Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Leaders Listen & Take Advice II

Proverbs12:15 (MSG) Fools are headstrong and do what they like; wise people take advice.

Headstrong. I can relate. Sometimes, I’ve dug in my heels because I just knew what was right; yet, I did not have the complete picture. Rather foolish of me, but I did not think so at the time! But then, we must all learn from our mistakes. It is the second part of this verse that propels and ultimately defines leaders.

Listening leaders are the ones who have learned that the more they know, the more there is to know and they cannot know it all. They model that learning is life-long. Leaders learn to listen - not just hear - and they have honed the skill to listen with a set of expectations that listening and learning will help them produce meaningful results.

If your board is giving direction, are you listening? If your staff is disengaged and seemingly “not on the bus,” are you engaging them by seeking their advice on how, together, you can achieve expected results. If your spouse is making passing comments that your pursuit of business has had an impact on your pursuit of Godliness, do you listen?

Simply listening to advice and actually taking advice are two different activities.

In which activity are you engaged?

For Further Study

How do these verses add shape and meaning to this verse?
Prov 11:4
Prov 13:10
Prov 15:22
Matt 13:16

What can we learn from the disciples in these passages?
Matt 12:36
Mark 4:10
Luke 3:12
John 6:28

Personal application: Who might be offering you advice that you regularly ignore out of either self-righteousness or conceit?


Copyright ©2009 by P. Griffith Lindell

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