A thought by John C. Maxwell from his
book, Leadershift (p. 12). HarperCollins Leadership. Kindle Edition. (Click
on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)
Seeing the big picture helps in so many ways.
John says, “My journey leading people really began when I first
understood that everything rises and falls on leadership. This truth became the
foundation upon which I built my life. It continues to be the catalyst for my
personal development and my training of others.”
He goes on, “When people started asking me to speak on
leadership, I didn’t have much to teach. Later when I decided to write a book
on the subject, I thought it would be my only one. Now I’ve been leading people
and training leaders for more than forty-five years, and my perspective has
been enlarged tremendously. The more I learn about the subject, the more I
recognize I don’t know enough about it. The more leadership experiences I gain,
the more I realize I would benefit from more experience. There is no finish
line when it comes to improving, and there is no complete picture of leadership
that can be mastered. As long as I’m growing, my leadership picture will
continue to enlarge. If you keep growing, yours will too.
“I like to think of this process as layered learning. Each time
we learn a new lesson and connect it with the many things we’ve already learned
on the same subject, we gain depth and we see more of the big picture. This
process requires time; no one can learn all the lessons at once. Putting
together lessons requires intentionality, but when you do, you expand your
knowledge.”
He then says, “My first formal leadership role was in a church in
southern Indiana, in a farming community. I developed a friendship with the
community banker, who one day explained to me how he decided whether or not to
loan farmers money. He would ask them if they were fencing in or fencing out.
If they were fencing in, they were done expanding their farm. They were intent
on holding on to what they had and doing only minor improvements to their
property. However, if they were fencing out, it indicated they were expanding,
wanting more land for crops or livestock. They were extending their reach and
striving to do more. My banker friend said, ‘I loan money to those who are
fencing out. They need help to get bigger and better.’ Leadershifting is
all about fencing out. It’s about seeing a bigger picture and getting better.”
And in all areas of our life, that is a good thing, isn’t it?
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