I spent today First Alliance Church participating the 2008 Leadership Summit (beamed in via satellite). It was a really worthwhile first day, and if you’re a leader in any capacity, my notes from today may help you understand new facets to leadership. These notes can’t capture the vibrancy of the event, so if these notes interest you, I’d encourage you to check it out for next year – it’s broadcast to 117 churches world-wide. This is my second time attending this event, and every year I leave it feeling recharged.
These notes are my take-away from each of the speakers, not necessarily my own thoughts – though I can’t think of anything that I disagreed with.
The High Drama of Decision Making – Bill Hybles
- Leaderships’ highest usage is the furthering of God’s kingdom.
- Leadership is all about making decisions, and some decisions have very high stakes
- Leaders need a decision-making process that they implement whenever it’s time to make a decision
- Christian leaders should look to the bible first and foremost as a guideline for decision making
- What would smart advisors suggest I do? Proverbs 11:14: “In the abundance of counsellors there is much wisdom.” Advice from people will often conflict though – as a leader you must sort through the advice
- P/G/E/ Principle: Pain, Gain, Experience. What kind of pain have your past decisions caused? What sorts of gains have your past decisions resulted in? How has the experience of the results of your decisions impact you?
- Is there a prompting of the Holy Spirit in your decision making process?
- When you’re heading in the right direction, there will be an exhilaration of spirit
- Sometimes Hybles will make a “trial decision” – he tests out how the decision feels
- Leaders have to take responsibility for their decisions. If the decision turns out well, you thank God, your advisors, everyone around you. If the decision turns our poorly, you don’t blame anyone. You bear the consequences, you don’t point fingers, you admit that you got it wrong
- Taking responsibility for our decisions keeps the sharp edge on our learning process as leaders
- Some leader compress the above decision making processes into micro-sized bits of wisdom, a self-created proverb
- Abraham Lincoln: “The best way to destroy my enemy is to turn him into my friend.” The Christian application of this axiom is to build bridges with those who have wronged you
- Bob Galvin, Motorola Corp: “Create motion for motion’s sake”. Action is better than inaction. When people are moving, they often move onto a better place
- Colin Powell and the Powell Principles: “Check your ego at the door.” “Promote a clash of ideas.” “Reward your best performers, get rid of non-performers.”
- As a leader, do I reflect often enough about my own leadership and my leadership problems such that I have my own leadership axioms?
- Bill Hybles: “Vision leads.” “All I have to do is get the right people around the table.” “Facts are your friends.”
- Willow Creek did a survey called REVEAL that allows them to learn facts about their congregation. These facts helped them shape their decision making process
- Being misunderstood is sometimes the price of being a leader
- Bill Hybles Axiom: “When something feels funky, engage.” When a problem in the church is brewing, do not believe the lie that unattended problems go away
- Bill Hybles Axiom: “Leaders call fouls.” When something happens in a meeting you’re leading that crosses the line, the leader has to challenge the inappropriate behaviour. Leaders also have to call fouls on themselves and their own behaviour
- Bill Hybles Axiom: “Take a flyer.” Take a risk. Ask God to rock our world, and He will
- Bill Hybles Axiom: “This is church.” Relating to others, sharing meals together, growing together – this is church. Celebrating together, baptism, helping raise each other’s children – this is church. Comforting those who have lots, dealing with grief – this is church
- You will never know life fully until you are uncompromisingly devoted to Christ
Continue reading Willow Creek Leadership Summit 2008, Day One
