The Art of Leadership By Dag Heward-Mills
It is the mark of a good leader to be able to get people to believe in him. It is those who believe in the leader who become his followers. This is what makes him a leader – the fact that he has people following him. Without this ability to convince people to follow you, you cannot be a leader.
In the time of Jesus, Jesus got Nathanael to believe in Him. Philip tried to get Nathanael to believe but it did not work: “Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, we have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. And Nathanael said unto him, can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see” (John 1:45- 46). But when Jesus encountered Nathanael, the story changed!
Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile! Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee. Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.
John 1:47-49
At this time, Nathanael had a personal conviction that Jesus was a good person and that he should follow him. Jesus was able to get Nathanael to believe in Him! No one can truly follow your ideas unless he believes in you personally. This is a mark of a leader. The ability to get someone to believe in you and truly follow you is a demonstration of the art of leadership.
Openness
This is where it becomes important to be open. When you are a complete mystery and no one knows about you, it would be very difficult for someone to believe in you. What would the person be believing in? What would the person be following? Note that what draws a following is something the people know about you and become convinced about!
One of the reasons why leaders must be open is so that people get the chance to know them personally. I sometimes wonder as I watch leaders who say nothing about their personal lives. Could it be that they have no example to give or no testimony to share? Dear friend, the people you lead need to have faith in you as a person. How can this happen except you open up to them? People get to know what is in your heart by your words.
…for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
Matthew 12:34
This is why extemporaneous speeches often reveal what is in a person’s heart. Many great leaders have won people’s hearts by the things they said. A good general knows that the enemy will launch a campaign to capture the minds and hearts of the people. We are affected by what we hear. Faith comes by hearing! That is why a good leader will launch his own campaign of propaganda to counter the deceptions of his opponents. That is also why a good leader will be open about his heartfelt convictions.
Convictions
It is the expression of your convictions that draws a following to you, as a leader. When people can relate with the things that are in your heart, they will more readily go anywhere you want them to. When you bare your heart with conviction, others can relate to it. They can understand you. They can grow to have the same conviction and then they will be ready to do anything you tell them to do. It is not impressive when people just read speeches that have been written for them. You cannot know much about the person until you hear him speaking from his heart. It is what is in the heart that really matters. When people can feel your passion, when they can feel your drive and can relate to your vision, your leadership flows naturally. If you don’t have a passion for anything or a drive to accomplish something, you are not a leader!
You know, you can learn about delegation of authority and the rules governing that principle. But only knowing about these principles may not make you a real and lasting leader. You may be well-versed in the principles of management but that may not be the thing that makes you a leader. True leadership emanates from your heart! It is a direct projection of your conviction! When you have a conviction and you articulate that conviction and get people to believe in it, you are becoming a long lasting leader. Delegation of authority and the other principles of management will enrich, enhance and boost your leadership. May you be a leader who wins the hearts of people!
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