A Lagging Leader
There is so much leadership content available today; it’s amazing how you can search for leadership and thousands of articles, videos, and other resources appear on your screen. What intrigues me is that, at the same time, 83% of companies say it is essential to develop leaders at every level. Yet fewer than 5% of companies have implemented leadership development at every level*. Why isn’t leadership development a priority for organizations? Maybe because they believe management is the same as leadership, or they are accustomed to positional leadership. Power, position, and status are the DNA of leadership in these organizations.
Leaders who land in this school are what I call lagging leaders. According to the dictionary, lagging means moving slowly or more slowly than others. These are leaders who have not yet realized that power, position, and status do not reveal authentic leadership. John Maxwell, a leadership expert, helps us understand the five levels of leadership*, with the lowest being Level 1 - Position. He helps us see that leading by position can be the starting point when you join an organization, but it is not what will define your leadership.
A lagging leader is someone who believes that position defines leadership. As John Maxwell teaches us, at this level, people will follow you because of the paycheck, not because they believe in you as a leader. Lagging leaders are happy to stay behind in this race because they are stuck in their understanding and in their belief that power, position, and status are essential to leadership. They are far behind in this race.
Jesus Christ, the most influential leader in history, shows us the leadership model that will take your leadership to Level 5 - Pinnacle, according to John Maxwell: leadership that leaves a legacy, a beautiful story, and one that people will remember with great joy as having worked with you. Power, position, and status will not get you there. Relationship, influence, and service will lead you to better and healthier results; the difference between these two "schools" will be where your foundations are built: in yourself or in others. That will reveal your leadership! It is time to learn that being a lagging leader will not take you to Level 5 - Pinnacle, and you will remain stuck at Level 1 - Position, thinking you are doing a great job.
* https://www.apollotechnical.com/leadership-statistics/
* https://www.johnmaxwell.com/blog/the-5-levels-of-leadership1/