Pushing, Dragging, Carrying or Inspiring?

Leaders tend to use one of four ways to move people in a desired direction. Each approach works in the short-term, especially when movement is urgently needed. Which way a leader chooses often depends on the people and circumstances involved.  But one way is ultimately the best, one that moves people farther and faster than the others.  But before we talk about that way, let’s take a look at the other three.

The first way is Pushing Leadership.  The reality is sometimes people need a simple push to move forward (think of a mother bird pushing her young out of the nest to learn to fly). In many situations this is the best approach – a gentle push and big things happen.  But too often leaders are simply pushy people. Pushy leaders will wear out their team, especially if their team already knows how to fly. When this happens those being pushed simply comply, hide or leave.

The second way many leaders lead is by dragging their followers along.  Dragging Leadership is when the leader runs so far ahead that the rest of the team is always killing themselves to stay up.  It looks much like a dog race with the leader as the rabbit and the team are the dogs running hard to catch it. It’s an excellent leadership style for dog races but it burns people out quickly.  Yes, leaders should set the pace and lead by example but they need to be careful not to confuse running with leading.

The third way is what I call Carrying Leadership. Carrying leadership occurs when a leader steps in and rescues their team by taking on their jobs and responsibilities.  As with the first two ways, there are times when leaders need to step in and help their people through a difficult patch.  But it turns destructive when leaders create leadership co-dependency by always assuring their team avoids difficulty or pain and thus never learns to deal with problems, issues and rough patches.

Finally, the most effective (and the most difficult) leadership is Inspiring Leadership. Inspiring Leadership requires relationship, clarity, communication, a meaningful cause, an opportunity to succeed, an end to the game, and understanding of role.  Inspiring leadership is helping others make their best contribution and, when they do, receive all the credit.  In Inspiring Leadership is where the team is center stage and the leader is back stage or in the sound booth assuring the team’s success.

So which way do you lead?  Are you a pushing, dragging or carrying leader?  If so, take this as a gentle push to become an Inspiring Leader, one who leads others to become all that God’s created them to be so they can do all that God’s planned for them to do. This is the kind of leadership we all crave and the type of leadership that can change our world.