FOLLOW THE LEADERand growing. Their leadership potential will be neglected – or misdirected. It
is through the extra mentoring with these special followers that leadership
development takes place. It is by pouring himself into these eager and
able younger followers that the leader reproduces himself in the life of
others. This is where the reproduction of leadership takes place. It is with
these “eager beavers” that leadership potential is developed in others. This
is where the exponential leadership factor kicks in. It is with these followers
that leadership development moves from addition to multiplication! A wise
leader never neglects these potential leaders for the next generation.
It is only through the lives of these young leaders that an older leader
outlives himself!
A good leader – like a good shepherd – must learn how to pace himself and
pace his followers. All the while he has an eye and heart for the potential
young leaders around him. When he identifies these would-be young
leaders, he does not squelch or squash their leadership potential out of
insecurity, fear or paranoia. Neither does he “put them in their place.”
Rather, he begins to nurture them to be “put in his place!” He knows that
an effective leader – like effective parents – must always work himself out
of a job. It has always been true that: “It takes a leader to spot a leader – and
it takes a leader to build another leader. As John Maxwell says: “It takes one to
know one, show one, and grow one.”^11 Leaders who are reproducers of reproducers
are always selectively pouring themselves into the lives of others. Wise
leaders want to build leaders – not just gain more followers.
Principle:
“Leaders that last beckon leaders, birth leaders and
build leaders.”Finally, as we saw in an earlier chapter, to be a pace-setter means that a
good leader must often be prophetic. To be truly prophetic, one must have
clearly heard from the Lord. Like the prophets of old, a good leader will
have his spiritual ears finely tuned to God – and his physical ears finely tuned to
his followers. However, a wise spiritual leader does not seek to reinforce his
position by going around saying: “God told me...” or “Thus says the Lord!”
Those kinds of pontifications come more from immaturity and insecurity
than from God! If the leader has truly heard from the Lord, it will be
more evidenced by his life than by his lips! There will be a prophetic lifestyle