Leadership Wednesday 22 - It's My Fault

I am currently reading The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard Stearns, the CEO of World Vision. In the book Stearns describes the unlikely path that took him to World Vision and some of his experiences while there. It seems natural that he goes on trips all over the world and sees brokenness and injustice and then comes home all fired up to work harder and make a difference in the lives of those affected. I was somewhat shocked, though, when he admitted that over time the fire dies out, the brokenness and injustice don’t seem as imminent, and he slips back into his normal routines and almost forgets about what he saw.

Can you imagine the CEO of World Vision admitting that sometimes he gets so distracted by his office work that he forgets about the needs of suffering children around the world? That would have been like me forgetting how to turn on a computer or install updates when I was working as a computer consultant. I’m not judging Richard Stearns, I think about the needs of suffering children way less than he does; I’m actually impressed by his willingness to admit his faults, especially in something as public as a published book.

A huge part of leadership is acknowledging our faults to those we lead; it’s not like they can’t see them. Faults and growth areas are a natural part of life and as leaders we need to acknowledge them and create systems in which they can’t bring us down. Stearns writes about his efforts to personally help one child and how a picture of that child reminds him of the brokenness and injustice he is working against, even in the midst of a busy office schedule. Whatever our faults we need to be humble enough to admit them and strategic enough to address them. No leader is perfect but that doesn’t mean we need to embrace our imperfections.

How have you addressed your faults and growth areas?