Authenticity in Leadership: A New Year's Message for Church Leaders
As the phrase "New Year, New You" gets tossed around at this time of year, it's undeniably catchy but can also be incredibly exhausting. Church leaders feel an everyday weight of expectation to be more and do more, and this pressure seems to intensify with a fresh calendar year. However, your church doesn't require an idealized version of you, but the honest, present, and growing real you. This sentiment is the focus of today's Healthy Church Staff Podcast episode.
Embracing Authentic Leadership
Amidst the swirling demands of the ministry that implores you to lead with vision, care with heart, speak with clarity, think strategically, and be organized, it's easy to mask your true self. Packaging oneself for approval and curating a leadership brand might be tempting, yet it seldom fuels transformation, neither for you nor your church.
Authenticity is not about oversharing, but about abandoning the draining act of embodying an ideal leader and instead bringing your full self – flaws and all – to the work that God has given you.
Building Trust within your Team
What builds trust with your staff and volunteers isn't perfection – it's humility, transparency, and the willingness to admit you're learning. Paradoxically, the moment you cease trying to be impressive is when you become far more impactful.
You may often find yourself looking around, comparing your church to others, and feeling behind. You may gaze upon other leaders and wonder whether you should emulate their style. But remember, what your team needs are not replicas of successful leaders, but authentic leaders who understand their season, embrace their learning curves, and show up as people, not products.
Being 'You' in the New Year
As we embrace 2022, resist the urge to become someone else or reinvent yourself. Rather, step into the year fully alive, fully surrendered, and authentically you, because that is precisely what God uses. Carry this bottom line with you into the New Year:
Stop striving to be someone your church admires and start being someone your team can trust.
To delve deeper into this, listen to today's Healthy Church Staff Podcast episode. Always remember, choosing real over ideal prevails, every single time. Let's bring in a year of authentic leadership together.
