This last few weeks, we have been preparing our team for the year ahead. Together, we have done some leadership devotionals, we have met, we have socialised, we have bonded, we have team built (unintentionally sometimes but we have).
I am not saying that we have the perfect team but I know that as team leaders, my husband & I get to know our team so we know their strengths & weaknesses. In the strength & giftings, we launch them towards that area to see them succeed. In the areas of their weaknesses, we come alongside them to help them grow. Not to turn it into their strength because that is not necessarily what they are called or designed to do, but to assist them in growing in that area & support them so that they can challenge themselves & grow further.
As I look around, sometimes there are people who have been placed in wrong areas or wrong positions, a simple example is people who can’t sing are on stage singing or people who struggle with cooking being placed in a hospitality role to cook.
I then had a realisation that there are 2 things or 2 sides to consider – firstly from the viewpoint of the person itself & secondly, from the viewpoint of their leader.
From the person itself, there may be desires that they have in their heart to see or to do certain things. Those desires may be there for a reason but it may not be for this time. We grow into our calling & we grow into our giftings. If things were immediate, every little kid who walked around with a hairbrush singing would then be given a microphone to hold a concert. That child may eventually do so one day in the future but the time from now till then, is where the hard work & the growth goes into. This is where the leader’s role comes in.
As a leader, we are given discernment & wisdom. If you are a leader & you don’t think you have those, seek them. If you are a leader who has been in leadership for a long time, let me challenge you by asking “do you still use wisdom & discernment when you choose what position to place the people in your team in?”.
I know for me personally, in the past, I have sometimes allowed personal feelings or friendship or even guilt sway my choices, like that person is where they are because of a decision that I had made so since I have already made that mistake by putting them in that role, let me keep encouraging them & try to get people to cheer them on so they can get better – yes, if that is their area of gifting & no, if that isn’t! If you keep doing so & those people are not in their area of gifting or calling, you are firstly setting them up for failure & secondly, you are not being a good steward of the people within your team!
Sometimes as a leader, it is not just about the support but it also about the courage to acknowledge that a mistake was made in your decisions & removing that person from those positions & placing them into a role that they can actually grow! Otherwise, one day will come & they will be burnt in that position & they will also be burnt personally.
If as a leader, you want to know if the people in your teams are in the right positions, look at the reactions of people around. A leader has to sit back & assess every so often. Do so & you will see the true reaction of people around which would be an indication of whether your team is in the right or wrong spot. Do not be afraid to do so for this is a very important aspect of leadership, especially if you want to see growth in your team or your area.
So, what are you setting up for? Are you setting up for growth or are you choosing to set up for failure because of your stubbornness or fear as a leader to make the hard decisions?