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Ready to Find Your Next Star Performer? Exodus 24:1–7 It was a watershed day for everyone—a whole new life had begun! The Israelites got off to a fresh start when they affirmed the covenant God had offered them. To make it work, however, they discovered they would have to change their lifestyles and shift their paradigms—and that would take shrewd leadership. Sometimes (as in the desert) the majority even wanted to return to Egypt! Peter Drucker helps us to learn from Moses about how to lead people into change, even in the wilderness: Lessons from the Wilderness 1. Magnify the...
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Ready to Find Your Next Star Performer? 1 Samuel 12—13 Have you ever wondered what gave Samuel such credibility with others? When he spoke, people listened. Few descriptions offer a greater compliment than the one given to Samuel’s leadership in 1 Samuel 3:19, 20: “So Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. And all of Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel had been established as a prophet of the LORD.” Samuel’s success began when he was just a boy, under his mentor Eli. God spoke to...
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Ready to Find Your Next Star Performer? The Danger of Too Many Pursuits Ecclesiastes 2:1–11 WE CAN LEARN from Solomon’s costly mistakes. The King of Israel desperately pursued several unrelated goals in a vain attempt to satisfy himself. Ecclesiastes 2:1–11 provides a good example of a leader who didn’t know how to get what he wanted. By the time Solomon wrote these words, he had reached a high level of success—but still felt empty. He couldn’t put his finger on why fulfillment continued to escape him. Because he lacked focus, he searched high and low, experimenting with all kinds of...
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Ready to Find Your Next Star Performer? Leadership Develops Daily, Not in a Day Genesis 37:1–50:22 BECOMING A LEADER is a lot like investing in the stock market. If you hope to make a fortune in a day, you’re doomed. It’s what you do day by day, over the long haul, that matters most. If you continually develop your leadership, letting your “assets” compound over time, the inevitable result is growth. Although some individuals have greater natural gifts than others, nearly all the skills of leadership can be learned and improved. But that process doesn’t happen overnight. Leadership has so...
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Ready to Find Your Next Star Performer? Nathan Feared No One 2 Samuel 12:1–14 SECURITY PROVIDES the foundation for strong leadership. When we feel insecure, we drift from our mission whenever trouble arises. We must feel secure, or when people stop liking us; when funding drops; when morale dips; or when others reject or criticize us—we will crumble. If we do not feel secure, fear will eventually cause us to sabotage our leadership. Imagine what might have happened had Nathan lacked security. Consider the odds stacked against him. He knew he had to confront David in his sin, yet David...
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Ready to Find Your Next Star Performer? Romans 13:11–14: Paul’s Challenge Can Be Summarized in Three Words: 1. Awaken. He tells us wake up! The night is almost gone. Now is the time to get up and act! Today matters. 2. Abandon. He tells us to lay aside the undisciplined patterns of the flesh, and he even cites examples! 3. Adorn. Finally, he tells us to “put on” Christ. We know He’s inside you; now adorn yourself with Him. Today Mattered to People in the Scriptures Today mattered to Lot (Genesis 19:15, 16). Lot learned the hard way that today...
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Ready to Find Your Next Star Performer? Exodus 24:1–7 It was a watershed day for everyone—a whole new life had begun! The Israelite's got off to a fresh start when they affirmed the covenant God had offered them. To make it work, however, they discovered they would have to change their lifestyles and shift their paradigms—and that would take shrewd leadership. Sometimes (as in the desert) the majority even wanted to return to Egypt! Peter Drucker helps us to learn from Moses about how to lead people into change, even in the wilderness: Lessons from the Wilderness 1. Magnify the...
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Ready to Find Your Next Star Performer? Samuel and the Importance of Clear Communication 1 Samuel (10:3–12:25) DR. J. ROBERT CLINTON did a formal study of Christian leaders and discovered that, without exception, all of them possessed word gifts: teaching, prophecy, evangelism, preaching, words of knowledge or wisdom, exhortation, etc. More than anything else, they used their gifts of communication to lead their people. Peter Drucker, the father of American management, believes that 60 percent of all management problems result from faulty communication. Having a message doesn’t matter if leaders don’t communicate clearly and motivate others. It is amazing how...
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Ready to Find Your Next Star Performer? Can you imagine if your company had a reputation for being a great place to work and you had a pipeline of qualified candidates waiting for an opening at your company and you rarely had an opening because your employee retention was 100%? It is always easier for a company to attract and retain top talent when it has a reputation for being a great place to work but did you know that a great onboarding program can increase employee retention? In today’s labor-tight market, employee retention is more important than ever. There...
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Ready to Find Your Next Star Performer? Momentum Is a Leader’s Best Friend 1 Kings 2:1–4:24 IT TAKES a leader to create momentum. Followers catch it. And managers are able to continue it once it has begun. But creating it requires someone who can motivate others, not one who needs to be motivated. Harry Truman once said, “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.” For leaders, that statement should be changed to read, “If you can’t make some heat, get out of the kitchen.” All leaders face the challenge of creating change in an organization. Just...
