“Heavenly minded and earthly good”

In the last part of his series, the Rev Dr Martin Johnstone reflects on the complexity of leadership in uncertain times.

I HAVE been grateful over this last year to have had the opportunity to share some of my thoughts about leadership. It has been an even greater privilege to have had the chance to write about some of the people whose leadership practices have informed and inspired me.

We are living in deeply uncertain times. The task of leadership is complex – leading when the road ahead is unclear, and the immediacy of many challenges is constantly distracting.

Beware of those who choose to give simple solutions to difficult, sometimes impossible, problems. Beware also of those who claim that they can sort everything. They can’t. They won’t. And they will end up disappointing themselves and others.

Beware of placing completely unrealistic expectations on those we call leaders. They too are fallible. They too will fail. Leadership in these uncertain times must be a shared task.

It sounds completely counter-intuitive to say it, but I have become more convinced than ever that personal humility is the greatest attribute that our leaders need to cultivate. It is, as Meg Wheatley would say, “time for all the heroes to go home” and to develop, instead, ways of leading which are about hospitality, generosity, and kindness.

That is not about being a doormat to other people’s unjustified frustrations. That is never justified. It is, however, about recognising that none of us have a monopoly on the best ideas. That is vital when we are dealing with anything other than the most straightforward of challenges. And let’s be honest, very little is straightforward these days.

Alongside that personal humility – perhaps because of it – we need to build teams where other people can shine. We need to practise celebrating each other’s successes rather than highlighting one another’s failures. And we need to keep practising until it becomes the natural way of working.

The hardest leadership challenge I have ever faced would not have been possible without the other people who, every week, spent time getting on with their own responsibilities and helping me to do mine better. And who realised, over time, that we had a shared task rather than a dozen separate tasks.

The best leadership I have seen comes from within teams who like, support, and trust one another. And to be blunt, the worst has come from within teams where different people are jockeying for position and bad-mouthing one another either inside or outside the room. It is such a waste of everyone’s time. Time that we don’t have to waste.

When I think about leadership as someone who tries to follow Jesus, I inevitably turn to where Jesus was born, how he chose to lead, and how God’s Spirit continues to lead.

“ Beware of those who choose to give simple solutions to difficult, sometimes impossible, problems.

I am struck by the humility with which Jesus lived his life, turning his back on the temptation to lead with naked power. And by the time that he invested in the motley crew immediately around him – his disciples (or leadership team). If this model was good enough for Jesus, then surely it must be good enough for us.

I am also struck by the fact that Jesus chose deliberately to spend time in prayer. And by Desmond Tutu’s reflection that the busier he became – the greater the leadership responsibilities he assumed – the more time he knew he had to spend praying.

The author and theologian Brian Epperly writes: “Mystics are both heavenly minded and earthly good.” That’s my hope, and prayer, for our leaders.