LESSON 8 :: Relationships are Key

Developing the strength of relationships and bringing out the best in others.

• Closely Held Corporation “Imagine what kind of management this nation would have if CEOs spent as much time mulling over and meditating on their staffers’ growth as they did over their budget reports. This would give new meaning to the term a closely held corporation. Leaders and managers often spend too much energy trying to make numbers dance. Anyone can tell you that numbers don’t dance; only people do.” Jesus CEO, p. 231

Behold Your Community

I am simply amazed that we are in our last lesson. We have covered so much ground! Congratulations to you for all the hard work, reflecting, and planning you have done as a result of our previous seven lessons. You are now among a growing group of businesspeople who are learning the deep joy and true peace of being spiritreneurs. Whatever your work environment might be, you have also learned the keys to being a dynamic leader for good.

Our last strength to master is that of Relationships. In this lesson, our focus will be on the bedrock of all business ventures: good, ethical, and growth-producing relationships.

Focus

Focus is one of the key attributes of a leader, and nowhere is it more powerful than when applied to and on behalf of another human being. To behold someone means to be fully centered and to hold, or embrace, that person in that moment. You truly see people not only for what they are today, but also for what you know they can be. And people know how you behold them even if you do not say a word.

I suggest there are at least three ways to hold your community in such a way as to let them know they are unique, gifted, and important in this world.

1. Be open to people and their ideas. Some leaders mistakenly believe their power has been given to them to order others to do their bidding. The spiritreneurial Omega leader knows that power has been given so we may elicit the thoughts and ideas of others and help them accomplish those things, as they are congruent with our mission and our enterprise.
2. Treat others as equals. Again, our role model in this respect is Jesus. Arguably, he could view himself as God’s greatest gift to this world, yet he chose to translate his power into magnetic love to draw and accept others, especially those who were shunned by the rest of the community. People felt good about themselves in his presence. Your community will flourish when you use your power as a leader to show respect for others by meeting them where they are and accepting them for who they are.
3. Praise others. It is said that there is no sweeter sound than that of praise. When our own name is attached to that praise, so much the better. Your community will understand your beholding of them clearly when you use public forums to praise the work they have done and the characteristics they have displayed.

This third aspect of acknowledging and applauding your employees and others you connect with will distinguish you as a remarkable leader who is focused on others and has a clear understanding of the magnificence of the universe. We never diminish ourselves when we genuinely praise and acknowledge others; we do not deplete the universal resources of acclaim for ourselves. In fact, as we have learned in previous lessons, our satisfaction and applause come from sources about which most of the world never knows!

While I have given you three powerful ways to behold your community, you will want to carefully read and digest the “Strength of Relationships” section of Jesus CEO for more thought provoking applications of this strength.

• The Circle of Service The principle of service is what separates true leaders from glory seekers. Jesus, as he represented God to humanity, modeled this shift in thinking by consistently asking people, “How can I help you?” We are all part of a circle of service that is fed and enjoyed when true service inspires us to serve, which in turns evokes true service from the ones we serve. An Omega leader knows that to change the world, we only need to serve.

Look Out for the Little Guys

Do you spend time with the little guys in your organization, or do you consistently position your time and energy with the big guys? I am sure you can readily identify both types of “guys” in your everyday work life. The little guys are the ones who serve silently and with little recognition. They are behind the scenes and may have time and loyalty as their only resources to give you. They may be the immigrants or the undereducated or the ones who live on the other side of town. They may be just the common folk of our day.

Jesus looked out for the little guys. You, as someone questing to have your spirituality inform all of your enterprises, will take that as part of your mission too. Here are three ways to make that happen:

1. Give the little guys a vision of something larger. Clearly and consistently convey to your staff and constituents the significance of what they are doing. Introduce and underscore the notion of calling — of doing what you do with a sense of mission. Become familiar with the process I have laid out in my book The Path (one of the supplementary reading materials for this course) for an outline of what it means to enable people to have a vision of something larger.
2. Define their benefits. Help your team clearly see the tangible benefits they reap from working with you. Then go a step further and help them identify and articulate the intangible benefits of their association with you. Give yourself the challenge of listing three things per month that you could do to make your employees’ lives more abundant.
3. Offer good education. In recent studies, employees have indicated that good, relevant, and life-expanding training is one way an employer can significantly increase retention and effectiveness. Educating the mind, heart, and spirit will give you more loyal, enthusiastic, and valuable colleagues. So the question is: How much time do you spend educating your employees?

Each of these practices will help you avoid what I call the Sprinkler Phenomenon of Management, in which so much energy and drive is going to the outer reaches of the yard that the grass closest to the source of the water is left dry. When you look out for the little guys, you practice the “ripple” style of management, depending on small circles to spread into bigger ones. When given the choice between internal or external PR, make internal your top priority.

• An Interesting Perspective Is it possible to truly “get ahead” if someone is left behind? Can we ourselves feel we have crossed the finish line if the race is still being run by someone else? A spiritreneur will always define these dynamics from a global — or heavenly, if you will — perspective.

Take Everyone to the Top

• Believe in Your Team

This key to mastering the Strength of Relationships lies in empowering others.

The first step to empowering others is to believe in them. Even when evidence is to the contrary, envision the best in them. They each have a goodness in them that they just may be hesitant to share. See that goodness and let them know.

• Give Them Your Authority

This requires a great deal of trust. But when you share information and the vision with them, and then give them the authority to carry out the plan, you empower them to do the right thing. This not only benefits the individuals of your team, but offers fulfillment to the community, as well.

• Urge Them On

As you see them moving ahead in power and passion, urge them on. One of the greatest ways to do this is to set an example yourself. Give your colleagues the role modeling they need to understand what is expected of them and what you consider to be successful behavior. Ask yourself this question: Would you be willing to have someone videotape your deeds for a day and then use that tape as a training video? Urge your co-workers on with your visual and experiential training of the practices and attitudes that keep things moving in the right direction.

• Hold Them Accountable

As you model, educate, shape, and make transformation available to your team, remember to hold them accountable. This has nothing to do with assigning blame when something goes wrong. It has everything to do with growth. Accountability shows you hold people as equals who make choices and share success. It shows you trust them with challenges. It can be a medal, a mark of a job well done, that people will be honored to wear.

• Defend Them

Lastly, when you are going to take everyone to the top, sometimes you must defend them. We don’t leave those who have made mistakes out to flap in the breeze. We stand with them, link arms with them, and together we all cross the finish line. An Omega leader stands with colleagues who are being attacked — deserved or not — to complete the circle of esteem that distinguishes someone who is mastering the Strength of Relationship.

• Greatest Accomplishment In the final accounting, will it be a “what” or a “who” that means the most to you? Will your legacy be marked by a storehouse of tangible goods, or will it be noteworthy because of transformed lives? As a spiritreneur, you may, as Jesus did, leave only one tattered garment behind. But your life may be counted a success if you can list people, even one person, as your greatest accomplishment.

Love Them to the End

The final mark that clearly distinguishes the Omega leader is that of cherishing the relationships formed in business and otherwise. Although not a highly touted characteristic of many business executives, and often believed actually to be a weakness, mastery in the strength of relationships is most clearly demonstrated when you truly love the people you lead. What are some practical ways to do this?

• Say Yes

Rather than simply saying an automatic no when people ask something of you, make it a practice to say yes. Doing this, especially when it is not convenient for you, will transform you in holistic ways that you had not dreamed possible as a businessperson.

• Be Transparent

People can handle the truth. Even more, people deserve to truly know someone like you who is seeking to be a spiritreneur. When you are totally open with them, true love and learning begin. Keep facts, situations, and yourself transparent.

• Forgive Them

Jesus knew the only way he would be able to present his team as the dynamic force that they were was to forgive them the betrayals, denials, and petty thinking along the way. Forgiveness means allowing others to make mistakes while you and they keep moving forward.

• Spend Time With Them

Play with them. Contrary to popular thinking and protocol in some organizations, there are times when it is very appropriate to simply play with and enjoy those you lead — it goes along with treating others as equals and seeking to develop them as complete beings. Invite a coworker to coffee with you. Laugh and celebrate special occasions or just being alive. This playtime signals our recognition that we do indeed work with multi-faceted people and can bring out the best in them in good and bad times.

• See Them as God’s Gifts

Delight in your team. Smile at them. Enjoy their company. Love them, truly.

In Closing

Congratulations! You have finished this course. You have run the race, so to speak.

My prayer is that you have been transformed and are now keenly aware of your unique giftedness and mission. My desire is that you take all that you have learned, and in learning have been transformed, and live each day with the keen awareness that you are making a living doing what you love to the honor of God. I am blessed to have spent this time with you — many blessings on you, as well.

Assignment: Jesus Inc.: Doing Well by Doing Right

Read the “Strength of Relationships” section in Jesus CEO. Look carefully at the Appendix of Leader Affirmations for phrases and reminders you can utilize every day as you grow in leadership and in business.

Please consider the following questions and visit the Message Board with your reflections and input:

1. How much concentrated, focused time do you spend beholding your employees, customers, and supplier each day?
2. Do you clearly communicate to your staff the higher purpose for their activities?
3. How many people do you intend to take with you on the road to success? Are they aware of it?
4. Have you made a commitment to love your people no matter what?

I warmly invite you to visit my Web site, http://www.jesusceo.com, for more information on my mission, philosophy, and activities as I myself seek to grow in spiritreneurship and leadership. Look for upcoming seminars and events that will be beneficial to you on your journey.