Kingfisher Leadership News May 2018

Kingfisher Leadership

1st May 2018

Kingfisher Leadership news Longevity in leadership

Recognising the ‘quitting points’ of leadership The leadership journey contains many points along the way when the temptation is to just give up and either move to another ministry, or give up leading altogether.

Longevity in leadership involves recognising and navigating these quitting points:

Longevity in leadership

Every leader has their quitting points - your survival as a leader depends on how you handle them.

BURNOUT. Many leaders lead unbalanced lives where stress, tiredness and other negative influences just build up to the point where burnout occurs.

Burnout more often happens as a result of success in ministry than failure - take Elijah, for example:

“I have had enough, Lord. Take my life , for I am no better than my ancestors.” (1 Kings 19:4) UNRESOLVED ISSUES. Leaders cannot afford to have ‘meltdowns’, or to react too strongly to the unreasonable behaviour of those they lead. Consequently, issues often don’t get dealt with in a healthy way, they get buried and fester away inside.

Eventually, they rob the leader of all joy and energy. Take Job for example:

“Having started the ball rolling so enthusiastically, you should carry this project through to completion just as gladly, giving whatever you can out of whatever you have. Let your enthusiastic idea at the start be equalled by your realistic action now.”

(2 Corinthians 8:11) How does a leader last? How does ‘starting the ball rolling so enthusiastically’ turn into ‘realistic action’ in the present and, ultimately, the staying power to carry the project through to completion?

Recognise - your ministry will change and so must you. In order for the ministry to flourish and grow, you the leader must be committed to personal growth and development. The skills needed now are different to the skills needed a year ago. The group or ministry will not grow beyond the leader’s willingness to grow. Leaders need to commit to being a door, not a lid!

Your ministry will change. but your vision and values should stay the same. Leaders that have longevity recognise the difference between that which must change and that which should never change.

Recognise and develop strategies to avoid the ‘quitting points’ highlighted opposite. Longevity in leadership comes 1

Kingfisher Leadership

“At last Job spoke, and he cursed the day of his birth. He said:Let the day of my birth be erased, and the night I was conceived. Let that day be turned to darkness.Let it be lost even to God on high,and let no light shine on it.” (Job 3:1-4) TEMPTATION THAT LEADS TO COMPROMISE. Leadership is a stressful business and there are many temptations that leaders can fall foul of: temptations that come from the need for comfort; temptations that arise from a sense of entitlement (I deserve to have some comfort); temptations that arise when we allow the end to justify the means. Take David as an example: “Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath.” (2 Samuel 11:2) Pointers to help leaders avoid the quitting points: •

See the opportunities to replenish yourself not as an indulgence but as an investment - for you and those you are leading. Replenish the body, the soul and the spirit.

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Don’t be a lone ranger - you need someone with whom to talk through all that you are encountering as a leader, who will support and challenge you.

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Build accountability into your life, to avoid inauthenticity and a dangerous ‘private life’. You need a structure in your life that guards against this.

1st May 2018

not through managing to avoid the setbacks, the failures and the losses, but through growing through them, learning the lessons that they offer and growing as a result. The quitting points listed opposite are just three of an almost inexhaustible number. The important thing is to recognise which you re vulnerable to and to decide in advance on strategies that will help you to overcome them. It is a huge mistake to wait until you feel like quitting to begin to think of how you can stand against that. A wise leader knows the likely quitting points in advance and plans accordingly.

Recognise that what lasts is people, not projects. Leaders that experience longevity invest their time and effort in developing people, helping them to become all that God has created them to be, developing and nurturing their gifts, releasing their potential. Specifically, leaders who want to see their ministry continue to grow and outlast them should invest in people who will outdo them, who are going to take the ministry further than they can.

“If your plan is for one year, plant rice; if your plan is for ten years, plant trees; if your plan is for one hundred years, educate children” (Confucius)

Whether you are educating children or developing adults, the principle is the same - longevity in leadership is all about what you sow into those you are leading.

Date to remember: Sunday, June 10th

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