Earlier this week movers came to the home of our dear friends and packed everything they had to prepare for a move to another country.
But it’s still stressful.
As 2015 comes to an end, you may be considering a new beginning, a fresh start, a change or a reinvention…
Do you care deeply about truth, freedom and people from all nations races, and religions? Do the debates about what the world should and should not be doing for refugees, about how to deal with the threat of terrorism without hating and fearing others, about the right to bear arms and the need for gun control – make your head spin?
We have a crisis of leadership and a need to personally be involved in changing the world of leadership for the better. ~Mike Henry Sr.
Like many of you, I am deeply concerned about truth, freedom, people, and the state of leadership in my home country and in our world. And the more I read, listen and observe, the more I’m aware of:
I was leading a small team in a culturally diverse city in the U.S. when two of my employees asked why all the titled leaders on our leadership team were white.
I was raised in a part of the country that was not culturally diverse, today – nearly a decade after their question 89% of the population in my home state is white and 95% of the county that surrounded the town I grew up in was white. As a result, it was a question I didn’t see coming and one I did not have a good answer for.
[Tweet “If you seek to lead well… You will consider uncomfortable questions.”]
My reactions:
I published an article a month ago, about how our international move altered the path I thought I was on to my big dream. In that post I shared how much I trust in this altered path, even though it doesn’t make complete sense yet.
About the time I published that article I heard this quote, [Tweet ““Your perspective will become your prison or your passport.”~ Steven Furtick”]
Two weeks ago my husband and I took a vacation to Africa. On the plane I read Nelson Mandela’s book The Long Walk to Freedom, deeply considering how a wide variety of good and bad experiences changed his perspective, caused him to seek truth, ponder deeply, and shaped the man he would become. At several places in his story I thought of different struggles that others have faced that have taken them to their knees and challenged their perspectives and then changed their futures. In the midst of those reflections I wrote these words…
Would you say yes, if you knew:
For years I’ve been asking executives and hiring managers what their biggest challenge is. At least 90% of the time I get the same answer: “People.” That comment is quickly followed by an explanation about how hard it is to find enough qualified and caring people to do the work.
It is interesting to note that some titled leaders are so desperate for people that they hire anyone that can “fog a mirror” which often results in skill gaps and behavioral issues that can damage their culture and reputation and stunt their growth.
Other titled leaders hold so tightly to a specific checklist of requirements that they miss hiring a stronger applicant that has the passion, drive and emotional intelligence to take their department and organization to the next level.
Often their decision to wait a long time to fill a needed position adds stress to their teams, and doesn’t guarantee a cultural fit, the drive or the fresh perspective that instigate growth.
If your organization is struggling to find smart, caring, committed people that will improve your culture, your service and your reputation then consider this.
