Sermon Central
-
The Way A Leader Is Expected To Respond – Determines The Response They Receive
By Ron Edmondson on Dec 30, 2021
The way others expect you to respond often determines the way they respond to you.
Have you learned this valuable principle about your leadership?
For example:
If they expect you to respond in anger – they’ll dance around issues – never confronting them with you or bringing them to your attention.
You will seldom know the true health of your team or what others are thinking.
If they expect you to respond defensively or with a closed-mind to every new idea which doesn’t come from you – they’ll only respond to your ideas – refusing to take risks of their own.
You’ll be limited to how creative you are, but you’ll leave some of the best new ideas untapped and off the table.
If they expect you to respond with condemnation – they’ll be tempted to make excuses when things go wrong – and maybe try to hide them altogether.
You will be considered unsafe and treated as unapproachable.
If they expect you to respond with belittling or sarcasm – they’ll never be serious with you – you’ll never know their true feelings – afraid you’ll crush them if they do.
You will never really know people. They will only know you. And, they will be very surface-level with you relationally.
If they expect you to respond with the final say to every decision – they’ll soon stop having new ideas. They’ll wait before moving forward on anything new.
You’ll get to run every meeting and feel very much in control, but your team isn’t really a team they are employees. And, most likely very unfulfilled and under-utilized.
Insert your own examples. The way a leader is expected to respond, built over time by experience, determines the way people respond to the leader. Every time.
However, the contrast is true:
If they expect you to respond supportively – they’ll be more likely to offer their opinions.
You’ll hear the best they have to offer. You’ll encourage creativity and dreaming.
If they expect you to respond with care and understanding – they’ll be more likely to share their heart, their pain, their life with you.
You’ll truly know people and you will be able to lead more relationally than strictly because of your position.
If they expect you to respond with empowerment – they’ll be more likely to take risks and try something new.
You’ll get the best from people. They will feel more a part of a team. And, great things have a better potential to happen.
If they expect you to respond with grace – they’ll be more likely to share the good, the bad and the ugly.
You’ll know when they failed and they’ll come to you for help to improve.
If they expect you to respond with a listening ear – they’ll come to you when they need to bounce ideas – before they have all the answers.
You’ll become part of their development, helping them improve individually as they attempt to help improve the team.
Leaders, how do others expect you to respond?
There are so many other scenarios I could have offered. You have some of your own no doubt.
Think about it – do you not tend to alter your response based on how you expect others to respond? Is this not true in family and friend relationships also? It certainly is in leadership.
Fair or not – as a leader, the response others expect from you may help determine the way others respond to you. Their response will be how we have conditioned them to respond to us, based on past experience of how we have responded to them.
More importantly, however, is ultimately our response to people in a great way determine the health of the team or organization.
Related Preaching Articles
-
Remembering Why You Said Yes To Pastoring
By Chuck Warnock on Dec 16, 2022
There are times in a pastor's life when the clarity of our call fades, discouragement clouds our memory, and we wonder, "Why did I ever want to be a pastor?"
-
Busting Out Of Sermon Block
By Haddon Robinson on May 28, 2020
Give your sermons new life every week with this timeless advice from Haddon Robinson.
-
The Barnabas Factor: Five Practices To Help You Find More Leaders
By Larry Osborne on Jan 30, 2024
Larry Osborne explains "the Barnabas Factor" in successfully building church teams.
-
Energizing Your Sermons With Multisensory Preaching
By Rick Blackwood on Jun 2, 2020
Rick Blackwood helps preachers communicate God's Word in a form that is engaging, crystal clear, unforgettable, and more fun for the speaker.
-
The 25 Most Influential Preachers Of The Past 25 Years
By Michael Duduit on Jan 2, 2025
Preaching magazine editor Michael Duduit takes on the challenging task of naming the most important preachers from the recent past.
-
Leadership And Church Size Dynamics
By Tim Keller on Jan 3, 2025
Tim Keller explores one of the most talked-about church issues: the relationship of size to church health and culture.
-
The 5 Most Dangerous Assumptions In Preaching
By Dr. Larry Moyer on Feb 16, 2024
Evangelism specialist Larry Moyer says there are five dangerous assumptions in preaching, and the extent of the damage they do may vary, but the fact that they are costly does not.
-
Reasonable Compensation For Pastors And Ministers
By Thomas J. Winters on Jan 10, 2025
Ministry compensation specialist Tom Winters, Esq., guides pastors and church leaders through the sometimes tricky compensation analysis process.
