The True Essence of Leadership: Guiding, Not Controlling
Instilling Confidence and Trust for Future Generations
Control is not leadership
An excellent leadership principle is to train leaders to do the job so you do not have to control them. Control is not leadership; it may be management, but it is not leadership. If people do what you say because they have to and not necessarily because they want to, then they are living under your control, your dictatorship.
Imagine the freedom and empowerment that comes with independent leadership. What if we teach people their roles and responsibilities and give them all the teaching training and authority to take the initiative and act independently?
Jesus took twelve ordinary men, taught them, and led them to extraordinary heights. They learned how to do the ministry. He informed them about why and what they should do, but they carried out the tasks with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Who are they serving?
Let those you lead think, learn, and grow. Encourage honest and open communication. Give up the idea of so much external control. If you don't teach those you lead well, they won't be able to make the right decisions.
One of the most important things lacking in much of Christian leadership is an understanding that even if I am in a leadership role, my brother or sister serves Christ and not me. Why the desire for so much control?
Encourage your people to think critically, solve problems independently, and reduce the need to control them. For instance, when faced with a challenge, instead of providing a solution, ask them how they would approach it. This will stimulate their problem-solving skills and foster independence.
Teach them to fish. Don't just give them a fish. Teach them to lead, not just follow. There is too much trying to get obedience rather than helping people be all God made them to be. Trust in their abilities and God's plan for them.
Instill truth. Help them learn to think Biblically and submit to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. In leadership, this means guiding your decisions and actions based on the principles of the Bible and seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit. They will become great leaders as they follow God, and you can give up so much control.
Build trust
Empower them. Teach them how to handle setbacks and disappointments. Build trust, not control.
Training cultivates self-sufficiency. Real adults want to be free to make their own decisions. Raising children constantly to obey you and never be responsible for their own choices is a sure way to destroy them and future generations. You get 18 to 20 years to train them to lead life independently. Once they have learned to work, think, learn, and grow, you allow them to move on. You trust them, and then God trusts them with their children. No parent is ever all they want to be or did as good a job as they desired, but the next generation plows ahead.
Prepare them for life, love, ministry, and all the challenges you can. Every day and every year, you should exert less control. They should take on more and more personal responsibility, but the problem is that many leaders refuse to let others step forward because they fear losing control. This will ultimately rob them of all control and even love and trust. Your role in preparing them is crucial and valued.
Quotes
"The best leader is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it."
Theodore Roosevelt
"Leadership is not about being in charge. It's about taking care of those in your charge." Simon Sinek
"The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers." - Ralph Nader
"Control is not leadership; it is a limitation on the potential of those you lead."
"True leadership is about empowering others, not dictating their actions."
"Great leaders teach others to lead, rather than enforcing obedience."