Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Andy Stanley on Leading a Team Meeting

I’m not in any sort of leadership capacity at present, but I still enjoy reading and listening to leadership-related materials. Last night I was catching up with an Andy Stanley Leadership podcast from last April 4. Here are two nuggets I took from his discussion:

1. “When we get together (in our leadership team meeting to discuss the future and progress)... It's great to have a number two person, it's even better to have five number 2 people, or ten number 2 people... To find that man or woman who can carry an enormous amount of responsiblity--they don't feel the need to be #1, but they want to influence their own destiny. And most of us in leadership, especially when you get past 40-- I don't have to be #1, but I want to be in the meeting that determines my destiny in this organization. And so the leadership team allows me to have a large group of extraordinary people anyone of which can be #2 in this organization...”

2. “The leader isn't so much leading the meeting as he is excavating... getting it all out.... There are going to be conflicting opinions (but they all need to be heard)... Why is it so important that everyone be heard? Everyone listening to this podcast, me included, can probably think back to decisions that were made with which we didn't agree with, and it was difficult for us to fully engage. Because first of all we didn't think it was the right decision. But most leaders can move beyond that. What's really difficult is to ask me to engage with something that I don't agree with when I never feel like my opinion was heard. Most mature people if they feel like OK, I've  been heard, their opinion was factored it in, they just didn't agree. Mature people can move past that. The idea that a decsion was made  and my opinion was not even factored in, now a mature leader can move past that as well, but if I've got everyone in the room and I've got the right people in the room there's no reason for everyone not to be heard.... “

Looking forward to some of his more recent podcasts (and maybe start listening to his weekly message?). The leadership podcasts seem more substantial than some of other podcasts I’ve been listening to recently.

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