There are many types of people who regularly cross the path of a leader. As you climb the ladder that you're on, you'll encounter people who are
1. Where you used to be.
2. People who are going where you're going.
3. People who are in the place that you want to be.
Many of the difficulties that you'll encounter come from not knowing how to deal with the issues and situations raised by these different groups. When we don't know how to disengage and engage with people, it causes pain. Knowing more about these eight particular types of people can help you to deal with them appropriately:
1. Positive and negative people
2. People you have outgrown
3. People who are tied to yesterday's solutions
4. "That's not my job" people
5. People who have not moved on
6. People who can give you new perspective
7. People you can be transparent with
8. People who can celebrate your success
1. You'll encounter both positive and negative people. It's easy to recognize positive people; they are the ones who add value to your life. As you move up your ladder, it's important to have positive people around you. We are all built with a need for approval and we want to be around people who add value by agreeing with us. It's also important to understand that agreement is not always positive and disagreement is not always negative; people can disagree with us and still add value. But there are some people who will not agree with us at all. What can you do about these people? What strategy can you use with them? I heard one very insightful remark from the former president of Kenya. During our discussion, he made the comment, "To appease everybody is to invite trouble." When a company or an organization grows, you will find yourself appeasing fewer people. Appeasement means that you have to find the middle of the road. The more you travel in the middle of the road, the more mediocrity you're going to produce. Excellence is found on the edges, never in the middle. Saying "yes" to one group or one person and "no" to another invites challenges on each side. Many times, when a negative person gives you their opinion, they expect you to follow through. That's why it's important to be around people who are willing to give you input without a demanding spirit. These are the positive people, the ones who will add value and help you get where you want to go.
2. You must also deal with people you have outgrown. Growing is necessary; it's what keeps you moving. There will be folks who started the journey with you that you will outdistance. Maybe there's someone who was an integral part of your organization who just hasn't grown with you. People have to understand that if you don't grow, you've got to go. The same thing can happen in a church. Perhaps you began with 25, 30, or even 100 people in your congregation. As you expanded to two or more services and added many more people, you might find that the elders, board members or other leaders who accompanied you are not the same ones who will take you where you need to go. As a leader, you have to accept those facts.
3. People who are tied to yesterday's solutions are another concern. Dealing with the "old guard" is an issue that every leader has to wrestle with. In the early stages of an organization, we throw people at issues. When you began your church, you just wanted someone to play the keyboard. You weren't concerned about the person's musical pedigree. If you and your son started a landscaping business, for instance, you're not looking for people with vast experience. You're just looking for someone who is breathing, who can come to work and push a lawn mower. So maybe you just hire your neighbor's son, who is also your son's friend. After a certain amount of growth, we begin refining our approach or expertise. When that happens, that's when we realize that the people we have doing the work are not working out. Maybe they don't understand what you want, don't want to learn contemporary worship songs, or wonder what's wrong with the way they've always done things. What do you do with those people now? Yesterday's solutions have become today's problems. And because the young man you hired to push the lawnmower is your son's friend, your son may not like it when you let him go. Your neighbor may not like it either. Solving issues about yesterday's solutions are often complicated.
4. Then there are the "that's not my job" people. When you hire people, they're typically tied to job descriptions. At higher levels, you are less concerned with job descriptions than you are with the three essential factors of: • Character • Competency • Chemistry Competency is about the skills, the training, and the experience required to get the job done. Character is about integrity. Bill Hybels describes integrity as what you do when there's nobody watching you. You want to know that you can trust this person. Chemistry is the one characteristic that can really cause issues. It asks, "Does this person fit in?" "Can they get along with other people?" Carly Fiorina was the first outsider to lead Hewlett Packard. When she left, many people attributed her departure to chemistry. She just didn't fit in with the culture of HP. Southwest Airlines is a prime example of the great results you can achieve when employees have the right blend of competency, character and chemistry. A man called the Southwest Airlines ticket counter in Dallas concerned about his elderly mother's ability to change planes in Tulsa. The ticket agent who took the call volunteered to drive the woman to the airport and fly with her from Dallas to Tulsa after his shift was over, just to ensure that she made the connection. You want people like that, people who aren't restricted by the circumstances under which they were hired. You want people who take ownership of the situation instead of saying, "That's not my job."