Leadership Thought: A Book That Every Believer Should Read

Dear Friends,

I love reading books and books have played a significant role in shaping my ministry.

A few years ago, I was asked to share the ten most significant books on ministry that I had read, and one of those books I included on my list was a secular book on leadership called, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership.

It's written by John Maxwell, an evangelical believer, who has written more books on leadership than anyone in the world, and while it is written in non-spiritual language, the teaching of Jesus bleeds through it's every page. Plain and simple, I believe, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership is a book that everyone should read.

But you say, "Tom, I am not a leader," but I would disagree because every living person is a leader. You are either a good leader or a bad leader, but you are a leader for leadership is nothing more and nothing less than influence, and every living person is influencing someone. The question is, are they influencing others in a positive or negative direction?

In his book John's  shares 21 leadership principles that are key to being a successful leader, and I would like to share some of his thoughts from one of his chapters he calls "The Law of Empowerment," in which he discusses how one can become an ‘empowering’ leader.

 Whether from a secular point of view or a spiritual point of view, this principle of empowerment is essential if one wants to be an influencer of people. 

As believers this is our mandate. We are called to be influencers; we are called to be salt and light as we traverse about doing kingdom business

I would like to share a few lessons from John's chapter on empowering  leaders that hopefully will be helpful as you and I seek to make a positive difference in people’s lives. 

John writes, "To lead others well, we must help them to reach their potential. That means being on their side, encouraging them, giving them power, and helping them to succeed....... Leading well is not about enriching yourself- it's about empowering others...."

"In cultures where you have to fight to make something of yourself, the assumption often is that you need to fight others to maintain your leadership. But that reflects a scarcity mind- set. The truth is that if you give some of your power away to others, there is still plenty to go around." 

"When I teach the law of empowerment, I usually ask a volunteer to come up so that I can show visually what happens when a leader tries to keep others down instead of raising them up. I ask the volunteer to stand in front of me, and I put my hands on his shoulders. Then I began pushing him down. The lower I want to push him, the more I have to bend down to do it. As I push him lower, I go lower. That's the same way it is in leadership: to keep others down, you have to go down with them. And when you do that, you lose any power to lift others up."

“Leading others well is not about enriching yourself- it's about empowering others. The empowerment leadership model shifts away from position power to people power”

“Weak leaders worry that if they help subordinates, they themselves will become dispensable. But the truth is that the only way to make yourself indispensable is to make yourself dispensable. In other words, if you are able to continually empower others and help them develop so that they become capable of taking over your job, you will become so valuable to the organization that you will become indispensable. That's a paradox of the law of empowerment......"

"The number one enemy of empowerment is the fear of losing what we have. Only secure leaders are able to give themselves away. Mark Twain once remarked that great things happen when you don't care who gets the credit. But I believe you can take that a step further. I believe the greatest things happen only when you give others the credit." 

"The truth is that empowerment is powerful- not only for the person being developed, but also for the mentor. Enlarging others makes you larger."

John's words are a powerful reminder of what I am called to do and to be as a follower of  Christ if I want to positively influence and impact others.

Jesus has equipped and empowered us to do His work in His way. He has called us to make a difference, and empowering others is part and parcel of that call. I hope you and I will do our best to fulfill it.

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom