Do you walk around with this sign figuratively attached to your forehead?
by AloneAlbatross via Flickr
Durk Jager, former CEO of Proctor and Gamble was profiled in the book DeRailed by Tim Irwin wore such a sign. He wrote about him:
“Rather than drive change through courageous empowerment and wise deployment of skills, Jager, a large man “built like a linebacker,” attempted to force change through a fearful façade of constant bullying. The moniker “Crazy Man Durk” arose largely because he appeared to be unapproachable and irrational. He wouldn’t listen to employees, was aloof to cultural concerns, and was openly critical. Jager was proud of it all” (p. 55-56).
Jager was soon ousted from his leadership role. His means were so “volatile and contemptible that employees began to choose silence over truth” (p. 56).
Jager was clearly not approachable as a leader.
His employees feared talking to his face, but clearly talked about him behind his back.
Being approachable is an important quality for a Christian. The lack of approachability by elders, preachers, parents, and business leaders is often what is holding the church, family, or business back. It causes poor relationships, stifles the environment, and causes leadership to be uninformed and lacking influence.
Paul told Titus to remind the Christians “to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people” (3:2). Jesus described himself as “gentle and lowly of heart” (Mat. 11:29). Elders of God’s people are required to be “gentle and not quarrelsome” (1 Tim. 3:3).
Are you approachable? Consider these questions to assess how approachable you are, but remember you may need to ask someone else about yourself to get an accurate assessment.
- Do people regularly come to me for help?
- Do people share their problems or burdens with me?
- When people have a concern about the organization or church, do they regularly come to me?
- Do people fear asking me for permission?
- Do people fear confessing a problem or mistake they have made that involves me and my organization?
- Am I defensive and accusatory in my words and tone when responding to people who bring a problem to me?
- Do I welcome criticism and suggestions for improvement? Do I truly listen?
- Do I present an attitude of humility and learning versus an attitude of “I know it all”?
- As a leader, do I regularly publicly solicit and encourage people to approach me with suggestions, ideas, and problems?
- Do I truly care and love people, so that those I am leading see they are loved by my words and actions?
1 comment
Wow! Excellent thoughts!