Team Life Characteristics - Part 5

A good leader remembers. The leader remembers what it is like to be new to the field.
They remember how difficult language is, what it's like to feel and be incompetent, the loneliness of not knowing anyone.

A good leader remembers what it is like to be a follower. Remembers what it is like to submit, what it's like to not be in control, what it is like to follow someone you are learning.

For you to lead me I need to believe you understand me. You know my strengths and weaknesses. You have taken time to know my dreams, fears, and calling. You assume positive intent with me by learning my personality, experiences, and talents.

It is hard to follow someone who has not taken the time to know me and understand me. Your investing in understanding me builds my trust in you. I will choose to follow you because I trust you. I trust you because we have a relationship.

It is important as a leader that I understand you but it is also important that you understand me. Take the time to know my vision, my strengths and weaknesses, my skills and talents, my pressures and responsibilities. Then as you know me, you help me compensate for my weaknesses, have my back where I lack, take the initiative to make the whole team successful.

Take the time to understand my fears, feelings of inadequacies. I may be the leader but do not assume I have everything together. I at times feel over my head, do not know what to do, have pressures you are not aware of. Be a safe person for me to be me.

Understanding one another and taking the initiative to make one another better is great teamwork. That understanding takes time and effort on both the part of the leader and member.

When you know a person’s weaknesses, where they lack, do not complain about them to others but take the initiative to make the other person better. When you do that everyone wins, especially the kingdom of God.