I mentioned on a recent blog post about a generation of pastors and Christian leaders I'm seeing out there who have experienced great success by the power of their personalities, motivation, and personal charisma. In a Christian celebrity culture, they excite and inspire audiences, and become leaders based on external abilities. But what they lack is sober responsibility. They are not personally disciplined leaders, forged in the fires of adversity. They don't have to make the hard choices (they have "executive pastors" to do that). They have an attractive ... read more

I'm all for brains. We need smarter people in all walks of life. I worked hard to get a Ph.D. because I believe in the power of intelligence. But I wonder that we sometimes get so distracted by trying to be the "smartest guy in the room" that we forget real leadership isn't all about brains. Look at the people around you right now - chances are, if the building caught on fire, the person who stepped up to keep everyone calm, organize them, and lead them safely out won't be the ... read more

People are quick to point out that leaders are role models, and that employees or team members pick up great leadership traits from the top man or woman. But the uncomfortable truth is, they also pick up bad habits as well. There's a CEO that we've worked with from time who time who's arrogant, always late for meetings, and extremely impressed with himself. We had a conference call recently with ... read more

There's a particular problem that leaders face, and it happens in companies, non-profit organizations, churches, and ministries. Far too often - for whatever reason - the only real friends that CEO's, pastors, and other leaders have are people who happen to work for them. Look around you and you'll see it more than you'd expect. The first response I hear is that these are people who are close to the leader because they're with him or her every day. They understand the leader, and they share the vision. I fully understand that argument. You certainly want to work with people you like and are friendly with, so hanging with those people from the office seems perfectly fine. But here's where you run into problems: ... read more

In spite of all the Bible says about faithfulness, the last being first, and pleasing God rather than men, it's absolutely fascinating how enchanted we are with numbers. Check out the latest conferences, and most of the speakers are from the most attended churches. Look at the pastors on the best seller lists, and once again, you'll usually find pastors of the largest churches and ministries. ... read more

I find far too many organizations today paralyzed by a single deadly disease: Leaders who expect their people to follow orders without evidence or justification - as if being the leader somehow places you above defending decisions like everyone else. In companies, you hear executives say: "Trust me..." In churches, you hear pastors say: "I feel God told me…" In non-profits, you hear leadership say: "I've been doing this for a long time so…" But no matter which excuse you hear, be very careful. Those types of phrases aren't said to build support and teamwork, they're used to shut it down. ... read more

Here are some thoughts worth considering on how to lead an organization or team in the new digital media world. The most important aspect of the digital world is that's not top-down. Traditional media is top-down - meaning, one program is sent out through radio or TV and if you miss it, it's over. It's a one way street. But digital media is about two way communication. The key concept to remember is that the digital media world is about personalization, and it's interactive. Today we can download or TIVO programs when we want it, where we want it, and how we want it. It's ... read more

I believe Christian media is facing the greatest generational transition in the history of our culture. The first generation pioneers like Billy Graham, Oral Roberts, Jerry Falwell, James Dobson, D. James Kennedy, Robert Schuller, Pat Robertson, Paul Crouch, and others, have either passed away, retired, or aren't as intensely involved in their ministries as they used to be. The implications of this transition are more critical that many might believe. For instance: ... read more

As 2008 comes closer, I want to throw out a few statements that I'd like you to be thinking about. I want to write about each of them more fully in the near future, but let me toss out a few controversial topics and see if you agree that each one is something we need to confront: ... read more

Whenever I visit local churches, most of the time I'm faced with a frustrated local media producer who's at his or her wits end. They're usually good producers, often with extensive experience, plus a real calling to use media to take the gospel to the culture. But in nearly every case, he or she is either burned out, upset, or ready to quit. ... read more