Saturday, January 19, 2013
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Eight Reasons We Preach
Another year. Another year of preaching. So why do we do it?
Another year. Another year of preaching. So why do we do it?
There are so many factors involved. I don’t want to ponder issues of pay (many preachers receive less than minimum wage for what they are doing). I don’t want to dwell on inappropriate motivations, even if they are significant for some. I will just mention some of them in passing.
Let’s take stock of some of the good reasons we preach.
1. We preach because God is a God who speaks; therefore we have something to say. Actually there are probably too many who are too confident that they have something worth saying. I don’t think we have much that is worth saying, but the Bible is a revelation of God that is certainly worth proclaiming! That is why Paul could urge Timothy to “preach the Word!” in his final words to him. He wasn’t urging Timothy to chatter and noise and declaration of vain imaginations relating to societal ills and self improvement principles. He wanted him to preach the Word.
Consequently the Bible must never become just a repository of preaching material. It must always remain the very exclusive fuel for the fire of our walk with Christ, through whom we can know the Father. When the Bible starts to feel dry to us, we have a real issue. Not because we need to squeeze a message out of its apparently dusty pages, but because something isn’t right in our relationship with the One whom we represent when we stand to preach.
2. We preach as an act of service to others. Paul views every gift given by the Spirit to the church as a gift given for the building up of others. Consequently any gifts that relate to preaching must be offered to others in faithful service. So it can’t be primarily about our own fulfillment, and certainly shouldn’t be about our own egos. We preach to build up others — to proclaim, to offer, to invite, to comfort, to challenge, to help. Not to control: that would be self-focused. Not to cajole: that would be self-serving. Not to show off: that would be self-glorifying. We preach to serve.
3. We preach because the Gospel is thrillingly good news. The mission of the preacher is not merely to communicate ancient truths relevantly. God has given us a message. And that message is labeled as good news for a reason. The great sweep of redemption history involves the intra-trinitarian mission to rescue fallen creatures and restore them to full glorious fellowship with a loving and giving God.
It is not some sort of heavenly Plan B to make the best of a bad situation and try to restore some semblance of respectability to a God who is on the throne but attacked on every side. When time is wrapped up and we have the benefit of both hindsight and eternal perspective, we will be gasping at the multi-colored and multi-faceted dazzling beauty of what God has done in Christ.
We get to proclaim that now!
4. We preach because people need to hear the Gospel. There are only two types of people in the world. Those who need to hear the gospel and be saved, and those who need to hear the gospel as they are being saved. While we may get beyond simplistic and trite presentations of some scaled down version of the good news to some sort of legal loophole, we never move beyond the gospel in its glorious richness.
What God is like, what He has done for us in Christ, how much we need Him, redeclaration of total dependence — justification, regeneration, reconciliation, adoption, fellowship. Preaching Christ so that people will trust in Him. This is something our people can’t hear enough about. They need the hope, the faith and the love that are only found in the Gospel. We are not called to give tips for successful independent living or to offer life coaching team talks. We are called to preach Christ and Him crucified, that all may trust in Him, know Him, enjoy Him.
Gospel preaching, why wouldn’t we want to do that?
5. We preach to build God’s kingdom. There will always be a tension here. Ever since Genesis 3 we have all been deeply infected with the death-virus of godlikeness. We will default to independence in any way conceivable (including self-driven ministry), and our flesh will always look to build our own kingdom. But we are called to join Christ in His work of building the church. It is not about our pursuit of godlikeness, but about our humble service for the God we desire to honor and please.
There are so many factors to keep in mind in this pursuit. God often works more slowly than we’d prefer. So we need patience. God can transform people and communities in miraculously short order. So we need to expect great things. God can choose to build His work in ways we don’t expect. So we need to trust in His providence. God can choose to bless the work of others, even in our neighborhood (after all, the earth is the Lord’s, including your neighborhood!) So we choose to esteem others. We are not building our own kingdom. We are privileged to participate in building His.
6. We preach to equip others for ministry. No matter how great you may be, you are nowhere near as great as your whole congregation equipped, enthused and launched into ministry. I’m thankful that many churches have grasped that ministry is not wrapped up in a clerical class. God has given gifted people to the church to equip believers for their ministries. I long to see the day when an entire church is so gripped by God, so equipped by God, and so excited by God that they are like an army of effective witnesses, of empowering encouragers, of heartfelt worshippers, spilling out into the rest of the church and the community and the world.
We preach to that end. We don’t preach to look ministerial. We don’t preach to build our own reputation. We preach to serve Him, and we preach to serve them.
7. We preach because we can’t help but speak of Someone so wonderful. This should be the case. Sadly, over time, it can easily cease being the case. We can end up in a role, in a ritual, in a rut. We end up preaching because that is what we do, or that is how we pay bills, or that is how we get respect. We feel we should. We feel it is expected. We know it is needed. And somewhere along the way we fail to notice the fog gathering between our hearts and heaven.
A growing spiritual complacency is the proverbial frog in boiling water syndrome for preachers. God can become familiar and distant at the same time. He can become a concept, a set of truths, a source of identity for us, but somehow fade from being the captivating One who so fills our hearts and lives that we can’t help but speak of Him. May we all have a constant stream of newly engaged folks in our churches — constant reminders of the simple reality that a captivated heart can’t help but spill out.
8. We preach because we care about the people to whom we preach. Again, this should be the case. Sadly, over time, our flesh can easily co-opt the other-centeredness of ministry and turn it to a self-serving project. We can become preachers doing so to gain respect, to gain credibility, to gain attention, to gain a following, to gain influence. The gain increases and the give becomes token. Of course we can talk about giving — we can frame the ministry in self-sacrificial and spiritual terms. But really?
Just as spiritual fog can go undetected for too long, so a growing self-absorption is hard to spot in the mirror. Our flesh will always justify a subtle pursuit of godlike status. So we must keep walking with the Lord and ask Him to search us and know us. Ask Him to underline the motivations that drive what may look like a gloriously giving ministry. The true biblical preacher is shaped by the Word they preach, and they join God in giving of themselves as they preach it to others. The blessings are hard to quantify, but they must be the by-product, not the goal.
http://www.sermoncentral.com/pastors-preaching-articles/peter-mead-eight-reasons-we-preach-1471.asp?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=scnewsletter&utm_content=SC+Update+20130117
Anthony
Another year. Another year of preaching. So why do we do it?
There are so many factors involved. I don’t want to ponder issues of pay (many preachers receive less than minimum wage for what they are doing). I don’t want to dwell on inappropriate motivations, even if they are significant for some. I will just mention some of them in passing.
Let’s take stock of some of the good reasons we preach.
1. We preach because God is a God who speaks; therefore we have something to say. Actually there are probably too many who are too confident that they have something worth saying. I don’t think we have much that is worth saying, but the Bible is a revelation of God that is certainly worth proclaiming! That is why Paul could urge Timothy to “preach the Word!” in his final words to him. He wasn’t urging Timothy to chatter and noise and declaration of vain imaginations relating to societal ills and self improvement principles. He wanted him to preach the Word.
Consequently the Bible must never become just a repository of preaching material. It must always remain the very exclusive fuel for the fire of our walk with Christ, through whom we can know the Father. When the Bible starts to feel dry to us, we have a real issue. Not because we need to squeeze a message out of its apparently dusty pages, but because something isn’t right in our relationship with the One whom we represent when we stand to preach.
2. We preach as an act of service to others. Paul views every gift given by the Spirit to the church as a gift given for the building up of others. Consequently any gifts that relate to preaching must be offered to others in faithful service. So it can’t be primarily about our own fulfillment, and certainly shouldn’t be about our own egos. We preach to build up others — to proclaim, to offer, to invite, to comfort, to challenge, to help. Not to control: that would be self-focused. Not to cajole: that would be self-serving. Not to show off: that would be self-glorifying. We preach to serve.
3. We preach because the Gospel is thrillingly good news. The mission of the preacher is not merely to communicate ancient truths relevantly. God has given us a message. And that message is labeled as good news for a reason. The great sweep of redemption history involves the intra-trinitarian mission to rescue fallen creatures and restore them to full glorious fellowship with a loving and giving God.
It is not some sort of heavenly Plan B to make the best of a bad situation and try to restore some semblance of respectability to a God who is on the throne but attacked on every side. When time is wrapped up and we have the benefit of both hindsight and eternal perspective, we will be gasping at the multi-colored and multi-faceted dazzling beauty of what God has done in Christ.
We get to proclaim that now!
4. We preach because people need to hear the Gospel. There are only two types of people in the world. Those who need to hear the gospel and be saved, and those who need to hear the gospel as they are being saved. While we may get beyond simplistic and trite presentations of some scaled down version of the good news to some sort of legal loophole, we never move beyond the gospel in its glorious richness.
What God is like, what He has done for us in Christ, how much we need Him, redeclaration of total dependence — justification, regeneration, reconciliation, adoption, fellowship. Preaching Christ so that people will trust in Him. This is something our people can’t hear enough about. They need the hope, the faith and the love that are only found in the Gospel. We are not called to give tips for successful independent living or to offer life coaching team talks. We are called to preach Christ and Him crucified, that all may trust in Him, know Him, enjoy Him.
Gospel preaching, why wouldn’t we want to do that?
5. We preach to build God’s kingdom. There will always be a tension here. Ever since Genesis 3 we have all been deeply infected with the death-virus of godlikeness. We will default to independence in any way conceivable (including self-driven ministry), and our flesh will always look to build our own kingdom. But we are called to join Christ in His work of building the church. It is not about our pursuit of godlikeness, but about our humble service for the God we desire to honor and please.
There are so many factors to keep in mind in this pursuit. God often works more slowly than we’d prefer. So we need patience. God can transform people and communities in miraculously short order. So we need to expect great things. God can choose to build His work in ways we don’t expect. So we need to trust in His providence. God can choose to bless the work of others, even in our neighborhood (after all, the earth is the Lord’s, including your neighborhood!) So we choose to esteem others. We are not building our own kingdom. We are privileged to participate in building His.
6. We preach to equip others for ministry. No matter how great you may be, you are nowhere near as great as your whole congregation equipped, enthused and launched into ministry. I’m thankful that many churches have grasped that ministry is not wrapped up in a clerical class. God has given gifted people to the church to equip believers for their ministries. I long to see the day when an entire church is so gripped by God, so equipped by God, and so excited by God that they are like an army of effective witnesses, of empowering encouragers, of heartfelt worshippers, spilling out into the rest of the church and the community and the world.
We preach to that end. We don’t preach to look ministerial. We don’t preach to build our own reputation. We preach to serve Him, and we preach to serve them.
7. We preach because we can’t help but speak of Someone so wonderful. This should be the case. Sadly, over time, it can easily cease being the case. We can end up in a role, in a ritual, in a rut. We end up preaching because that is what we do, or that is how we pay bills, or that is how we get respect. We feel we should. We feel it is expected. We know it is needed. And somewhere along the way we fail to notice the fog gathering between our hearts and heaven.
A growing spiritual complacency is the proverbial frog in boiling water syndrome for preachers. God can become familiar and distant at the same time. He can become a concept, a set of truths, a source of identity for us, but somehow fade from being the captivating One who so fills our hearts and lives that we can’t help but speak of Him. May we all have a constant stream of newly engaged folks in our churches — constant reminders of the simple reality that a captivated heart can’t help but spill out.
8. We preach because we care about the people to whom we preach. Again, this should be the case. Sadly, over time, our flesh can easily co-opt the other-centeredness of ministry and turn it to a self-serving project. We can become preachers doing so to gain respect, to gain credibility, to gain attention, to gain a following, to gain influence. The gain increases and the give becomes token. Of course we can talk about giving — we can frame the ministry in self-sacrificial and spiritual terms. But really?
Just as spiritual fog can go undetected for too long, so a growing self-absorption is hard to spot in the mirror. Our flesh will always justify a subtle pursuit of godlike status. So we must keep walking with the Lord and ask Him to search us and know us. Ask Him to underline the motivations that drive what may look like a gloriously giving ministry. The true biblical preacher is shaped by the Word they preach, and they join God in giving of themselves as they preach it to others. The blessings are hard to quantify, but they must be the by-product, not the goal.
http://www.sermoncentral.com/pastors-preaching-articles/peter-mead-eight-reasons-we-preach-1471.asp?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=scnewsletter&utm_content=SC+Update+20130117
Anthony
Participate in Children’s Ministry Day, Feb. 16
Thousands of children from churches nationwide will participate in hands-on outreach ministry again this February on the sixth annual Children’s Ministry Day.
Established by the national ministry Woman’s Missionary Union, Children’s Ministry Day gives children opportunities to serve others.
For example, in 2008, children from New Hope Community Church in El Monte, Calif., ministered to residents of crime-ridden Skid Row in Los Angeles. Danielle, 6 at the time, initially was fearful, but that changed when a resident to whom she handed food thanked her and smiled.
After that first outing, Danielle asked repeatedly when the children could go serve there again, says Eva De La Rosa, New Hope’s education director.
“We don’t know if anyone accepted Christ that day, but (a neighborhood) pastor mentioned they were a much calmer crowd than normal,” De La Rosa says.
Children’s Ministry Day has a different theme each year. In 2008, the theme was hunger. This year’s theme is “Helping Hands,” encouraging children to lend a hand to the homeless or people in need in their communities.
Children’s Ministry Day this year is Feb. 16.
A version of this article originally appeared in the January/February 2010 issue of Outreach magazine.
Anthony
Established by the national ministry Woman’s Missionary Union, Children’s Ministry Day gives children opportunities to serve others.
For example, in 2008, children from New Hope Community Church in El Monte, Calif., ministered to residents of crime-ridden Skid Row in Los Angeles. Danielle, 6 at the time, initially was fearful, but that changed when a resident to whom she handed food thanked her and smiled.
After that first outing, Danielle asked repeatedly when the children could go serve there again, says Eva De La Rosa, New Hope’s education director.
“We don’t know if anyone accepted Christ that day, but (a neighborhood) pastor mentioned they were a much calmer crowd than normal,” De La Rosa says.
Children’s Ministry Day has a different theme each year. In 2008, the theme was hunger. This year’s theme is “Helping Hands,” encouraging children to lend a hand to the homeless or people in need in their communities.
Children’s Ministry Day this year is Feb. 16.
A version of this article originally appeared in the January/February 2010 issue of Outreach magazine.
Anthony
Sunday, January 13, 2013
18 Things Leaders Need To Know About Leading Leaders
Brian Dodd On Leadership
It is a great challenge to lead people and take them on a journey to a brighter tomorrow. It is a completely different thing to lead leaders. A much higher level of skill and insight are needed.
On today’s ESPN NFL Countdown, Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh and Denver Broncos Executive Vice President of Football Operations John Elway were profiled. Both lead men who are arguably the best ever at their positions. Harbaugh coaches middle linebacker Ray Lewis and safety Ed Reed. Elway leads quarterback Peyton Manning.
I found their comments quite insightful on what is required to effectively lead leaders.
John Harbaugh
Leading Leaders Is A Privilege - “How many times do you get a chance to be part of something like that?” – Harbaugh on coaching Lewis’s final home game in Baltimore.
Leaders Want To Move People To Action – The Ravens front office received multiple letters of spontaneous acts of celebration throughout Baltimore while watching Lewis.
Leaders Want To Do Something Memorable - The letters also told dozens of stories of how the game provided memorable experiences for fathers and sons. The shared experience of watching this particular game together is something that will forever bond them.
Leaders Thrive With Open Communication – The Ravens have created an environment where leaders are given total freedom to express their opinions.
Leaders Hate Mediocrity – After a sub-par practice, the team leaders called another practice to get things right.
Leaders Value Trust – Trust matters. Trust says you can count on me moving forward. After that sub-par practice, the players knew the coaches were going to lose trust in them while watching the practice tape. They proactively earned it back.
Leaders “Confront Issues and Not The Person.” - Leaders do not confuse silence with compliance. They push back. They challenge boundaries and preconceived notions. They address issues.
Leaders Will Make Hard Decisions - With the offense sputtering during mid-season, Harbaugh made the difficult and unusual decision to switch offensive coordinators during mid-season.
Leaders Are Attracted To Other Great Leaders - Harbaugh then hired former Indianapolis head coach Jim Caldwell as his offensive coordinator.
John Elway
Great Leaders Are Attracted To Big Vision - Upon arriving in Denver two years ago, Elway’s vision was clear, “I want to win a Super Bowl”
Great Leaders Want To Enjoy Their Work - Elway wanted to “get guys to be able to enjoy coming to work again.”
Great Leaders Embrace A Process - It was not until the season’s 6th game that the team began to gel. But as Elway said, “(It was) fun for me to see them become a team.”
Great Leaders Are Deeply Passionate About The Organization - On recruiting Manning to the Broncos, Elway “sold the Denver Broncos. I’ve spent 16 years here. I moved here in 1984. I’m going to show what we had here. I’m proud of that.”
Great Leaders Have Feelings - Great leaders are still human beings. Manning felt a level of disappointment and disillusionment after his time with the Colts had concluded. Elway knew he needed time to process those feelings.
Great Leaders Always Have Something To Prove - Manning’s disillusionment turned into a challenge. Elway rejoiced when saying, “A great player with a chip on his shoulder is always dangerous.”
Great Leaders Want Significance - Great leaders do not desire titles or position. They desire influence and significance. At the press conference announcing Manning’s signing, Elway boldly stated, “My goal is to make Peyton Manning the best quarterback that has ever played the game.”
Great Leaders Produce - John Maxwell teaches that leaders never confuse activity with accomplishment. Elway acknowledges that, “I will have been successful and Peyton will have been successful if we can win a couple of championships.”
Great Leaders Want Opportunities For Greatness - Elway’s hopes for Manning is “to give him a chance to win a world championship.”
After reading this list of 18 items, what is one thing you can do TODAY to more effectively lead leaders?
http://briandoddonleadership.com/2013/01/12/18-things-leaders-need-to-know-to-know-about-leading-leaders/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=18-things-leaders-need-to-know-to-know-about-leading-leaders
Anthony
It is a great challenge to lead people and take them on a journey to a brighter tomorrow. It is a completely different thing to lead leaders. A much higher level of skill and insight are needed.
On today’s ESPN NFL Countdown, Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh and Denver Broncos Executive Vice President of Football Operations John Elway were profiled. Both lead men who are arguably the best ever at their positions. Harbaugh coaches middle linebacker Ray Lewis and safety Ed Reed. Elway leads quarterback Peyton Manning.
I found their comments quite insightful on what is required to effectively lead leaders.
John Harbaugh
Leading Leaders Is A Privilege - “How many times do you get a chance to be part of something like that?” – Harbaugh on coaching Lewis’s final home game in Baltimore.
Leaders Want To Move People To Action – The Ravens front office received multiple letters of spontaneous acts of celebration throughout Baltimore while watching Lewis.
Leaders Want To Do Something Memorable - The letters also told dozens of stories of how the game provided memorable experiences for fathers and sons. The shared experience of watching this particular game together is something that will forever bond them.
Leaders Thrive With Open Communication – The Ravens have created an environment where leaders are given total freedom to express their opinions.
Leaders Hate Mediocrity – After a sub-par practice, the team leaders called another practice to get things right.
Leaders Value Trust – Trust matters. Trust says you can count on me moving forward. After that sub-par practice, the players knew the coaches were going to lose trust in them while watching the practice tape. They proactively earned it back.
Leaders “Confront Issues and Not The Person.” - Leaders do not confuse silence with compliance. They push back. They challenge boundaries and preconceived notions. They address issues.
Leaders Will Make Hard Decisions - With the offense sputtering during mid-season, Harbaugh made the difficult and unusual decision to switch offensive coordinators during mid-season.
Leaders Are Attracted To Other Great Leaders - Harbaugh then hired former Indianapolis head coach Jim Caldwell as his offensive coordinator.
John Elway
Great Leaders Are Attracted To Big Vision - Upon arriving in Denver two years ago, Elway’s vision was clear, “I want to win a Super Bowl”
Great Leaders Want To Enjoy Their Work - Elway wanted to “get guys to be able to enjoy coming to work again.”
Great Leaders Embrace A Process - It was not until the season’s 6th game that the team began to gel. But as Elway said, “(It was) fun for me to see them become a team.”
Great Leaders Are Deeply Passionate About The Organization - On recruiting Manning to the Broncos, Elway “sold the Denver Broncos. I’ve spent 16 years here. I moved here in 1984. I’m going to show what we had here. I’m proud of that.”
Great Leaders Have Feelings - Great leaders are still human beings. Manning felt a level of disappointment and disillusionment after his time with the Colts had concluded. Elway knew he needed time to process those feelings.
Great Leaders Always Have Something To Prove - Manning’s disillusionment turned into a challenge. Elway rejoiced when saying, “A great player with a chip on his shoulder is always dangerous.”
Great Leaders Want Significance - Great leaders do not desire titles or position. They desire influence and significance. At the press conference announcing Manning’s signing, Elway boldly stated, “My goal is to make Peyton Manning the best quarterback that has ever played the game.”
Great Leaders Produce - John Maxwell teaches that leaders never confuse activity with accomplishment. Elway acknowledges that, “I will have been successful and Peyton will have been successful if we can win a couple of championships.”
Great Leaders Want Opportunities For Greatness - Elway’s hopes for Manning is “to give him a chance to win a world championship.”
After reading this list of 18 items, what is one thing you can do TODAY to more effectively lead leaders?
http://briandoddonleadership.com/2013/01/12/18-things-leaders-need-to-know-to-know-about-leading-leaders/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=18-things-leaders-need-to-know-to-know-about-leading-leaders
Anthony
10 Leadership Lessons From Ray Lewis “No Weapon” Postgame Speech
New post on Brian Dodd On Leadership
There is no leader currently more inspirational that the Baltimore Ravens legendary middle linebacker Ray Lewis. The video above was shot immediately after the Ravens overtime victory against the Denver Broncos.
While it is certainly justifiable to be sucked into the emotion of Lewis, there are 10 very tangible leadership principles that you can take from the video that if applied will make you a better leader.
Great Leaders Lead From A Biblical Foundation – The first words spoken by Lewis were when he quoted the prophet Isaiah “No weapon formed against you shall prosper.” (54:17)
Great Leaders Respect Others – Lewis took time to stop his interview to acknowledge Peyton Manning and show him respect.
Great Leaders Have Great Belief In What God Can Do – Lewis reminded us that God can do the impossible.
Great Leaders Are Confident – This confidence flows from preparation and past performance.
Great Leaders Find A Way To Succeed – Great leaders do not make excuses. They simply find a way to get it done.
Great Leaders Bring People Together – Lewis’s passion has simply been the unifying force of the Ravens for over a decade.
Great Leaders Are Well-Prepared – The Ravens defense studied film and found tendencies that resulted in an overtime interception that led the team to victory.
Great Leaders Point Out Issues – The special teams gave up two touchdowns. I am very confident Lewis and others will address that in practice this week.
Great Leaders Never Give Up – Lewis pointed out the team simply kept fighting until the end.
Great Leaders Are Great Encouragers - This principle comes from watching the video below. Lewis reminded quarterback Joe Flacco that they have faced a similar situation before and the team prevailed.
Ray Lewis is simply one of the greatest leaders in the history of sports. What is one thing you learned from these 10 lessons that can improve your leadership TODAY?
http://briandoddonleadership.com/2013/01/13/10-leadership-lessons-from-ray-lewis-no-weapon-postgame-speech/
Anthony
There is no leader currently more inspirational that the Baltimore Ravens legendary middle linebacker Ray Lewis. The video above was shot immediately after the Ravens overtime victory against the Denver Broncos.
While it is certainly justifiable to be sucked into the emotion of Lewis, there are 10 very tangible leadership principles that you can take from the video that if applied will make you a better leader.
Great Leaders Lead From A Biblical Foundation – The first words spoken by Lewis were when he quoted the prophet Isaiah “No weapon formed against you shall prosper.” (54:17)
Great Leaders Respect Others – Lewis took time to stop his interview to acknowledge Peyton Manning and show him respect.
Great Leaders Have Great Belief In What God Can Do – Lewis reminded us that God can do the impossible.
Great Leaders Are Confident – This confidence flows from preparation and past performance.
Great Leaders Find A Way To Succeed – Great leaders do not make excuses. They simply find a way to get it done.
Great Leaders Bring People Together – Lewis’s passion has simply been the unifying force of the Ravens for over a decade.
Great Leaders Are Well-Prepared – The Ravens defense studied film and found tendencies that resulted in an overtime interception that led the team to victory.
Great Leaders Point Out Issues – The special teams gave up two touchdowns. I am very confident Lewis and others will address that in practice this week.
Great Leaders Never Give Up – Lewis pointed out the team simply kept fighting until the end.
Great Leaders Are Great Encouragers - This principle comes from watching the video below. Lewis reminded quarterback Joe Flacco that they have faced a similar situation before and the team prevailed.
Ray Lewis is simply one of the greatest leaders in the history of sports. What is one thing you learned from these 10 lessons that can improve your leadership TODAY?
http://briandoddonleadership.com/2013/01/13/10-leadership-lessons-from-ray-lewis-no-weapon-postgame-speech/
Anthony
Friday, December 14, 2012
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
The Difference Between Big Personalities and Great Leaders by Matt Keller
When the 2012 Major League Baseball season came to a close, the usual letting go of some players and managers took place.
Most noticeable to me was the firing of Boston Red Sox Manager Bobby Valentine and the firing of Ozzie Guillen, the manager of the Miami Marlins.
Both men are in their first year as managers for their respective clubs. However, both men have served as managers for other teams in the past.
What I find interesting is how both men have the reputation of being "Big Personalities" in the baseball world.
In fact, I would go so far as to say both men were hired as much for their big personality as for their ability to lead a major league ball club effectively.
Unfortunately for both men, their teams under-performed in a big way this year, disappointing fans, team members and the front office.
It has cost both of them their job and the city of Miami the hope of building momentum for their newly renamed and rebranded ball club.
Which brings me to my Main Observation: There is a big difference between a "Big Personality" and good leadership.
The baseball world is a microcosm of how the world of leadership has changed in the last decade.
No longer can a "Big Personality" compensate for poor leadership, especially when you're called upon to lead the young generation.
Every 30-and-under high-capacity leader I know has a radar for authenticity, vulnerability and approachability. No longer can poor leadership hide behind "Big Personality." The proof shows up in the results every time.
The challenging takeaway for us as leaders is to examine ourselves.
Most noticeable to me was the firing of Boston Red Sox Manager Bobby Valentine and the firing of Ozzie Guillen, the manager of the Miami Marlins.
Both men are in their first year as managers for their respective clubs. However, both men have served as managers for other teams in the past.
What I find interesting is how both men have the reputation of being "Big Personalities" in the baseball world.
In fact, I would go so far as to say both men were hired as much for their big personality as for their ability to lead a major league ball club effectively.
Unfortunately for both men, their teams under-performed in a big way this year, disappointing fans, team members and the front office.
It has cost both of them their job and the city of Miami the hope of building momentum for their newly renamed and rebranded ball club.
Which brings me to my Main Observation: There is a big difference between a "Big Personality" and good leadership.
The baseball world is a microcosm of how the world of leadership has changed in the last decade.
No longer can a "Big Personality" compensate for poor leadership, especially when you're called upon to lead the young generation.
Every 30-and-under high-capacity leader I know has a radar for authenticity, vulnerability and approachability. No longer can poor leadership hide behind "Big Personality." The proof shows up in the results every time.
The challenging takeaway for us as leaders is to examine ourselves.
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