Do Hard Things

Why feign weakness?  You, at your very best, are not likely to be intimidating to God.

                             --Erwin McManus

Others look strong, competent, and well-put-together.  Remember, you may be comparing you "behind the scenes" footage with other folks' "highlights reel." Just keep doing your best.  That includes learning, studying, asking for advice, trying, failing.  It is not humility that keeps us from trying great things, it is fear.  Sometimes it's fear we will fail.  Other times, fear that we will succeed.  Before every great success, though, are hills and mountains of failures.

There's a huge difference between "being the leader" and "leading."  I know a man who loves being the leader but is scared to death of leading.  All the tough calls, the decisions that somebody isn't going to like, decisions involving risk--these he leaves to others, and he distances himself as much as possible from the decision process.  He hides his fear of leading by "acting spiritual."  It's all pride, no leadership substance.  Too bad, and such a waste, because his other talents could really have shown brilliantly in another setting....

Leadership is easy when profits are up, the market loves you, tomorrow looks sunny, and people are all pretty happy with how things are going.  Word of warning: it doesn't last.  Something eventually goes wrong, and you have to pick up some pieces.

Make the tough call.  Weather the criticism.  Have the courage to make small steps into the unknown.  You don't always have to leap with all your resources.  Not all courageous leadership decisions involve staking all your assets on one gamble.  In fact, that's usually not wise.  Sure, we love to read about those leaders who do exactly that; it makes a great cover story.  They are a tiny minority of the successful leaders.  In fact, their success is noteworthy exactly because it is uncommon.  Common success is different and, well...common.