Bobby Gruenewald Responds to Session 2
Our next guest blogger defines innovation in the church. In fact, it's right there in his job title "Pastor and Innovation Leader of LifeChurch.tv." The things that are happening at LifeChurch.tv blow me away.
They have twelve locations in Oklahoma, Texas, New York, Arizona, Tennessee, and Florida
They have an Internet church campus where thousands of people from all over the world gather in an online church community each weekend.
They have an extension of their Internet church campus in the more immersive 3-D environment of Second Life
They have a blog on leadership, technology, and innovation, Swerve, that I (and many others) are increasingly addicted to.
And Craig Groeschel, Senior Pastor of LifeChurch.tv, tells me that Bobby is the mastermind behind so many of these and Lifechurch.tv's many other innovations.
His game changing innovative leadership and his background as a successful entrepreneur make Bobby a perfect choice to offer a response to Carly's can't-miss session.
Here is Bobby's Response:
I’d like to thank my friends at the Willow Creek Association for asking me to respond to Carly Fiorina’s session.
Bill’s candid questions for Carly offered a rare glimpse inside the principles, lessons, and values that led her through the challenges she faced in her rise to becoming the first and only woman to lead a Fortune 20 company.
Although their talk was packed with valuable insights, let me briefly mention just a few that really connected with me personally:
The power of the right question. While taking a course in logic during college, Carly said she learned that “sometimes knowing the right answer is less important than knowing the right question.” I've certainly had this backwards many times. Sometimes, the simple question that centers me is, "What problem are we trying to solve?" As leaders, where are you not asking the right questions?
Management vs. leadership. Carly drew a distinction between management and leadership. She said, “Management is about the production of desired results within known conditions.” She added that leadership is about motivating a team to move in a new direction ... management and execution do not require motivation. Very insightful.
Motivation. Bill asked Carly how she motivates people. She said:“People are afraid to fail and try new directions, so you have to give them a vision that’s more compelling than their fear.People have to own the vision/direction.They have to know the hard reality of what it’s going to take to get there … that it’s going to be difficult.”
Unlocking the potential in others. It is a leader's responsibility to see potential and then unlock that potential in others. Each time someone saw potential in her, it motivated her to be greater.
Passion and Dispassion. Carly said that the best leaders require both passion and dispassion. Passion is believing in what you’re leading towards, and dispassion is having enough objectivity to see what must be done. To see people as they really are. Sometimes, they can’t make the journey, or they don’t have the character to go on with your organization. Bill added that some of his best leadership moments were when he was able to recognize that things weren’t working. Even though he felt disloyal, like he wasn’t cheerleading, he knew what had to be done.
There is tension in what she discussed: the responsibility to see and unlock the potential of others, yet also know when they can no longer make the journey. I completely understand the tension. Sometimes people are unwilling to grow, and other times it becomes evident in unlocking someone's potential that they are best equipped for something outside of your organization. Since she didn't have an opportunity to discuss this, I'd love to hear your thoughts.
One leadership attribute Carly didn’t explicitly share, but I see evident in her leadership is this: Great leaders must endure great pain. My senior pastor and friend, Craig Groeschel, has said, “The difference between where you are today and where God wants you to be is the painful decision that you’re unwilling to make.”
As a leader, what painful decision do you need to make?
