6 Habits of Purposeful LeadersSample

Habit #2: Generosity

When God created the world and everything in it, He said it was good. The Hebrew word used here is tov or טוב, meaning fit for the purpose it was designed for (not in the practical sense but in a sense of wonder). It is something that is excellent, valuable, prosperous, and bountiful. It is as simple as seeing something do what it was designed to do and being amazed by it. When God created the world, He looked on it (and us) with wonder. Nothing was lacking. There was an abundance of goodness. Only when we realise our abundance can our purpose thrive. Generosity habits help us break free from scarcity and into abundance.

When there is an abundance, there is more than enough to share. A good place to start is by thinking of something you are holding onto for fear you don’t have enough. For some of us, that is money, so the habit of generosity can be related to finances. For others it is time, reputation, credit, job promotions, relationships, etc.

This habit encourages you to intentionally share what God has given you to experience the abundance of it. I have a friend who is the busiest person I know. He has launched businesses, founded charities, and written books. He was worried that he would become a person that didn’t have time for people. So, he created a daily habit from 8-9am every morning where he would respond to his family and friends and answer emails from people. He knew if he didn’t make that intentional habit, his other habits would override. He wanted to be a person who was there for anyone, always. That was who God designed him to be. Those habits helped him be generous with his time.

You may want to take the brave step of standing up for something you know is right, even if you risk your reputation. You could be generous by sharing the credit of your work achievements with people who contributed in small ways, giving recognition to those who feel unseen. You might share your relational capacity or your connections. You may want to create financial giving challenges, believing God will provide your needs.

The key is to look at what you are scared you don’t have enough of to be a purposeful leader and challenge yourself to give even more of that. Recently for me, this was money. When God called me to do something new, I immediately looked at our bank account and panicked. As a result, my grip got tighter on our money. I stopped spending time with people because that cost money. On a particularly tough day, a friend at church came up to my husband and me to say, “God wants you to know that He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and He will provide for you.” And in His lovingly correcting way, God reminded me to open my hands again.

Think about what you need to loosen your grip on to share with others. Develop a habit so you can start practising it.