Ministry Journey Blog

Thoughts on Ministry

11 Jun

Five key tools for leaders: Authenticity

Posted in Uncategorized on 11.06.16 by Merlyn

Leadership is tricky. Good leadership can be illusive and there are no set factors that will help someone be a great leader in all circumstances and contexts. As I think about the great leaders I have seen, worked with, read, listened to and learned from as well a handful of moments of good leadership on my part, I have noticed 5 key things all leaders have (and need). After sharing them in this post, I will write about each specifically in future posts.

The five things that I believe all leaders need are:

-Trust

-Teachability

-Self-knowledge

-Authenticity

-A Focus on Christ & Kingdom

Great leaders are authentic. Being authentic is a challenge in our culture, particularly in many faith based settings. Being authentic is different than being genuine, though that is a part of it. It also requires transparency, it is to be fully yourself, fully real. This does not mean that leaders must share all of their thoughts, feelings and every aspect of their lives. It does mean that leaders must be personal and willing to be transparent about many parts of their lives. Authenticity is required to build deep trust. It is also essential in building relationships. In order to fully lead people, they must be able to trust you and have some quality of relationship with you. Authenticity is required if you want people to follow your lead.

Leaders recognize that they cannot ask people to do, share and act in a way that they do not. Leaders also recognize that they are not a leader if they do not have followers and no one will follow someone they do not know and trust. It can be both scary and risky demonstrating the kind of transparency that is required to be truly authentic. It also takes a lot of integrity. Integrity is when your words, actions, beliefs and lifestyle are all consistent. Authenticity both builds and requires deep humility. It is often counter cultural, especially as we look at other leaders in our country and world today, but it is essential to be a healthy and effective leader.

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