Are You Dealing With Insecurity? I think if we all are to look at our human side for a moment, we would recognize that we all feel insecure from time to time. Insecurity can be detrimental in leading people. Others will not follow when they realize that you are unsure (and yes, they will pick up on it). You might be able to hide it with personality, but the insecure leader will always fall short in the one area that he is judged by – the results.
You might say, “Well, I’m not a leader.” I beg to differ. If you are a parent, you are a leader. If you have influence over someone else by way of a relationship (family, co-workers, neighbors, etc.), you are a leader. If you have any position regarding authority such as a ministry, task, or some type of volunteer group, you are a leader.
Recently, I was listening to a leadership podcast with Pastor Johnny Hunt. He gave some very insightful knowledge regarding this area of insecurity that we all face from time to time. Is it any wonder that the scripture says: “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean NOT on thine own understanding”? Below are some of the notes from that talk:
• An insecure leader has a hard time giving credit to others. “Why should praise seem like an unrecoverable cost? It is a gift that gives back to everyone.”
• An insecure leader keeps information from his staff. “When you release information, you convey trust and confidence to others. When you conceal
• An insecure leader doesn’t want his staff exposed to other leaders—people who may possess qualities you don’t, people who may have skills your staff wishes you had. “When one person grows the whole team grows….Give your people the best—even better than you are.”
• Insecure leaders are too needy of praise. “For this reason, more than perhaps any other, they can’t really be leaders. When someone needs his followers to always be telling him how wonderful he is, he works in direct opposition to the heartbeat of leadership, which is: building into other’s lives.”
• Insecure leaders don’t provide security for those they lead. “If the mood and environment in the office is one of fear, second-guessing, and self-doubt, you can be sure an insecure leader is in charge.”
• Insecure leaders take more than they give. Instead of validating and encouraging others, they are focused on receiving it.
• Insecure leaders limit their best leaders. “Insecure leaders cannot genuinely celebrate the victories won by others.”
• Insecure leaders limit their organization. “Not only does insecurity throttle down the horsepower of individual team members; it results in putting restraints on the whole church or organization.”
