How to Become More of a Leader Than a Follower

Great leaders are those who take responsibility for their own actions and choices and cast down 'victim' thinking. The belief systems we were taught as children (for the average family) include every thing from whether or not "our kind" can shop in a certain place, earn a certain kind of expected income or enjoy certain kinds of relationships…etc.

The past two years have brought more entrepreneurial people into my life than what I have met in my entire lifetime. Is it our economy or are people just fed up with the 'status quo'? We were taught to go to school, do as you are told, don't make waves and get good grades. When you graduate, you will get a good job with great pay. When you retire from that job, you will be given a gold watch and a nice retirement package.

Just writing those words makes me want to laugh. First of all, how many people do you know that have stayed at the same job straight out of high school through retirement? Our world has changed drastically in a very short period of time!

Old thinking (victim thinking) is no longer acceptable. Even if you work for an employer, you must make the decision to work as though you are self employed. A very wise woman once told me that it didn't make any difference if she was working for a company or not - she always approached her paycheck as though she were self employed. She not only treated the company she worked for as thought it were her own business, she tended to her financial business by cultivating multiple streams of income on the side.

When our company was sold and all the workers laid off, many people sank to the floors and wailed because they had no where to go and had mortgages, medical bills and kids to put through college. All their plans were flushed down the drain in one fell swoop. Not this lady - she had already been working on "Plan B" and "Plan C". Her multiple streams of income continued to carry her through while she built a new business for herself and kept moving forward.

The others? I don't know, but what I do know is, she was a great leader, and although she isn't in my life as much any more, she continues to lead me. Her words came back to me in a powerful way when I read Robert Kiyosaki's book "Rich Dad, Poor Dad".

I had not realized that I had avoided reading any business books because I was convinced that I was not smart enough to learn that 'stuff'. I was a woman - and a pastor's wife. The man was supposed to take care of the woman, and the church was supposed to take care of the man -- and his woman. (okay, I've been known to be a bit of a dreamer)

When we experienced financial hardships in the church, we suffered a great deal and went without, because we were taught that it would be unspeakable for us to get jobs - after all, we were the pastors!

Years have passed and I've learned that there are many ways to earn income other than just getting a job. By learning how to cultivate multiple streams of income, a pastor will teach his congregation to do the same. By being responsible with his finances and teaching his congregational members to do likewise, he will become a great leader in their lives as well.

What glory is there in constantly being broke? What makes a person want to even meet your God, let alone have faith in Him, if you cannot cloth and feed your children and you have an eviction notice on your door? Could it be that some sly doctrine has infiltrated our ranks and 'victim mentality' has been camouflaged as being humble?

A great (and responsible) leader will find out ...