“Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” This famous quote by U.S. President John F. Kennedy requires a paradigm shift in one’s thinking from the normal. Culture has taught us to use a rank and order mode of leadership with children, students, employees, co-workers, and volunteers. And it is not something that has happened in the last few years. Even when Kennedy made the above statement, he was stepping out of the paradigm of normalcy.
Parents, managers, bosses, and teachers all have a deep-rooted conventional drive to tell instead of asking. When we do use questions, the ones we ask seldom allow growth potential of the individual. When presented with a possible better approach, many people in leadership roles will reject or run from the needed change.
The paradigm shift in Kennedy’s quote was giving permission for each individual to break the chain of waiting to be told what to do and how to act. It actually shifted the responsibility of reaching potential onto the individual. Many people in leadership have a fear of making this type of shift. It is the fear of losing control.
Ironically, this shift can produce the most effective swing in any organization, from family to church to a fortune 500 company. Children learn responsibility, workers and volunteers learn accountability and capacity. Our nation has moved away from instead of embracing Kennedy’s mindset when he made the statement quoted in the opening of this article. Rather than empowering people to reach for their potential, we are building generations of restrained thinkers.
As leaders we should be asking ourselves, “What must I do to empower others to reach for his/her potential?” It is when we empower others that we become true leaders instead of managers and rulers of people.
Sample generic questions that empower toward reaching potential:
What steps would you consider critical for you to complete your task?
How will you include the input of others to help you accomplish this feat?
How should leaders and members share in the responsibility of forward progress?
What equipping provisions could be implemented for leaders of your team?
George Yates is an Organizational Health Strategist and coach, assisting churches, organizations, and individuals in pursuing God’s purpose for life. Click here to receive this blog in your email inbox each Tuesday.