The Ascent of a Leader

I just finished reading The Ascent of a Leader. This book is really all about servant leadership and the difference between servant leaders and self-serving leaders. They talk about two ladders that leaders typically climb: 1. The capacity ladder and 2. the character ladder.

The capacity ladder is short ladder and it's rungs help a person climb to the top on the backs of others in many circumstances. The four rungs are:

• Discover what I can do
• Develop my capacities
• Acquire title of position
• Attain individual potential

There really isn't anything wrong with each of these, until you know that the rungs are attached to two runners: 1. Environments of mistrust and ungrace, 2. Relationships of power and leverage. Can you see the problem? This ladder is about being self-serving! I have worked with leaders like this and they typically use and abuse people on their climb to the top. It creates a toxic environment!

Then there is the character ladder. Here are the rungs on the character ladder:

• Trust God and others with me - humility
• Choose vulnerability - submission
• Align with truth - obedience
• Pay the price - suffering and maturity
• Discover my destiny

The runners on this ladder are 1. Environments of grace, 2. relationships of grace. These healthy environments create the fertile soil for leaders to serve and people to grow.

I have worked in both kind of environments and I can tell you that now that I am in an environment of servant leadership and grace, I'll never go back to serving in an environment of ungrace.

In order to reach the fifth rung (which is really all about legacy) and stay there the author gives seven things a leader can do to prepare for this:

1. You must confront complacency, avoiding patterns that may lead to indifference or hubris.
2. Seek out new ways to express your compassion and convictions
3. Remain teachable and make yourself available to teach others
4. Instead of comparing your influence to others', place your future fully into the hands of God
5. Share the benefits of your influence with those around you, rather than at their expense.
6. Approach your relationships and priorities in a fluid way instead of scheduling your life to the point of excluding relationships that really matter.
7. Aggressively seek to resolve your own character issues and weaknesses, continuing to trust others with your vulnerability and to align with the truth, even when it exacts a high price.

I feel pretty positive about each of these challenges. I am more often than not guilty of #4 and need to work on this. #6 can sometimes be a problem for me too.

If you have studied servant leadership at all, this book will be a different perspective on the same topic. I am still angry about the self-serving leaders that have hurt my family and me over the years and I need to practice forgiveness, sometimes on a daily basis. Tye out.

Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant....
Mk 10:42-43NIV