Raise up Team Members to Help You Lead

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A leader’s ability to handle multiple responsibilities and develop healthy relationships is limited. For an organization to grow beyond the visionary, leaders must identify emerging leaders to help manage the programs and maintain the relationships.

Keep in mind that the purpose of you raising up these team members is to help you lead, to take the heavy load off your shoulders, not for you to completely disappear from the picture. This will give your organization, ministry, or business the opportunity to expand and make room for growth, and at the same time keep building healthy relationship with your team, and with other leaders.

First, choose members of your team who are willing to learn how to lead.

Invest time in training them on becoming leaders of integrity; leaders that love your vision, the organization, ministry, or business with the same love that you have for it. Let them see and experience your leadership skills in action. Then send them to put into practice everything they learned by helping you lead your team. Model what it means to be the leader you aspire for them to become. Practice humility and honesty. Speak to them from your heart. Tell them the reason you are raising them is to help you lead. Again, not to replace you, but to help you.

Second, be aware that most of the time, people do not want to learn new things, or do what they are trained to do. They want to do what they feel should be done, and this can quickly create an environment of chaos and confusion between team members.

Deal immediately with any response that will try to raise up against the organization, ministry, or business’ rules and regulations. Encourage and welcome new ideas from these emerging leaders that could benefit the team or improve the process but clarify that any changes must first have your consent before being implemented.

Third, be an example to these team members regarding the heart, skills, and vision you want to see in a leader.

Put yourself within their reach. It is extremely important for your team to know that you as the leader of the organization are reachable, and not someone that they only know by name. Assist them while they learn. Be their mentor, someone who they can come and talk to or ask questions about anything without fear or judgement. Let them see and learn how you build and cultivate healthy relationship with people from a wide variety of backgrounds, languages, and cultures. Train them with a mindset of helping them to discover their God-given potential to become great leaders like you. Influence them to the point that in your absence you are present.

Serve Those Whom You Are Raising

Let them see you humbling yourself to serve them. Always be intentional to have a servant’s heart. Have conversations over a meal with them. Be transparent. Be honest. Laugh with them. Talk to them about loving, honoring, respecting, and serving one another. Have ready all the materials and supplies they need to do the work.

This will help their efficiency to accomplish the mission. If they have a need, ask how can you help? Build trust and constant communication. Show accountability. Be patient while they learn. Take your time training them; don’t rush, or just throw them to lead expecting they will learn as they go.

Invest the proper amount of time and money to train them well. Remember this investment will pay off later.

Protect Those Whom You Are Raising

Their protection physically and mentally is extremely important. If your team does not feel safe, it will be difficult for them to accomplish the mission. Create a place of safety, an environment with structure, and that is organized, peaceful, and with well-communicated instructions.

Let them understand that even in those situations where everything might look out place, they can be assured of their safety, and that you will take immediate control of the situation. Talk to them about the organization, ministry, or business’ rules, regulations, and guidelines. Emphasize the things they can do and don’t do. Make your point clear that back biting, envy, gossiping, bringing confusion, offense, or division is unacceptable in this environment. Give them the steps to take if any of these things occur. Encourage them to help and watch for one another. Let them see that you are compliant with all the rules and regulations.

Teach Those Whom You Are Raising

Teach and keep repeating to them the vision, the problem that you found, and the solution that you are bringing to resolve that problem.

Teach them the way they should go to help you lead your team. Have those one-on-one teachable moments. Teach them communication skills. Let them not only hear you say or teach things with your lips, but to see you doing what you say or teach. Let them see that you are a doer of your own teaching.

Be in constant communication with them. Respond to every call, email, or text. Develop their critical thinking abilities by asking questions. Teach them how to use their delegated authority that you have giving them to carry out and fulfill their duties.

Great leaders do all of these things from a place of love, not a place of anger, envy, or disappointment. Avoid being overbearing by using hard and demanding language, instead use polite expressions of appreciation and gratitude to build them up.

Identifying potential leaders from your team members and investing time in training them to become leaders of integrity that love your vision will help you carry the load of handling multiple responsibilities and managing relationships.

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