Chris Mance II - Mental Skills Coach

Leadership in its traditional form is not for everyone. The expectation in today’s culture is for leaders to push their team to peruse the mission and vision with steadfast strategy and aggressive tactics. The assumption is that if you don’t lead this way, you can’t lead.  There is little to no space left for individuals who are naturally more passive to serve as leaders.

However, what if you are called to lead and this rigid perspective on leadership doesn’t fit your personality?  What if aggression is not in your character?  What if command and control makes you feel uncomfortable?  Is there another way?

I say yes.  There is a place for you to shepherd as your form of leading.

Shepherding as a metaphor has lost its luster in today’s culture.  For one, being a sheep is now considered a criticism. So why would anyone want to shepherd? Whereas anybody familiar with Christianity knows that traditionally it’s a blessing to be a sheep.   For example Psalm 100:3 states “Know that the Lord is God; It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.” Also, Ezekiel 34:31 states “You my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are people, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign Lord.“

There are over 40 Bible verses that reference God’s people as sheep in a non-critical manner.  In addition, there are also several more that reference leading from a Shepherd’s perspective.  The primary example being John 10:11 when Jesus states “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”

With that as the context, how does one who is called to lead, use the approach of a shepherd to achieve the goal of the mission and vision when traditional leadership doesn’t work for them?  Here are four suggestions:

1. Start with the team. Nobody wants to herd cats. You can’t shepherd a team that doesn’t want to follow you. You must have the right team members in order to serve as their shepherd. The #1 thing you must do is remove difficult team members as soon as they identify themselves and replace them with people who believe in you and who want to follow you.
2. Provide your team with all of the tools and creature comforts needed for success. As the saying goes, you can’t do much on an empty stomach.
3. Establish a deputy. This is someone who is strong in the leadership areas where you are weak. It may be someone to do the project management for the team, focus on the communication aspects,  or just to provide motivation and “rah-rah” speeches to keep the team excited.  
4. Encourage your team members to take ownership of a piece of the mission or a specific task and allow them to develop their own leadership skills. Then pitch in and help your team members with the tasks they own. Then you can lead by being an example of a good worker, or as they say lead from the front.