision that didn’t matter.
If you prefer a more clear-cut role, senior leadership may not be your cup of tea.
This isn’t meant to be discouraging, it is reality. Effective lead teams embrace this as part of the territory.
6) Take risks and lead change.
There is no escaping risk, and change is required if you desire progress.
The risks you take are not always public or grand such as initiating a building project or raising millions of dollars. It might be something private like a confrontational conversation where the outcome has a significant impact on both you and the church.
The process of change never ends. Next to momentum, change is something senior / executive leaders think about on a consistent basis.
Comfort is the enemy of progress in healthy organizations. Change is disruptive but necessary. Effective change is not merely doing something different; it is doing something better.
The key is to stay in front, anticipate the needs, and strategically craft the changes for the good of the church.
What change do you need to lead?
What risk do you need to take?
Which of the six skills do you need improvement?
I trust this post is helpful to you!
