Before You Lead

Every leader plays to more than one audience: a board, a staff, donors, a congregation, critics on social media. All of them are watching, and all of them have opinions. If you’re honest, there’s probably at least one audience whose disapproval you fear, and that fear is quietly shaping your decisions.

In this episode, I share a moment from early in my leadership. I also look at Matthew 21, where the religious leaders knew the right answer but were afraid of the crowd. Crowd approval is rare, and when it comes, the next meeting or the next comment takes it away. It can’t give us what only God can provide.

Today’s practice: Name the audience whose approval you most want, or whose disapproval you most fear. Which one has the most power over your leadership decisions right now? What would you do differently if you truly believed God sees your leadership?

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Before You Lead is a free gift from Todd Hunter Ministries. If this episode helped you, share it with a leader you know.

Every leader has a “Sunday afternoon”: the recurring moment when you feel most exposed to judgment, knocked around by flattery and criticism. For a pastor, it’s after the sermon. For you, it might be walking out of a board meeting or replaying a hard conversation on the drive home. You might have late-night battles with your inner critic.

In this first episode, I share a coaching conversation with a pastor who felt constantly evaluated (”everyone has a different ruler by which they measure me”). There’s nothing wrong with taking satisfaction when your leadership goes well, but the trouble starts when others’ praise becomes your fuel.

Today’s practice: Name your Sunday afternoon moment. When you replay it, notice whose voice dominates: your critics, your fans, or your Father in heaven? What does that tell you about where your treasure really is?

Before You Lead is a free gift from Todd Hunter Ministries. If this episode helped you, share it with a leader you know.