‘Leadership’ has been thrown around so much these days that many have lost sight of what it really stands for. Too many look to it as a tittle they must have, but few truly understand what it means to be a leader. Recently a simple question was asked by a partner of mine in a group chat: “What makes great leaders standout from average people?” although seemingly simple, it sparked a great debate in the group as each person offered their idea on leadership. It downed on me, Leadership cannot be characterized in a simple sentence.
in his book “Becoming a Leader”, Dr. Myles Munroe gives us an insight of what it means to be a leader, why each of us has the seed of leadership in us and how to achieve our calling for leadership. Dr. Munroe defines leadership as the capacity to influence others through inspiration, generated by a passion, motivated by a vision, birthed from a conviction, produced by a purpose.
Here are 3 key things I took away from this amazing man:
- “We are all born leaders, designed to lead in the image of our Creator through His spirit.”
Although the general consensus is that leaders are not born but are made through the hard and trying journey, everyone is born with a seed of leadership meant to be fulfill his or her part in their sphere of assignment. The problem is too many of us seat around waiting for a special moment before stepping into our greatness. Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may *rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them (Genesis 1:26-27). *Rule over can be translated to “dominion over, or mastery over”
- “Great leaders do not desire to lead but to serve.”
As a Catholic who has accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior and like many Christians, my faith is based on the belief that Christ gave his life for the forgiveness of my sins and the salvation of mankind. The scripture says “The Son of Man who did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as to redeem many people” (Matthew 20:28). Faith is based on the second half of that sentence, but leadership is founded on the first part, “…who did not come to be served, but to serve.” Leaders are willing to make sacrifices for the sake of service. They think more about those whom they are serving through their vision than about their own comfort.
- “The greatest investment in leadership is not in things but in people.”
True leadership is measured by the people you ‘produce’. Dr. Munroe puts it in these words: “It is my conviction that the ultimate purpose of leadership in any endeavor -whether it is business, religion, politics, sports, medicine, education, or another area- is not the accomplishment of goals or the achievement of quotas but rather the leader’s legacy through his successor.”
This book offers so much insight into leadership. I would highly recommend it to anyone aspiring to be a leader.
See you soon!
Truly,
Cedric Metangmo