What One of the World’s Smartest Leaders Taught Me

Some time back, I heard Malcolm Webber speak about leadership. With a PhD in organizational leadership and author of over 30 books, he understands the current leadership culture like few others I’ve heard. He leads an organization called LeaderSource and speaks to and trains leaders all around the world on the subject. As one of the brightest and most innovative leaders/leadership consultants today I had difficulty taking notes fast enough because most everything he said was worth remembering. Here are some highlights.

• Great leaders must say yes to the right things.
• Leaders must not confuse activity with results or size with success.
• Leadership development is not discipleship. A discipled leader is assumed.
• The three parts of the leadership process are:
  • Identification (what John Maxwell calls Discovery)
  • Development
  • Deployment
• The biggest problem in leadership today is working with the wrong people (a paraphrase from the great missiologist, Ralph Winter)
• Jesus’ men did not sign up. They were chosen.
• Damaged leaders damage others.
• There are two fundamental, foundational issues that must be in place for prospective leaders:
  • They can think. They…
    1. explore
    2. think ahead and outside normal patterns
    3. learn from mistakes
    4. remain teachable and adaptable
    5. think conceptually and holistically
    6. embrace ambiguity.
  • They act. They…
    1. don’t wait for someone else to act
    2. are probably already leading somewhere
    3. take responsibility and initiative
    4. challenge the status quo
    5. energize others.
• When choosing leaders, keep these four ideas in mind.
  1. Look for people who think.
  2. Look for people who act.
  3. Look for people about whom you can observe their lives.
  4. Look for people who deeply depend on God.
• Potential is not performance.

What insights about leadership have helped you lead well?

This article originally appeared here and is used by permission.