I will begin blogging through my CatalystDallas experience. I want to start with John Maxwell’s
talk. It will be more than one
post.
I have been for a long time, a fan of John Maxwell and his writing. I had never had the opportunity to hear him
speak until this conference. For that I
am sorry. I read his book The 21
Irrefutable Laws of Leadership shortly after it was released in 1998 as a 21
year old. It has probably been as
formational in my development as any other single book.
Maxwell
started by acknowledging that he had a short time to speak and would like to
convey as much useful information to us as he could. And
then he opened a fire hydrant and let his wisdom flow. It was too much to try to drink from, so I
took notes knowing I would have to unpack it later.
He began
with seven questions he would ask a leader if he were given the opportunity to
sit down with them for a few minutes.
1.
What is the greatest lesson you ever learned?
2.
What are you learning now?
a. Maxwell stated that this question would bring
out what they are passionate about.
3.
How has failure shaped your life?
a. “Sometimes we win, sometimes we learn”
b. Maxwell is obviously a man who has learned to
see failure as opportunities for growth.
c. I am reminded that we should follow all our
failures with the question, “What did I learn from that experience?”
4.
Who do you know that I should know?
a. I am reminded that if relationships will help me
be able to tell more people the message of Christ, then I need to foster
relationships better than I do.
5.
What have you read that I should read?
6.
What have you done that I should do?
7.
How can I add value to your life?
a. “If you help others get what they want, they
will want to help you get what you want.”
What
do you think? Are there any of these questions you would not ask? Are there
questions you would add to this list? Do
any of these questions rub you the wrong way? What do you think of # 4 & #7?
I'd ask...
ReplyDelete- If "leadership is influence: nothing more, nothing less," then are you saying that Adolph Hitler is an all-time great leader?
That statement of his has always stuck in my craw
Phillip,
ReplyDeleteI understand why that is stuck. But I would have to say that Hitler was a great leader --for the negative. So was Stalin, but being a great leader does not make one a great person. So can't use our influence/leadership for good or bad. What do you think?
Again, I really enjoyed that list. These are not just questions you have to save for great leaders, though. Of course, youre going to naturally give their answers more weight than you might would others', but every person around you can provide some great insights, just because we are different. Sometimes it surprises me how much wisdom I glean from unsuspecting people.
ReplyDeleteI need to be much better at extracting people's stories and advice, and much more restrained at trying to get other people to listen to my own. Like you told me one time, referring to the guy you listened to on the subway- we forget how much people are dying to tell their stories, if we'll really give them a chance.
The one on the list I take issue with is 7a. #7 itself is a great question. But when its qualified with 7a, it seems to reveal a backwards heart. Do we do things to manipulate people to get them to do something for us in the end, or do we just do them without any expectation of anything in return, because we love them?
I know, on one hand, people might defend that by saying, "thats not what we REALLY do it for- its just a side benefit", but I would just say you have to be careful if thats even in your radar. I think when you know how to manipulate people, you will do it so well that sometimes you dont even realize thats what youre doing. The heart is deceitful above all else. So even though we may know our helping others will cause them to want to help us, maybe we should ignore that little factoid as much as possible? Thoughts?
Seth it is probably only fair that I say I am not sure that 7a was part of 7. It was in my notes and seemed connected but I dont think that the 7a quote was in the context of 7. My post may have been misleading.
DeleteMay not have been. I do remember reading a blippet from one of his books in the past that suggested something like that, though, which is why I said what I did. Anyways, whether Maxwell said it/meant it or not, I guess, point is, we know its true- if you help others get what they want, they will be glad to help you. And someone who is really skilled at that can let it lead them to bad places.
DeleteI don't think the comment is as much about Christian character as it is a commentary on human nature. Look at all the multi-billion dollar corporations that are such because they provided a product or a service that gave people something they felt they wanted or needed. Consequently, people were drawn to those people because they did something that met a need in culture. Whether it was the first air conditioner or something like Facebook, people in places of influence have a natural gravitational pull because they have the "power" (maybe position is a better word), to meet needs. For leaders, these are not people who made homes cooler or put a camera on their cell phone, but rather people who help people understand themselves better and in turn people are drawn to that. I've heard Maxwell speak and I've read 21 Laws and at least one of his other books. Maxwell is not advocating that service be done under the premise that we will get something back. That's just the way people are.
ReplyDeleteHey Jason. I think you are right. Good thoughts. Good notes, Daniel. Keep em coming.
ReplyDeleteSeth, I do remember a professor in youth ministry warning us to watch our motives as we try to do ministry. He told us that encouragement and manipulation were very close cousins.
ReplyDelete