Archives For Priorities

Efficiently Moving in the Wrong Direction

October 5, 2009 — Leave a comment

Peter Drucker once observed, “There is surely nothing quite so useless as doing with great efficiency what should not be done at all.” Organizations seem to model this behavior all too often. The lust for more often dilutes our ability to focus on a narrow set of essential priorities. Unfortunately, leaders often race enthusiastically in the wrong direction.

So how do you ensure that you’re priorities are not moving the organization efficiently in the wrong direction? You must test your priorities to ensure they are:

1. Aligned – Are my priorities aligned with the organization’s vision? Without alignment your priorities will take you to a destination you never intended to go.

2. Narrow – Are the number of my priorities manageable? One of the greatest ways to dilute your priorities is to have too many.

3. Clear – Are my priorities marked with extraordinary focus? If you cannot state the priority in a single, well-defined, remarkably clear sentence, then your priorities will be prone to grow wider rather than deeper.

4. Scheduled – Are my priorities built into my daily schedule? Most people prioritize their schedule. While that’s good, it’s more important to schedule your priorities.

5. Evaluated – Do I regularly assess the progress and effectiveness of my priorities? When you fail to evaluate regularly, you tend to be awakened by the pain of unintended consequences.

Question: Where are your priorities taking you?

In Leadership Focus, Priorities
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Leadership Bottlenecks

August 29, 2009 — Leave a comment

There are common barriers to growth often encountered in the leadership journey. These barriers are usually more like bottlenecks–what I refer to as “leadership bottlenecks.” They are limitations in progress created, often unintentionally, by the “narrowing” of a leaders thinking.

One of the classic leadership bottleneck stories in scripture is found in Exodus 18. People were standing in line, all day and night, waiting to ask Moses questions about God’s will concerning their disputes. Moses would judge right from wrong and inform them of God’s law. This process repeated itself day after day until his father-in-law, Jethro, pointed out Moses’ bottlenecks and prescribed the appropriate changes. Moses was suffering from three specific leadership bottlenecks:

1. The Priorities Bottleneck - The priorities bottleneck occurs when a leader tries to cram too many priorities into the narrow space of their life and leadership. Jethro challenged this bottleneck head on when he told Moses “This is no way to go about it. You’ll burn out, and the people right along with you. This is way too much for you–you can’t do this alone.” (Exodus 18:17-18, The Message). Jethro continued by outlining three priorities for Moses: Point Leadership, Teaching, and Leadership Development. Moses was to be “the people’s representative before God,” teach the people God’s law, and select and release capable leaders. That’s it! Nothing else!

2. The Authority Bottleneck - The authority bottleneck occurs when a leader refuses to release decision-making power to others. The leader that has to make every decision–essentially becoming an authority hog–will never grow their church or organization beyond their own decision-making capacity. Eventually the number of decisions will overwhelm their capacity. Typically “authority hog leaders” do not trust their team to make the best decisions. These leaders are prone to give assignments without the authority to carry them out. Teams without decision-making authority are nothing more than researching and reporting assistants limited by the bottleneck of their leader’s “trust deficit.” 

3. The Delegation Bottleneck - When a leader hogs the authority, they will obviously experience a bottleneck in their willingness or ability to delegate opportunities to others. However, a delegation bottleneck can also occur when a leader lets “doing” overshadow “developing.” “Doer Leaders” have influence because of their ability to get the job done. Their bottom-line results speak for themselves. But “Doer Leaders” will always be limited by time. If they can’t get it done in 24 hours, it simply won’t get done. And nobody can maintain that kind of pace long-term. That’s why leaders must be “Developer Leaders.” Developer Leaders focus their time and energy on developing people. They understand that unless leaders are developed, they will always face a delegation bottleneck. Every opportunity requires a leader to run with it. When the leaders run out, delegation comes to an end and the opportunities fall into the chasm of unfulfilled dreams.

Questions: How have you experienced these leadership bottlenecks? What other bottlenecks have you observed in leadership?

In Leadership Bible on Leadership, Decision-Making, Delegation, Leadership, Priorities
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Three Ingredients to Effective Delegation – Pt 1

July 20, 2009 — Leave a comment

Delegation is a critical part of the leadership journey. Not only does it free you to focus on your priorities, it enables you to intentionally release others to lead. In the next three posts, I want to address three essential ingredients to effective delegation. The first ingredient is Priority Assessment. Priority Assessment is the process of identifying your highest priorities using the sweet spot of three intersecting priority areas.

Priority Area #1:Job Requirements- There are certain aspects of a leader’s job that only the leader can do. In a local church context, these “requirements” might include clarifying and casting vision, serving as the primary communicator, and raising resources. This can vary from one situation to the next depending on different dynamics. When you are crystal clear about your non-negotiable job requirements, you can essentially give yourself permission to delegate everything else. Question: What is in my job description that nobody but me can do?

Priority Area #2: Personal Strengths – A leader is going to find the greatest fulfillment and make their greatest contribution through their strengths. When awareness of strengths increases, the clarity for greater impact also increases. The key is to align personal strengths with the right organizational opportunities. Effective leaders have learned to play to their strengths and delegate their weaknesses. It almost sounds heartless, unless of course, your weakness is a strength for the person you delegate it to. Question: Which of my gifts, abilities, skills, and passions maximize personal fulfillment and organizational impact?

Priority Area #3: Investment Return – The idea of “investment return” is sometimes the longest bridge for leaders to cross. Why? Because it requires leaders to admit that some things they enjoy doing may not actually generate the greatest return for the church or organization. For example, if you love designing websites–perhaps it’s even a strength–it may not the best use of your time as a leader. This doesn’t mean it’s not important, it’s just not important for YOU to do it. There are likely other areas that will generate a far greater return on your investment of time. Question: What gives the church or organization the greatest return on the investment of my time?

Your general priorities will be revealed by your answers to the questions above. But where your answers overlap and intersect reveals your major priorities. Delegation doesn’t start by giving away responsibility–it starts by understanding which responsibilities you can’t give away. That list will be shorter than you think.

Question: Based on your answers to the three questions above, what are the 3-5 major priorities that represent the best use of your time? Give yourself permission to place everything outside of these major priorities on your delegation list.

In Leadership Delegation, Leadership, Priorities, Time Management
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Who’s Your C.D.O (Chief Destruction Officer)?

May 4, 2009 — Leave a comment

One of the organizational challenges facing established leaders and/or established organizations is the complexity that often comes with growth.  We’re great at starting new initiatives but not so great at ending irrelevant or outdated programs.  Our aggressive “to do list” needs an equally aggressive “not do list.”  Steve Moore, President and CEO of the Mission Exchange, provides some great perspective on this issue in his latest vlog, “Who’s Your C.D.O. (Chief Destruction Officer).  

In Leadership Focus, Innovation, Priorities
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The Six Keys to Time Management – Part 2

April 2, 2009 — 1 Comment

In my last post I noted that Purpose and Values are the foundation of time management. Without them, people efficiently do the wrong things. However, understanding purpose and values is not enough. The next two ingredients to effective time management are Roles and Priorities.

The truth is that my life purpose and my core values will only be fully realized if I’m investing my time in roles that facilitate their fulfillment. In other words, WHERE I serve (my roles) and what I DO in those roles (my priorities) will determine how well I fulfill my life purpose. Knowing my purpose without have a major role through which I can fulfill it (regardless of whether its a volunteer or paid role), will only leave me frustrated. At some point my roles must be aligned with my purpose and values. Typically roles can fall into one of five areas–what I call C5 Roles:

  • Church – Any serving role that is connected with a local church fellowship and is aligned with its vision.
  • Community – Any serving role in the community, neighborhood, or home that makes a difference for others.
  • Campus – Any serving role on a local school or college campus that makes a difference for the teachers, students, administration, or campus.
  • Career – Using any career role or job intentionally to help others.
  • Cause – Any serving role that promotes a cause in the world you are passionate about.

Once you secure a role, you must ensure that you’re spending your time on the top 3-5 priorities that are most important in that role. Doing the wrong things in the right role doesn’t get you very far. To help you determine which priorities deserve your greatest amount of time, John Maxwell offers seven helpful questions:

  • What are you recognized for?  (those areas in your roles that others say you do well)
  • What is required of you?  (those things in your job description)
  • What are you requested for?  (those things in your roles that others request you to do because they are strengths for you)
  • What are you rewarded most highly for?  (those things in your roles others reward you for because you do them so well)
  • What produces the greatest results?  (those things in your roles that have the highest return on your investment of time)
  • What do you rejoice over?  (those things in your roles that bring you the greatest personal satisfaction)
  • What do you want to be remembered for?  (those things in your roles you want others to remember you for long into the future)

These questions will stimulate you to create a narrow list of priorities that should be the focus of how you invest your time in each of your roles. Time management minus roles and priorities equals an unfocused life.

So let’s review–first, identify your purpose and values. Second choose a role(s) that is aligned with your purpose and values. Third, settle on your most important priorities in each role that will help you fulfill your purpose and live out your values. Are you seeing a pattern here? Rather than asking, “how can I get more done in less time?”, you’re tackling the biggest issues first and then aligning everything around them.

In Leadership, Personal Growth Core Values, Life Purpose, Priorities, Roles, Time Management
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