Читать книгу The Catholic Vision for Leading Like Jesus - Owen Phelps Ph.D. - Страница 10

Introduction

Let your adornment be the inner self with the lasting beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in God’s sight.

1 Peter 3:4

For months, I struggled with a choice. Should I develop my concepts of leading like Jesus around the notion of servant or steward? Then one day I started to wonder: Are you crazy? Why choose one when both are essential? The concept of S² Leadership was born.

Some months later, I was in an elevator with Ken Blanchard and Phil Hodges, co-founders of the Lead Like Jesus movement. We were on the University of San Diego campus headed to meet a graduate class being taught by Ken and his wife, Margie. I saw an opportunity to share my story about the agonizing but ultimately false choice between servant and steward.

“Why not make it S³ Leadership?” Ken asked.

“S³?” I asked. I wasn’t sure what he was getting at.

“Servant, steward, and shepherd,” he proposed. In that moment the concept of S³ Leadership was born.

A very good way to understand and appreciate Jesus’ approach to leadership — His teaching and His example — is to see it in terms of the S³ framework.

• He practiced servant leadership.

• He saw his leadership role as a steward.

• He cared for His disciples as a shepherd cares for his sheep.

If you are committed to these dimensions of Jesus’ leadership — and open to His unconditional love in your life — you can come to lead like Jesus, which will make you a better leader in any context.

The person who wants to build his or her life around Christian principles today faces a challenge. Our society is increasingly secular. A clear majority of us consider ourselves Christian. But we sense that it is not appropriate to mention Jesus — not even God — in the work-place or public square. If you are uncomfortable talking about God, Jesus, or your Christian faith in public, I’ve got great news for you: Leading like Jesus is not about what you say, but about what you do.

As you master what it means to lead like Jesus, some people may ask you about the source of your leadership aptitude. If they do, consider it an invitation to share your Christian leadership perspective. Since they have been impressed with how you lead and the results generated by your leadership, what you say will have real power to influence them. But until then, leading like Jesus is about what you do much more than what you say.