Leadership Develops Daily, Not in a Day – Part 1

So Joseph told his dream to his father and his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down before you?” Genesis 37:10 Becoming a leader is a lot like investing in the stock market. If you hope to make a fortune in a day, you’re doomed. It’s what you do day by day, over the long haul, that matters most. If you continually develop your leadership, letting your “assets” compound over time, the inevitable result is growth. Although some individuals have greater natural gifts than others, nearly all the skills of leadership can be learned and improved. But that process doesn’t happen overnight. Leadership has so many facets: respect, experience, emotional intelligence, people skills, discipline, vision, momentum, timing – the list is a long one. That’s why leaders require so much seasoning to be effective. The good news is that you can grow in your ability to lead. Regardless of your starting point, you can improve. As we see in Scripture, Joseph, one of the greatest leaders of all time, started out as a very cocky kid, far too arrogant for his own good. One of 12 boys, he didn’t think it was enough to be his father’s favorite, the child who received special treatment. He had to rub it in the faces of his siblings. When God gave Joseph a dream revealing that he would one day lead his family – his bothers and his parents – Joseph bragged about it to everyone. His father rebuked him, his brothers sought revenge, and they got it. In this early stage of his life, Joseph didn’t know how to skillfully work with others. He lacked experience, wisdom, and humility – three qualities typically only gained with the passage of time. In part 2 of this blog, I will show how time and experience contributed to the development of Joseph’s leadership skills and can contribute to the development of yours as well. Please comment below or email me directly at curtis.songer@gmail.com