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Can you say W H I R L W I N D?

And although a few days have past, I would be remiss if I didn’t take a moment to share my thoughts and highlights from Catalyst.

I found myself being very nostalgic about this event this year.  Catalyst was a significant influence in my leadership development.  I was 24 years old the first time I attended Catalyst, and while I didn’t view myself as a leader, it was something that I was aspiring to with everything in me.  10 years later I couldn’t help but walk the corridors of the arena and look at the young, bright-eyed, twenty-somethings and see myself in them.

That’s why I’m so thankful for Catalyst!  It’s simply unbelievable the number of leaders this organization has invested in, inspired and influenced.  Literally hundreds of thousands of leaders!  That kind of influence is simply unbelievable.

Catalyst team – thank you for leading us so well.  I’m so grateful!

Here are a few of the highlights for me this year at Catalyst Atlanta:

• Attending the labs on Wednesday.  I love the space for conversation and connection that the smaller environment of the labs creates.
• Listening to my pastor and my boss speak at the labs.  So proud of you, Pete!
• Worship – always love the worship
• Andy Stanley‘s opening session about the tensions leaders face.  He challenged us to take some time to answer the question: “What do you want to see God do in your life 10 years from now?”
• Scott Harrison‘s story.  Scott is the founder of Charity Water.  Check out this organization.  Scott’s story is fascinating!
• Hosting the Cultivate Her lunch for women leaders.  This was a partnership with Leading & Loving It and Mercy Ministries.  Big thanks to the Mercy Ministries team for sponsoring over 120 women to lunch on Thursday!  I’m so excited about what God is doing to stir up the gifts of women leaders in the church.
• Christine Caine on the main stage.  This is one woman that I would love to have a cup of tea with someday.  Her passion and energy is contagious!
• Meeting and talking with John Ortberg.  Such an inspiring and encouraging leader.  I’m not sure I made any sense but I was grateful for the conversation.
• Perry Noble.  Need I say more?  I don’t know anyone who can shock and inspire in the same breath!  I also loved that a large team from Newspring was there cheering him on.
• The Hospitality of the Monvee team.  I’m a fan of what these guys are doing.
• The conversations, the entertainment, the surprises… that is Catalyst!

Did you attend Catalyst this year.  If so, what did you enjoy most?

Along with the majority of the Christian universe, I am at the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta this week.  This will be my 9th time to attend Catalyst  – that just seems ridiculous.  Ridiculous because when I starting coming to this conference for “next generation leaders” I actually was a “next generation” leader.  The startling reality that I can’t quite come to grips with is that I’m really not a young leader or a next gen leader anymore, I’m a now generation leader.

And if I’m a “now generation” leader, am I really doing all that I can do to lead well?  Am I assuming the responsibilities and opportunities that God has entrusted to me?  Am I embrace my role and influence for the furtherance of His kingdom and His plans?

Am I still too caught up in learning from the elite and making all the “right” connections, that I’m missing the moments of leadership right around me?

Do I understand my calling, or rather… God’s calling on my life?

Am I embracing that passionately or do I still see myself as that young punk kid wannabe leader?

Leadership, like most of life, is a journey.  I’m beginning to discover that I won’t one day wake up a great leader.  I just have to lead in the moments and opportunities that I have.

I won’t know it all or have it all figured out.  In fact, it’s probably better that I don’t assume that I have it all together.

I just need to lead and do the things that God has placed upon my heart, the passions He’s burning within me and do that with the humility and grace that comes with knowing that my life is not my own.

That’s what Catalyst has me pondering already this week.

Are you attending Catalyst?  How is it challenging your thinking?

Values are kind of funny things because they exist whether you have defined them in writing or not.  They are simply things that individuals and groups of people begin to define themselves by.  Within a short time of being in someone’s home or hanging out at an office, you quickly know the values of that environment.

In turn, I think leaders lead from certain values that they esteem most.  I thought I would share mine with you and I would love to hear what values you, well… value.

Accountability – it’s critical for strong teams; be accountable up, down and throughout the organization and you’ll succeed

Communication – or as I like to say “use your blinker”; communication is a powerhouse, when you give it, you usually receive it in return; the most powerful teams communicate well

Development (of myself & others) - good leaders are constantly looking for ways to grow themselves and their teams; great leaders are relentless about developing the people they lead and creating ways to further their growth

Generosity -give, love, empower; don’t hold back; believe the best in others; live generously

Responsibility – “to whom much is given, much is required”; don’t take for granted what you’ve been blessed with; take responsibility for the blessing of influence

Now, let me clarify… I am not actually good at most of these.  In fact, I stink at many of them.  But I intentionally value them because I want to see them developed in my life and in the lives of those I lead.

How about you?  What do you value as a leader?

What’s the real difference between management and leadership?

Leadership has become such a glamorized word in our culture.  It feels so much nicer and more inspiring than the often derogatory connotation that comes with the word management.

But the longer I study great leaders, the more I’m convinced that you can’t be a great leader without being a great manager.

Sometimes I feel like today’s leaders want the glory of being known as a great leader without the hard work of management.

Great leaders are great managers.

Let’s take a minute to look at some definitions:

leadership – an act or instance of leading; guidance; direction

to lead:

• to go before or with to show the way; conduct or escort
• to conduct by holding and guiding
• to influence or induce; cause
• to guide in direction, course, action, opinion, etc.
• to command or direct (an army or other large organization)
• to go at the head of or in advance of (a procession, list, body, etc.)

• a person who has control or direction of an institution, business, etc., or of a part, division, or phase of it.
• a person who controls and manipulates resources and expenditures, as of a household.

(By the way, it’s not too late to register – and it’s FREE!  Jump over here to get yourself signed up and then tune in with us at 10:30 CST.  Hint: you’ll want to tune in on time to catch me.)

Today at The NINES I’m going to be sharing my thoughts on what I believe is foundational to being a great leader.  It’s what I call “Leading in Shades of Grey”.

Here’s just a snippet of what I’ll be sharing today…

Leadership is messy.

I think one of the most challenging things about leadership is that most times things are not clearly black and white… answers are not always obvious… making decisions is not easy.

And you know what?  I like that.

I like the mess because it’s what leadership is all about.

If things were always black & white, leadership would be easy and… dare I say, perhaps not even necessary.

Leadership is grey… sometimes many shades of grey.

Good leaders lead through the grey. They don’t get lost in it.  They don’t get bogged down by it.  They push through it to find clarity.

Good leaders give hope to a grey existence. They offer hope through grey circumstances.  They are aware of how unsettling greyness is to the team and they continue to motivate and encourage them through the process.

Deciphering the grey is not an exact science.  It’s as easy to get wrong as it is to get right… and you’re not always going to get it right.  It takes guts, courage, intuition, discernment, and prayer.  It takes energy, patience, hope and determination.  Leaders step up to help make decisions and to guide the way, especially when things are messy…

…and grey.

Are you facing some grey areas in your leadership?  What can you do to push through the grey?

By the way… will you be joining us today for The NINES?

“Leadership is influence – nothing more nothing less.” John C. Maxwell

But is influence always leadership?

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

That discussion got me processing another side of this issue…

What happens when you are trying to lead someone who is floundering in their leadership?

And if everyone flounders from time to time (which I believe they do), as a leader of leaders you are going to find yourself leading a floundering leader at some point.

And here’s my concern… I think sometimes we give up on floundering leaders too soon.  We think they just can’t cut it.  We think the job’s outgrown them.  We point out everything that is wrong and rationalize why they should have handled it differently.

As leaders of leaders, this is where it gets really tricky.  How do you know if someone is really failing or just floundering?  Floundering can look an awful lot like failing for a season.

Before you give up on someone too quickly, let me challenge you to consider a few things:

• What can you own?
• Where could you have provided better direction?
• Have you been too controlling or too hands off?
• Have you, in your busyness, been ignoring the warning signs that this leader was struggling?
• Is there something that you can do to lead them better?
• Do you understand what they need to succeed?
• Are they willing to try?
• Are you engaging the tough conversations and providing them candid, considerate, honest feedback?
• Does this leader feel safe being vulnerable with you about what they are struggling with?

Before you give up, be sure you’ve done your part.  You set the tone and create the culture that allows leaders to thrive or flounder.  Do your best to give them every opportunity to thrive!

Have you ever given up on someone too quickly?

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Philippians 2:3

Another GREAT “grey” leadership issue is finding the balance between ambition and self-promotion, especially as church leaders.

In our ambition we pursue the dreams that God has laid on our hearts.  I believe that God expects action, intention and drive from us.  He doesn’t want us to be passive and lazy.  He’s chosen us for the greatest calling we could ever have – to make His name known in all the world.

However, when does our ambition cross the line and become self-promotion?

When does chasing our God-given dreams and passion become a chance to make our name known rather than His name known?

Do you know when you’ve become more concerned about others knowing you rather than others knowing Him?

That line gets really fuzzy.  Most times we don’t know we’ve crossed it until well after we have and we have trouble looking back and finding the step that took us over the edge.

Do you ever wrestle with this?

If so, how do you keep yourself in check?  Who holds you accountable?  Who speaks truth into your life?

For where you have envy and selfish ambition, three you find disorder and every evil practice.  James 3:16

I wasn’t needed today.

3000 +  attendees

25 staff

Hundreds of volunteers

Baptism at one campus

Communion at the others

And I wasn’t needed.

I wasn’t needed to:

• Solve a problem
• React to a crisis
• Identify something that was missed
• Be worship assistant
• Substitute for a campus pastor

Nope.  Everyone was there playing their part and I wasn’t needed… actually, I wasn’t needed for the obvious or urgent.

I WAS needed though, for what I really ought to be doing most days.  I was needed to:

• Coach/encourage our staff and volunteers
• Praise what went well
• See my team in action and celebrate their unique contribution
• Pray for those attending and ask God to meet them today
• Encourage someone who had a tough week

I was needed today for what doesn’t come easy.

It wasn’t to be in the spotlight.  It wasn’t to be the hero.

It was to let my team play those roles.  It was to celebrate their victories and to see them succeed.

I hope I did my job today.