Tough Decisions Require Wise Business Leadership
In a time when “flattening the curve” requires universal participation, when, how, and who to re-open requires tough decisions. Wise business leadership is needed more than ever before.
There’s no shortage of talks, posts, or tweets on our need for wise, capable leaders who pursue the common good; who balance big-picture thinking with next-step management. But predicting outcomes becomes much more complex as systems and people interact in unexpected ways.
We need our business and organization leaders to do the right things, in the right way, against the right time frame. The real stand outs that I have noticed can navigate intrinsically complex circumstances, make smart decisions, and inspire others to do the same.
You see, two challenges commonly surface in complex circumstances: unintended consequences and difficulties in making sense of a situation. Unfortunately, many leaders tend to overestimate the amount of information they can process: humans have cognitive limits. More than ever, leaders need input from others to grasp complexities and determine how they affect other parts of the system.
Clearly, we need competent input from leaders that stand upon values that are anchored on more than intelligence. This is a call for wise counsel as a stepping stone towards wisdom.
A leader must be able to keep the big picture in clear view, while attending to all of the small executions that will lead to the right outcomes. They need wisdom.
Wise Leadership Defined
Wisdom is available from the Lord Almighty and starts with fear or I would say AWE of the Lord and from such a humble position the Lords says:
“If any of you lack wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” James 1:5
Seems so simple and requires discipline.
Discipline according to Henri Nouwen means “the effort to create some space in which God can act.” Now we are getting closer. As you seek wisdom do you give God the space to deliver on your request?
The result is a godly wisdom ….
“the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Cor 1:25), so “Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold” (Prov 3:13-14).
Wisdom seems like a paradox: based partly on knowledge, shaped by uncertainty; action and inaction; emotion and detachment. Wise leadership reconciles these seeming contradictions as part of the process of becoming wise, for wisdom is a process of relationship with God which gives insight, perspective and a calm yet powerful confidence as you decide what to do next in a season of uncertainty.
These days more than ever, God is calling leaders to come and reason with Him.
Imagine that! Are you ready?
What do you think? How do you define wise leadership? In what businesses and organizations have you seen examples of this? I’d love to hear from you. You can reach me here marc@moleadershipcoaching.com and on LinkedIn
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