Authentic Leadership: How to Lead With Nothing to Hide, Nothing to Prove, and Nothing to Loseናሙና

Four Steps to Leading Authentically

When I was a young leader, I lived by the phrase "Practice what you preach". I constantly reminded myself how important it was for me to teach what I wanted my team to do, and then work hard to model it. I was terrified that, if I acted inconsistently to what I publically professed, I would lose my team's confidence.

Frankly, that led to a lot of unnecessary pressure. Since then, I’ve learned the value of flipping the script a bit. It’s important not to practice what you preach, but preach only what you’ve practiced. It's a small shift with big implications. Your actions must precede your announcements. It's better to do something before you say something.

Of course, it is always much easier to talk about what needs to be done in the company, in the family, or on the team, but the advantage will always go to the people who don't talk. They simply do what needs to be done. These people practice a skill for an extended period, then point to their results, saying I know the way. “I did it already. And I can show you how to do it too.”

As you are authentically leading others into a new venture, or better behavior, there are four steps you need to take to effectively move them. First, lead people to where you've been, then grab their hearts, next engage their heads, and finally ask for their hands.

1. Lead People to Where You've Been

What’s remarkable about Moses' story, is that when he led the Israelites out of Egypt, he was leading them back to the mountain where he originally met God. And a sense, he was leading people to a place where he had already been. That's a snapshot of the authentic nature of his leadership. He had genuine confidence in God, therefore, it was much easier to compel people to have confidence in God as well. He knew the way. And it's much easier to lead people to a place where you’ve already been.

2. Grab Their Hearts

Authentic Leaders take time to connect with a felt, obvious, urgent need. This often rests on your ability to use words to convey a sense of urgency. This is where the leader will affirm previously held beliefs, and then challenge people to take it up a notch in service of the felt need. This is especially important when people are mired in the day-to-day grind. We need leaders to lift our eyes and our hearts and help us see what’s possible on the next horizon.

3. Engage Their Heads

Often, people simply need to be inspired to take on a challenging vision. But the most dedicated people will need a plan. They need to see how this might unfold. What’s the first step? What’s the fifth step? They want to know that someone has taken the time to look at the details. It doesn’t mean that plans are concrete. They simply want to know that you have done your homework. And they’ll want to make it their own, so give your people an opportunity to weigh in. Engage the heart, then engage the head.

4. Ask for Their Hands

This is a critical step in leading people. Ask them to participate. Don’t suggest. Don’t hint. Don’t hope that they understand. Be explicit. Ask them to join in. Tell them exactly what meeting to go to, website to click, person to talk to, or check to write. Tell them how to do it.

I can’t tell you how many people I’ve worked with who’ve had great visions and laid out a strong plan, but when it came time to ask people to join them on the mission, they faltered. People pause at this step because this is the step that brings the possibility of rejection. When you ask people for something, they could say no. And when people say no, it can cause you to doubt your original vision.

Authentic Leaders believe in themselves and their noble cause so much that when they hear a “no” they only hear “not now.” The noble cause is so real to them that they can imagine how every person who uttered “no” will eventually change their mind and ask to join the cause. Authentic Leaders believe that there are enough “yesses” out there, regardless of how many initial “nos” they hear. They just need to find them. So, they continue to ask until they have the people they need to tackle the noble cause.

If God is calling you to lead, you must lead with authenticity. You know who you are, what skills you have, and what God has called you to do, you’ll be able to lead with genuine confidence. Without insecurity, with nothing to hide nothing to prove, and nothing to lose.