Leadership. Some of us apparently "got it"...and that's not always good news!
Last time, we talked about one of the instances of my serving in a leadership capacity that brought about not being appreciated.
And there have been others. I won't rehash the incident (s) now, but if you're curious, check out some of my blog posts from 2006 about RWA, the "flak," and "becoming a public person"...and you'll see that I've earned some good leadership breaks along the way.
Fortunately, I've been granted those--and in some unexpected ways.
I've become vice-president of our church women's group, the St. Anne Sodality, through a process that's almost funny in itself...considering I wasn't even planning on going to the meeting at which the elections were held, for various reasons. Only the Holy Spirit nudged me to go, and the next thing I knew...
I've become a member of the Welcoming Team, part of the Leadership Team for the grief support group I attend--again, when I had no intention of stepping into a leadership role, and just wanted to sit by in the background, listen, share, and go home. (If you know how deeply my introversion goes, you're laughing even harder that the leaders thought I'd be "perfect" for sharing the responsibility of making other people feel welcome at a group!) But, to my absolute surprise, these people clearly adore me...and now I've stepped up as well to help reorganize our group's library, something that was in dire need of doing.
All this by way of saying that some of us, no matter how we try to avoid it, seem to get tapped for leadership positions--sometimes for no other reasons but that we see something that needs doing, start throwing ideas on the floor as to how it can get done, and before we know it...we're in charge. This has happened to me from grade school on: remember all those "teams" teachers used to put you in to do projects? Yeah. Half the time, I'd end up heading those up, mostly because I actually had a plan and was willing to push for it when the other kids were trying merely to do as little work as possible.
In a way, this also explains why I'm a lousy employee but a great temp worker, too. Temp workers, after all, are usually handed bare-bones descriptions of the jobs they're going to do, and they are expected not only to Figure Things Out, but in some cases, to figure them out as fast as possible, and often in crisis situations. Like the time I walked into the administrative office of a locked psych/substance abuse unit in a mental hospital, and the counselors turned to me and said, "Help?"
My son caught onto this phenomenon in high school as well, when he shared that he was "afraid" he wouldn't get to play the position he wanted on the football team--safety. (The kid had a nose for interceptions and loved doing them!)
To which I said, "Oh? Why wouldn't you get to do that?"
"Because," he said, with a shrug. "They'll make me quarterback instead."
Why? Because he shows the same leadership quality I have--reluctant as we are to do it sometimes. It's a combination of Having a Clue and Being Willing To Step Up.
A formidable intelligence doesn't hurt--which he also has.
And he was right. They did make him quarterback. And not only was he really good at it, but he enjoyed it to the hilt.
But he also got to play safety now and again...and he did pick off more than one pass.
And that's the "serendipity" part of this phenomenon: when you get to do what you want to do in addition to doing what people want to enlist you to do!
The point of all this?
All of us have a bunch of "somethings" that we know we're good at...
...and then there are the "somethings" that other people see in us, and are willing and eager to employ in their own ways.
The only time it's a mistake to give in to that "employment" is when it's something we really, really, really don't want to do...for our own reasons.
Or when it's morally or ethically wrong.
Or when saying "yes" one more time is going to completely exhaust us.
But sometimes, saying "yes" to an offer of leadership, even when we don't see ourselves in that role at all, can open up other doors for us.
Reveal sides to ourselves we didn't know we had, or were afraid to let anyone see...for fear they'd laugh at us.
The great and wonderful joke on us at that point is that not only do people not laugh--but they praise us for the effort. And that's a win, in more than one book.
Often, leadership--even when we're not all that sure about it, or it feels thrust upon us--turns out to be enrichment, not only for the people we lead, but for ourselves.
So don't be too quick to assume you're not a leader, of some kind, for someone.
You just might be surprised...and, by accepting, make a whole lot of other people stronger, too.
(And then you won't be tapped every time someone needs a leader! 😄)
Have you ever been "shoved into" a leadership position you didn't expect...that turned out to be way better than you expected?
Share that story in the comments!
Janny
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