Lead With IntentSample

4. Principle - Practice - Impact on Culture

Gratitude - Celebration - Being Valued

Paul was always grateful for the people he worked with. A wonderful example of this is at the beginning of his letter to the Philippians: "I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy." Paul is in prison and full of gratitude. Are you grateful for what you have and where you are? One of my mentors always says: "You are exactly where God will meet you." Paul is enslaved in jail and grateful for the people that work with him towards a common cause. How often are you grateful for your colleagues at work?

The best way to show your gratitude as a leader is by celebrating the lives of the people you work with. Don't delegate it! Take the time to send people a message and express your gratitude for who they are; talk about their character, not about results. Celebrate their humanity, not their production. If we celebrate people, they feel valued. We have seen with many corporates how people volunteer their productivity once they feel valued. People are not valuable because they produce. People are valuable because God created them in His image, and we celebrate that by telling them regularly that we appreciate who they are. For example, every morning when I drop my daughter at school, I say: "Grace, Mommy and I are so grateful you are our daughter, and this world is a better place with you in it!"