Seven Keys

Posted on September 25, 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.

The following are 7 keys a leader needs to keep in mind when leading a team:

(** From Perry Noble. Perry is the Senior Pastor of NewSpring Church in South Carolina. At just nine years old, the church averages over 10,000 in their weekend services.)

#1 –

A leader can never effectively motivate using guilt

Don’t believe that if you can get someone to feel bad enough - they will do a better job. No one has ever brought about sustained change because guilt propelled them to do so. If a leader does try to motivate using guilt … they will find themselves alone - for no one likes going on a guilt trip.

#2 –

People do not respond to need – they respond to vision

When a leader talks about a need, some people may respond. BUT, when a leader casts a compelling vision about what SHOULD BE – and COULD BE – real change happens. Many times a team will drift off course – not because they are lazy or incompetent, but because they have taken their focus off the vision.

#3 –

A person cannot be held accountable for unspoken expectations

At times, leaders have a tendency to assume people can read their minds. And when this “mind reading” does not occur, they get frustrated. But a leader can not expect - what has not been clearly explained. Our job as leaders is to give clear, realistic expectations - and then resource our people so they can go out and make it happen.

#4 –

Keep short accounts

The Bible teaches we are not let the sun go down while we are angry. In other words, we should act with URGENCY when it comes to resolving conflict within a team. Unresolved conflict is like a cancer that slowly eats away at the body. It must be dealt with, or its destruction will bring about death. Many leaders run from conflict because it is uncomfortable - but either a leader will embrace a little discomfort now, or face A LOT of discomfort in the future.

#5 –

Don’t be afraid to set high standards

“One of the problems I’ve discovered when it comes to leadership in the Church is that some people are perfectly fine with setting the bar of excellence really low.” If a leader does not set high standards their followers will not feel challenged … allowing apathy and discontent to set in.

#6 –

Each team member is a human being

A leader MUST care about the people they lead (and not just the tasks they perform.) If a team member starts to feel used, and not appreciated, they will soon look to join another team.

#7 –

Ask questions

One mistake a leader can make is assuming they need to know the answer to every question that comes their way. In most cases, the wisest thing a leader can do it ask the question, “So, what do you think we should do?” Often times the person already has a good solution thought out … which will save the leader (and everyone else on the team) all kinds of time and energy. The reason for assembling a team is so that leader can harness the collective wisdom (and skills) of those on that team.

In addition, reasons a leader may not seek input from others is because they are insecure (doing so will show weakness), prideful (think they are wiser than others) or fearful (believe they will not like the answer they hear.)