In our series on leadership attributes, we now turn to perseverance, or finishing well. We can see our calling as a leader as a race. And after all, as we finish our race, don’t we long to hear Jesus say to us:
‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’  Matthew 25:23
But how do we persevere as leaders? I’ve seen many emerging leaders work hard on their development, pursuing educational goals, working with mentors and taking on challenging assignments. At times they would express concern to me that they were working much harder on their development than existing leaders were. The perception was that for some leaders, once they achieved a formal leadership position, they tended to coast – and I’m sure that’s true. Servant leaders, on the other hand, desire to keep on growing as leaders and adding value, as long as they are physically and mentally able. Continue reading →