He who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. (Matthew 23:11)
What do you consider greatness? Several years ago, my husband gave me a book on the subject. I was a little surprised by the title: Jesus, CEO. I had never thought about the kind of leadership style that Jesus had with his disciples: one that offers to serve others rather than being served. This attitude was displayed out of humility rather than pride.
On occasion Jesus asked, “What would you like for me to do for you?” He acted according to the response. If they needed their eyes opened, he opened their eyes; if they needed a hand straightened out, he did that for them. He did not feel that what he gave others was taking from him. Love for others motivated Jesus to lead by serving.
I wondered how this idea plays out in contemporary society–and more importantly, how I can embrace and act with a servant’s heart. I subscriber to a e-news from WalkTheTalk.com that reminded me of practical ways to lead with humility:
1. Welcome ideas that are not your own.
2. Be open to what others have to say without getting defensive.
3. Make it OK for others to share their ideas… even if those ideas conflict with yours.
4. Promote a “culture of learning” by sharing best practices.
5. Help individuals and teams learn and grow so that they become wiser, more competitive and better prepared for future challenges. For example, if an individual or team does something well or discovers a better way of doing things, ask them to share their ideas and success with others in the organization.
6. Apply a variation of the 80/20 rule: Focus 80% of your energies and attention on what people do right and 20% of your time on trying to correct what’s wrong.
7. Champion your staff to others. Let everyone know how much you value your people.
Prayer Point: Pray and ask God to help you be a servant leader. Pray and ask God to show you ways to implement some variation of these steps in your everyday workplace or ministry. Jesus led with a servant’s heart and we can too.
God bless you!
For more on this topic, watch Peola’s video Lead Like Jesus and listen to her Blog Talk Radio program The Prayer Journey.
