Are you competent?
Are you a competent leader? Competent- having suitable of sufficient skill, knowledge, and experience. Doesn’t seem like a stretch to try and be competent at your job and as a leader. Another definition of competent- adequate, but not exceptional. Wow, sign me up…. every since a child dreaming about what I would be when I grow up I dreamed of being adequate…. yeah, not real inspiring, huh.
How about being Exceptional as a leader? How about being the best in the world at your skill or area of expertise. How about being #1 in your industry as an organization. That seems a bit more inspiring than adequate, average or suitable.
Being competent is the norm. Being exceptional is the unusual.
reminds me of a video interview I caught with Seth Godin and @loic the other day. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6vpBDFoMqc Loic asks Seth about why he doesn’t twitter and his answer in part has to do with his believe that at some point you have to do the thing, the CORE thing that you know you can be the best in the world at.
Not a slam here but in my experience, the church hasn’t done the greatest job in sharing this message. We tote the line about “calling” an ” gifting” but way to often will then add 10 other things onto people who really only are meant to do the CORE thing anyways…
Wow, maybe I should do a post on this, anyhow, as leaders we should not only strive to BE exceptional but model that and then help others do the same.
It seems like anyone can raise the bar if they simply have the determination to be more than marginal. If everyone was exceptional, however, then exceptional would become nominal, nominal would become unacceptable, and competence, by definition, would have to elevate.
So if yesterday’s “exceptional” is today’s “nominal,” the decision to be exceptional must be a DAILY DECISION to become “more” than the day before. It’s not static. In other words, you never arrive at “exceptional” – it is a lifelong process.
That sounds a lot like the essence of spiritual formation. Perhaps followers of Christ are called to be “exceptional” every day?