The Ministry of Management
Lencioni fans…. anyone?
I’m a big one. Patrick Lencioni has mastered the art taking some of the hardest work on the planet and simplifying it into models, presented by fables, that anyone can digest and directly apply.
As part of a current client project, I recently re-read his The Three Signs of a Miserable Job. In total, it’s a really simply breakdown of employee engagement, but here’s the thing. The subtitle is “A Fable for Managers (and their employees)”. Did you catch that? A fable for Managers (first).
The last thing in the book before the Acknowledgements is a 1-page statement he titles, “The Ministry of Management”. More than once I’ve heard Lencioni express his personal Christian faith but it’s not something he leads with and rarely includes in his writing. But here, he does. We writes…
“… I have come to the realization that all managers can - and really should - view their work as a ministry. A service to others.” Further in describing this work… “All of which is nothing short of a gift from God.”
This is a shift in mindset with massive implications!
Whether your the CEO who confesses “the work just isn’t fun anymore” or the high-performer turned first-time manager who admits “this is so hard!”, it’s this mindset shift that can acknowledge the difficulty in your circumstance AND embrace the “gift” which you’ve been called to steward. Our roles as leaders isn’t always fun and it is often hard; really, really hard.
The last two years has brought challenge that none of us could have ever dreamed. And we’re far from a day when we can exhale and say, “I’m glad that’s [finally] over.” Because here’s the thing, the next challenge is just around the bend. The hard truth (pun intended) is that when we sign up to lead, challenge is just part of the territory.
But take heart! You’re not alone. And there are plenty of things you can do to equip yourself for what you are facing today and what is coming. Read, attend a conference, hire a coach, join a peer group, develop your team, find a mentor. And if you’re not sure where to start, ask someone you trust. But let me be so bold to say that the first thing you should do is check that mindset thing. And if you can get to the place of service, even ministry, that’s a great start!