Resilient Leadership

Leaders have been through a lot in the past two years. COVID-19 has affected leaders at every level in both the corporate world as well as the ministry world. We have had to navigate through people’s fears of being together as well as their uncertainty of the future. That is where real leadership steps up. It is easy to lead when things are going well and answers are easy. However, what happens when people will not come to church out of fear of a virus? What happens when answers do not come as easily because you are dealing with problems you have never confronted? This is where resiliency becomes a necessary part of the life of a leader. What are some characteristics of a resilient leader?

Resilient Leaders Are Comfortable With Not Having All the Answers

When COVID 19 hit is 2020, I had to realize that I could not do ministry the way I had always done ministry. I had to step into an arena of online church and ministry without having my congregation in person for eight solid weeks, which included an Easter online service. I was confronted with the fact that this is something for which I did not have the answer and had to be open to doing things I had never done before. Being comfortable with not having all the answers will lead you to grow in areas that will make you a more competent and complete leader. There are times we simply have to get over ourselves and realize we are not perfect. Which leads me to …

Resilient Leaders Are Authentic

To be resilient means you have to be real with yourself. Being real with yourself will cause you to be real with your people. Most of us can spot a leader who is not real. They put on the fluff of being someone they are to not only impress rather than bring impact. Real leaders are those who can be trusted at the very core of who they are. Of course, trust is the baseline of effective leadership. Therefore, I encourage you to be real with yourself. Do not portray yourself to be someone you are not in order to impress your people. Dig deep within yourself to discover who you are. Being anyone else will create confusion and cause your people to scatter.

Resilient Leaders Are Open to Change

Change is here to stay. I have had to be more open to change during the last two years than ever in my 30 years of leadership. As difficult as it is to embrace change…it is a necessary part of the resilient leader’s life. We never change the core values that guide us to truth. Yet we may have to adjust the approach and process of living out those core values to better connect with the generation we are trying to reach. You cannot allow what happens in the arena of leadership to knock out the props from under you. You must be flexible enough to roll with what is happening and adjust accordingly.

Take some time to examine your resilience. Change what needs to change in the perspective of your leadership and be open to what lies ahead. While we do not know what lies on the horizon of leadership…we do know, that resiliency is necessary for leaders to succeed in this generation. I pray you are one of them!

Dr. Mark Lantz, WHMN President