Stop Waiting for the Leader to Show Up When the Leader Has Already Arrived
Stop Waiting for the Leader to Show Up When the Leader Has Already Arrived
Stop waiting for a leader to emerge when the leader is already here. I love that idea. Could it be possible that you’re waiting for someone else to lead when, in fact, you are the leader who should step up? Holding back and waiting for a leader to appear means someone else has to take on that role, even though it was your opportunity to lead. You must admit that’s quite interesting. Let me share a few thoughts on that.
Most leaders are waiting on the commission for leadership.
Many leaders are waiting for a formal commission to assume their leadership roles. Those who fail to recognize that they are leaders often find themselves waiting for someone else to step in and lead. Essentially, they are waiting for someone to tell them to lead, but in reality, no one is qualified to do so or even aware of their potential as leaders or desire to lead.
I will share a couple of stories shortly that illustrate this point. You don’t need someone else to grant you permission to lead; you must take the initiative and commission yourself. A true leader learns to recognize their own leadership abilities and steps up without waiting for external validation.
A leader must commission themselves as a leader.
Leadership defaults to the person who has been commissioned.
Leadership often defaults to the person who has been officially appointed. You may have noticed that sometimes, more often than not, a person is designated as a leader, and yet you believe you could lead better. Don’t let that thought surprise you; it’s highly likely true. You probably are a better leader than the current appointee, but the reason they hold that position is that you never stepped up to lead it yourself.
In other words, you are waiting for an opportunity to be appointed while someone less qualified, less gifted, or less talented than you is given the role simply because you think they possess something you don’t. The reality is that you haven’t taken the initiative to lead. Instead, you should have joined alongside the commissioned leader to start your leadership journey in the area where you’ve been dissatisfied and complaining. This is the very area where you perceive the current leader is underperforming, and yet they have the role you think you could excel in – only because you didn’t step up to take it.
A leader must be commissioned, but it’s important to understand that a true leader doesn’t need to wait for formal commissioning. The normal average person, however, is waiting to be designated, authorized, or assigned as the leader when that’s not how leadership works. This mindset represents a significant problem holding many back from becoming a leader.
Without effective leadership, there is chaos.
I want to share an experience I learned about years ago. The church we attend organizes what we call Serve Day Projects. In these initiatives, individuals propose projects to serve a particular area in the community. For this specific project, we decided to help paint a school and make improvements in a struggling community that needed assistance.
When we arrived that morning, we had limited time to complete the project, and all the necessary resources and tools had to be provided. Many people from different backgrounds and walks of life signed up to help with this project. However, when we got to the school in the heart of Birmingham, we discovered no “leader” present. There was someone who had organized the project, but they had never led such a team before. While they were eager to serve, they did not know how to effectively lead the group they had gathered to achieve our goal for that day.
My family consisted of more than ten individuals who were added to the group to help with the project. When we arrived, we found everyone was looking around, unsure what to do. Although we knew our main task was to paint the school, no one was there to provide instructions. The person who started the project was busy gathering supplies and answering the litany of questions being asked of them but wasn’t effectively directing the team.
Seeing this, I decided to step in and help. I approached the project organizer and said, “I’ll take ownership of one hallway. All we need are the supplies, and I will organize a subteam to work on that section.” The organizer was relieved and provided us with everything we needed. This moment highlighted that the organizer, while well-intentioned, was not truly a leader; they had simply initiated the project.
Don’t miss this. By taking the initiative, I assumed a leadership role because we were there to serve the community. Without proper leadership, we risk not making a meaningful impact. We focused on one hallway, assigning tasks such as cutting, taping, preparing, cleaning, gathering supplies, and painting. Once our roles were established, we began painting and completed the entire hallway smoothly and efficiently.
While my family did an excellent job in our assigned area, we felt disheartened when we saw the other parts of the school. Without effective leadership, there was chaos, and it became clear that while many people were working, they lacked guidance on how to make their efforts effective. As a result, many tasks went unfinished, and we left the school feeling that despite our accomplishments in the hallway, we might have worsened its condition.
This experience underscored the critical importance of leadership. When leaders do not step up, projects can falter. I believe there were other individuals in other areas who may have been present but never took the initiative to lead, which meant the group didn’t achieve their best work. Ultimately, everything rises and falls on leadership, as John Maxwell teaches. In the absence of leadership, the best of who we are and what we could have done is never brought to fruition.
The best leader may not be the one who has been commissioned.
As a leader, if you find yourself in a situation where you believe you could lead more effectively than the person commissioned, it’s essential to build a relationship with that appointed leader. Offer your support and assistance until they choose to relinquish their leadership role and hand it over to you. It’s a simple process; in fact, you don’t need an official title to be the leader.
The problem with most leaders is that they wait for someone to recognize them as leaders before they take the responsibility. When I enter a room or join a team, I immediately identify opportunities where I can contribute, lead, and provide the most value. Therefore, I see myself as a leader without needing a formal title. That’s the mindset you should adopt because, ultimately, people are looking for someone who can guide them, not merely someone with a title.
So, stop waiting for someone to designate you as a leader. Take initiative and lead. Let me emphasize this again: stop waiting to lead and start leading. Learn to embrace leadership without needing formal recognition – begin to lead today.
At the end of the day, people are looking for the person who can lead, not the person with the title.
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