Good leaders spur positive change, growth

Dennis Lee Lessons in Leadership

In his book, Spiritual Leadership, author J. Oswald Sanders says, "Leadership is influence."

The concept of leadership implies a person taking the lead and taking others in a preferred direction. A leader is someone who takes followers from where they are to where they need to be.

Leadership, therefore, implies change, and one of the roles of a leader is producing positive change, because if organization doesn't change and grow, then they'll wither and die.

Change is the inevitable part of life and unless there is growth, stagnation and decline quickly follow. Growth without change is impossible. All growth whether it's physical, social, mental or spiritual involves some sort of change.

Not all change is good, however; which is why it takes an experienced leader to effectively navigate the corporate and social waters.

"All change does not represent progress, but if we do not change there will be no progress," said leadership expert John Maxwell.

The problem leaders face is that while their followers want to grow, they may not want to make the changes necessary to facilitate growth. They want the benefit without the sacrifice.

Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church, explained the reason for people's reluctance to change.

"All growth is change, all change is loss and loss is painful," Warren said.

The problem is that many leaders hold similar views. They want growth without change so they rigidly hold to the methods that gave them their successes.

What they don't understand is that success achieved by previous methods will diminish over time and be less relevant.

The things that should never change, however, are our principles and the methods by which these principles are applied need constant revision and updating. In a culture that is constantly changing, we need to change our methods to be more effective in applying our principles.

Someone explained that "methods are many, principles are few. Methods may change, but principles never do."

So, why don't the people like change?

First they may not comprehend the company's vision. Most people are down on what they don't understand. It's important that leaders have a compelling vision for others to follow and communicate it in such a way that will help buy in.

Second, people may believe the change is being forced upon them. When they're not a part of the process they'll often fight it. This is why leaders need buy in and participation.

Another reason why people resist change is because they think the cost is greater than the payoff. A leader has to reward those who are embracing and working the change.

Finally, another common barrier to change is tradition.

The adage, "We've never done it that way before," is a good example of people holding on to the status quo.

Innovation is the key to any leader's success. For a leader to successfully integrate these changes that lead to positive growth, they need to help those who follow see the vision and join in the process.

Dennis Lee is a past business owner and is presently the senior pastor of Living Waters Fellowship in Mesquite.