7 Snares That Will Trap a Leader

Have you ever noticed that a crown and a trap look similar?  It is a short trip from crown to snare. There are 7 deadly traps waiting to bring down leaders.

1.     The first trap that lies in the path of leaders is Hypocrisy. Those you desire to lead will quickly notice the hypocrite in you. It is important that your sincerity is authentic.  Living the life, you teach about will guard you against a life of hypocrisy.

2.     The second snare is Resistance. Great leaders exhibit a high degree of flexibility. When your followers observe that you always resist their ideas or suggestions your ability to lead will be greatly diminished. Learn to be a sincere listener who demonstrates an openness to new ideas and the thought processes of others.

3.     The walk of leadership is often tripped up by Inconsistency.  One of the most devastating trends in the marketplace is the escalating inconsistency of product. Those who exhibit a high level of dependability rise to the top. Great brands have failed because they did not realize the high demand of dependability. New brands emerged because they realized others had become inconsistent and they seized the moment by demonstrating dependability.  A leader who is inconsistent will lose his influence. Make sure those you lead can depend on you!

4.     The Simpleminded forget the importance of discretion and will find themselves ensnared without notice. A leader’s life path must be protected by the highest level of discretion.  One of the great Proverbs (29:11) says “A fool utters all his mind: but a wise man quietly holds it back”. One of the most admiral qualities a leader possesses is that of discretion. It is vital to your reputation.

5.     Few things are as unattractive as a leader who appears ungrateful. This fifth snare often surfaces after a leader has achieved a degree of success.  Focusing on the success of self and taking your eyes off the success of those you lead, allows you to step on the snare of Unthankfulness.  Never forget that your assignment is the success of others.

6.     Pride is possibly the most dangerous trap of all. Believing your status is self-attained and failing to acknowledge your mentors’ investment in you allows this sixth snare to cause destruction of your leadership.  A great antidote is to consistently write “Thank You” notes to those who have invested in you.

7.     The seventh snare is surfacing in every area of society. Rudeness now permeates almost every aspect of our daily lives. This serpent of self-centeredness is destroying the world. A rude leader will be short lived. Place others before yourself. Serve them, care for them and lead them. It is what leaders do.

We have been discussing keys of leadership but great leadership requires reflection. It is not only what we do that matters but what we refrain from doing keeps us leading.

It is afternoon at our mountain retreat and the aroma of fresh coffee is filling the forest calling me aside to reflect and examine my own life.

Watch for my next blog as we look at another key of leadership.

Lee Haley

How Leaders Leave a Living Legacy

“Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success.”  Henry Ford

“I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves; and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them but to inform their discretion.” Thomas Jefferson

Billy Graham said “The greatest legacy one can pass on to one’s children and grandchildren is not money or other material things accumulated in one’s life, but rather a legacy of character and faith

Dr. Lee Allen

Growing up poor, sometimes the best entertainment was listening to the memories of the older generation. My grandmother loved to tell us about her father, Dr. Lee Allen. Being a physician in the 1800’s and early 1900’s is a bit different than 2017.  Country Docs went from home to home and were often paid with a chicken or produce from the garden.  Whatever the family in need had to share would be accepted as payment.  Being a physician in that day meant living by faith. Faith that God and good people would share enough that you could provide for your own family. From what I have gleaned about my great grandfather he was a character but also a man of character. As a child, I often thought I would follow in his footsteps.  The practice of medicine intrigued me.  The physician’s oath allured me. Was there more to the vocation than the picture of a family doctor?

Living in a small rural community gives you the opportunity to know just about everyone. When I was a child, a young physician moved down the road from us, Dr. Edwin Walker, newly married to Regina Allen. Over the years, the opportunity presented itself for my life to interface with Dr. Walker, Mrs. Regina and their wonderful daughters.  On my bookshelf is a two-volume set entitled Bible Characters by Alexander White. It was given to me by Ed and Regina Walker on June 28, 1970.  I have read and researched that set many times over the years. Biographies and character studies are my favorite reading. There is much to be gleaned from the lives of others.

As a young man who never knew his father, I am grateful for the men in my community who modeled a good father image and some who took the time to invest a few moments with me to teach a life lesson.  

On more than one occasion Dr. Ed took the time to talk with me and share a life lesson. But more important than the things he taught was the manner in which he taught. It was always done in a discretionary manner. One that always protected my privacy and exhorted me to develop stronger character. Over the years, I realized I could confide in him. He knew me, the good, the bad and yet he took the time to invest.  That is what leaders do. They make time to invest in others.  I never recall calling him that he did not return my phone call. 

One of the keys of great leadership is discretion. It opens a door to a safe place where others will listen as you inform them.  Thomas Jefferson understood the delicate nature of discretion.

I am sure Doc Walker has forgotten some of those conversations but they were imprinted in me. Some took place at his office, some at our church, a couple over a hamburger and some in his home. Now decades later what I recall is the discretionary manner in which those conversations took place.  Dr. Walker had the ability to avoid words or attitudes which would result in undesirable consequences. He was focused on practical steps of application that would yield positive and lasting results. He exercised discretion at the highest level.  Great leaders understand the difference in discretion and simple mindedness.  Discretion is focused on just, prudent and right living. Simple mindedness lacks judgement and shows little intelligent thought.  Discretion builds character while simple mindedness focuses on the temporal and leads to its own punishment. 

Leaders utilize discretion in their daily lives.  Discretionary living leads to discretionary giving. Discretionary giving yields a life of thanksgiving.  It is a life of gratefulness and a desire to invest in others that matters.  It is not your personal legacy that should be remembered but rather a legacy of giving, forgiving and thanksgiving.  When future generations read, or hear about us, our life of character should rise to the top.  Not what we had accomplished but who we were.

Dr. Edwin Walker

Decades later Dr. Edwin Walker has impacted the lives of others through simply being himself and living a life of giving, forgiving and thanksgiving. I will always be grateful to him and his dear wife Regina for the influence they had on me and the time they invested in my life.

I am honored to call him my friend, a true leader among men.

In a future blog, I will share the investment Mrs. Regina made in my life.

Watch for my next blog when we discuss another key for great leadership and share this blog with someone who needs encouragement to live a life of giving, forgiving and thanksgiving.

I hear that afternoon cup of community coffee calling me aside to reflect on life.  

How does Cream Rise to the Top?

“Time to milk “-those are words a boy hears when he grow up with dairy cows. Twice a day every day without exception that is what happened where I grew up.

A cow gives whole milk that has two components, nonfat milk, and cream. Left to settle, the cream will naturally rise to the top. Homogenization, a process introduced in 1932, breaks apart fat molecules under high pressure, leaving the fat suspended and evenly dispersed throughout the milk. 

We did not homogenize our milk but left the milk to its natural state; this allowed the cream to rise to the top. Homogenization does not contribute any nutritional benefit, but is efficiency for the corporate farm and a convenience for consumers since homogenized milk does not have to be repeatedly shaken or stirred.

Skimming the inches of fresh cream from a jar of fresh milk is a simple art. The milk is refrigerated and allowed to sit for 24 hours giving the cream plenty of time to rise to the top. The following day the cream line appears with the precision of a fine watch. It now is easy to ladle gently the cream from the milk. The cream appears thick and luscious. The milk is thin and less appealing.   

We all have heard that the cream rises to the top and most understand the analogy. Just how does that happen in the world of leadership and life?

Many corporations utilize profile tests in an effort to properly hire and promote employees. Most profile evaluations compare your natural tendencies to the behavior that you have adapted. An employee is most effective when they are behaving in their natural state. What companies really want is predictability and consistency. They want corporate behavior to be as accurate as a mathematical calculation.

They want something more than reliability they want dependability. Dependability carries the notion of reliable consistency. It means fulfilling my commitment at all cost.

Do you want to rise to the top and separate yourself from others? Leaders understand that dependability is not optional but is vital. Inconsistency is thin and less appealing. Dependability is not something one can compromise. Compromising dependability simply homogenizes you. You become uniform and similar. You blend in.

Rise to the top. Be dependable. Those you lead depend on your dependability!

Watch for my next blog when we discuss a rarely taught leadership key that will open doors that no other key opens.

Now for that cup of coffee…

How to Open the Door to Communication

There are few things like the pure love of a child. Their eyes and gentle faces communicate so clearly. Whether at play or asleep, in sickness or in health, or as we observe them we know that they are truly a gift from God. The complexity of life does not cloud their communication.

GeNelle Miller Montgomery left this world on August 27, 1978 but not before, she changed my life. She was my high school English teacher. She taught me the power of language through writing, exegesis and the love of reading. Her investment in my life continued far beyond the classroom. She was a neighbor, a Sunday School teacher and a friend.

Ms. GeNelle honored me by allowing me to participate in her memorial service. I have tried to honor her with the things she taught me. One of her greatest lessons would later become my greatest compliment. Knowing that my life would center on communication, she shared with me a key that opened the door to effective communication.   

Communication only truly occurs when it creates an action. Effective communication creates a positive action that affects the lives of the others. Great communication requires hard work and life experience.

Teachers are a part of God’s divine plan. Book assignments and compositions; Ms. GeNelle designed my assignments to prepare me for my vocation. The “teacher notes” on my papers where funneling me toward a point of effectiveness. The suggestions to be careful in the selection of words and the outlines of how to introduce and expand your subject were all a part of her plan. She knew she was a part of constructing a life that would instruct others and at the right moment, she would give the final lesson.

The phone began to ring with opportunities for am18 year old young man to speak to student groups and quickly followed by invitations to preach in churches. I found my sermons structured like the compositions I wrote in school.

In the early years of speaking, there was single compliment repeated multiple times. I was not sure what it meant. 

Then, the telephone call came. Ms. GeNelle had left this world and slipped into the eternity of God.  Her dear mother Mrs. Miller told me that Ms. Montgomery had requested that I be a part of her memorial service. We talked for quite a while about her daughter, my teacher, and the things she related about teaching me. Her mother said that I was one of the most sincere people she knew. The right moment had come, the final lesson, the key, now shared. 

Sincerity was the compliment I heard repeatedly. I realized the key to effective communication was sincerity. People quickly discern if you are sincere or a hypocrite. When you communicate effectively, people understand if you are seeking what is right and with transparent motives.

The Apostle Peter said to “love one another with a fervent heart” (I Peter 1:22).

Our world is in desperate need of those who are fervent in heart, desiring above all else to influence the lives of others for that which is good and great.

Francois de la Rochefoucauld over 300 years ago said, “What we usually see is only an artful dissimulation, to win the confidence of others”. Communicators, so-called leaders are simply trying to connect, win the confidence of others, and use that moment of attention for their own benefit.

What kind of leader are you? What marks your communication?   What causes your heart to beat?

Sincerity is the key that opens the door of communication. Once inside that door lives may be changed. That is why children can communicate without a word.

Next time we look at a leadership key that is quickly disappearing from our world.

Time for a cup of coffee.