What does it take to be a leader people will follow? Looking at Jesus' life, we learn the things that matter most when it comes to leadership and how we can become leaders who can effectively gather people and make them see our vision.
What do most employees, volunteers and other people look for in a leader? Motivation psychologist Heidi Grant Halvorson shares that the most important trait that people look for in leaders is trustworthiness. She shares that it doesn't matter how competent you are, how smart you are or how charismatic you are, if people can't trust you, they won't give you their best.
Jesus showed this best because if there's anyone who is most trustworthy it's Jesus. Everything Jesus said, did and called forth worked and He never failed while He walked on this earth. He has also never failed since He was resurrected into heaven.
Sadly, we cannot be as trustworthy as Jesus when it comes to giving fail-safe guarantees. Romans 3:10 says, "as it is written: 'None is righteous, no, not one;'" As much as we want to be perfect leaders who always make the right calls, the right decisions, the right investments, the right vision, we will all fail at some point. That's why as leaders, we must be quick always to point our followers to Jesus Christ and to trust Him above ourselves.
As impractical as this sounds, especially if you work in a corporate setting, nothing could be more assuring than knowing that a God who makes all things work together for our own good is one we can turn to even when the going gets tough.
However, truth be told, results are not what wins people's trust 100 percent. Even if you fail, people can still trust you because the number one thing that builds trust is love. If you are a leader who has mastered the art of expressing love, showing care and actually taking care of people who follow you, people will trust you.
People will not care how much you know until they know how much you care. Sure, leaders should continue to grow in management skills, administrative skills and decision-making abilities, but more importantly they should grow their relationship-building skills. A leader who holds together a team and unites its members by building good relationship with each one of them will more easily win the trust and hearts of people.
And as we win trust, we motivate people to go all out in progressing towards the goal. Just as Jesus Christ has loved each and everyone who follows Him, we as leaders also learn how to love more and more the people who serve with us and who share our goals and vision.
