In this first lesson we cover styles of leadership, definitions and especially one that is found throughout the Bible, even though the word ‘leader’ is not used as much as offices of Israel (king, priest, prophet, etc.).  You’ll also learn more about “The Leadership Challenge”, the seminal work of two men who have written a work in its sixth printing and has stood the test of time, and see Biblical examples, like Joshua, who practiced this first core competency.

This second competency is future-focused:  where does the team/company/organization need to go?  How does that get communicated to all stakeholders? Biblical leaders such as King Solomon demonstrated this when building the first great Temple to God.  Comparisons with Moses are made to see how the same competency can be implemented completely different based on the leader’s individual style.

Here the competency shifts to teams, ways to get people to work together to accomplish a goal.  Looking at examples from the Gospels of how Christ Jesus worked with his disciples and larger community of followers, we see how ably he illustrated this vital leadership practice.  The Old Testament (Hebrew Scriptures) example might be a surprise since it involves a female who isn’t even named in the biblical text.

Trust is why people follow a leader, and nothing builds it more than people who walk their talk, do what they say, lead by example.  Some of Israel’s greatest patriarchal figures illustrate this courageously and consistently. This lesson looks at them as well as the great apostle Paul whose life and letters did so much to shape Christianity’s spread in the first century CE.

How telling the Kouzes and Posner declared this final competency to be the one leaders had the hardest time implementing.  This is the competency followers/team members/ direct reports are starving for their managers to embrace and practice. Both Jesus Christ and Paul are featured for the creative and consistent ways they continually practiced this final and oh-so-important competency.