Here’s what all effective leaders have in common: They are accountable to someone.
If you want to grow fast, ask someone to hold you accountable for the areas in which you want to grow.
Here’s the 3rd of 4 questions you should be asking yourself if you want to grow as a leader (if you missed them, here’s part 1 and part 2):
Question 3: Who am I asking to hold me accountable?
When I hear the word “accountability” I tend to hear only the negative. My mind resists it. I feel like asking someone to hold me accountable is like hiring a private policeman to keep me in line.
However, being accountable is the best way to find encouragement for what we really want to be about. Leaders need accountability because leading in the church is difficult on a good day. Just because we envision a future reality that is good and healthy doesn’t mean it will be received with open arms. If people grumbled against Moses, who was the greatest leader ever, people are going to grumble against your leadership.
Being accountable is the best way to find encouragement for what we really want to be about. – Scott Vermillion Share on X
So what do you do when you meet resistance to your leadership?
No doubt there will be two distinct temptations you will face when you encounter resistance:
1. The first temptation is to shrink back from your vision of a preferred future.
When you face resistance to your leadership, you will be tempted to settle for some form of mediocrity instead of passionately continuing to lead others to a good goal. The resistance you face in your leadership will effectively act like cold water thrown on your recently stoked fire. When you face resistance, you will want to turn from leading others toward your good goal to managing the resistance you feel from others. The end result is that your ministry stays in the same shape it has always been in except now it is led by a discouraged leader.
2. The second temptation is to fight back against the resistance you face.
When we feel that we are right, it’s easy to buy into the temptation that might-makes-right. We stop listening to the people who are resisting our leadership, and focus our attention on removing them. We stop seeing those who resist us as people God has called us to love, and only see them as obstacles to what we want (or worse what God wants). The end result is that your ministry is divided and loses its unity because of an “us v. them” mentality, and it leaves you feeling angry with the people who oppose your vision.
What we need is accountability, so that when we face resistance we can keep moving forward in a healthy way.
Paul gives us many examples of how he kept the church leaders accountable. One example I love is found in 1 Timothy 1:18-19. Paul writes, “Timothy, my son, I am giving you this command in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by recalling them you may fight the battle well, holding on to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck with regard to the faith” (NIV11).
Paul’s accountability helped Timothy avoid both temptations leaders face when they encounter resistance by refocusing his attention.
First, Paul’s accountability refocused Timothy on to God’s work. Paul reminded Timothy that God called him to leadership in the first place. Instead of being discouraged by the resistance, Timothy was to take heart in the work that God was doing to shape him to lead the church.
Secondly, Paul’s accountability refocused Timothy on his purpose to lead well. Even though he was meeting resistance, Timothy was to fight the battles he was facing well. There was no room for a might-makes-right attitude. Paul encouraged Timothy to press on and lead in faith even when the going got rough.
When someone holds us accountable, they are refocusing our attention. They help us take our eyes off managing the resistance we face, and help us refocus on what God is doing and how we can lead others on to his agenda. We need accountability’s refocus to help us press ahead when the going gets rough.
If we are going to thrive as leaders, we need to ask people to hold us accountable.
here’s how you find someone to keep you accountable:
1. Find someone outside your ministry. It is nearly impossible for people within your ministry community to hold you accountable because they are stakeholders in your leadership. I like to encourage people to find a C.A.T. Find someone outside your ministry who is Confidential, Available, and Trustworthy.
2. Be specific about the relationship. Ask if this person will hold you accountable for a year. Don’t agree to hold one another accountable. Make it a one-way relationship because it is too easy to give each other understanding instead of real encouragement when leading becomes difficult in your ministry. It’s okay to be selfish on this because you are not the only one who will be directly effected by your leadership. There are others who are counting on you to lead them well. Define exactly when, where, and how you will meet. Define what you want the person to hold you accountable for in your leadership and life. Tell the person which temptation you are most likely to fall into when you face resistance in your leadership. Go so far as to write down all this information and have each of you sign it. That way the one holding you accountable won’t let your growth slip through the cracks when life gets busy.
3. Tell the person exactly what you are trying to move others toward in your ministry and why it is important. This way, the person you are accountable to will help you by reminding you often of what’s at stake when you encounter resistance in your ministry. He or she will encourage you to shoot for the best in your leadership, not just the least common denominator.
