The organization that I serve currently has a team that has been assigned the responsibility of seeking the next CEO to replace a long-tenured and well-beloved leader. In addition, my home church has a team similarly assigned to seek the replacement of a well-respected pastor to lead an anchor church in our state. These are strange days for me with these events converging together but what a great time to learn more about being an effective leader.
One common discussion I have observed in both circumstances is the issue of how old the next leader should ideally be. The consensus in both is that they need someone in their thirties who has at least forty years of experience. No, that is not a mistaken sentence but you would be right if you observed that the math does not add up. When Jeff Iorg, President of Gateway Seminary, speaks of leadership, he broadly divides the journey into three stages. They are as follows;
- The LEARNING stage at which point the leaders tends to be younger, getting educated, getting early experience, observing leadership, and growing.
- The LEADING stage at which point opportunities emerge which gives the learned leader opportunities to apply what has been learned, to implement their unique strategic actions on their organization, to innovate, and to expand their sphere of influence.
- The LEGACY stage at which point they have proven themselves, experienced both successes and failures, learned from a breadth of experience, and begin to leave in their wake other leaders who have been mentored and influenced by their work.
However, the stages are not strictly linear. A young leader is already beginning to establish the roots of a legacy. An experienced leader continues to learn throughout his or her life. Leadership takes place from the outset. In the scriptures, Timothy appears to balk at leadership using his youth as an excuse. Moses appears to be hesitant thinking he is too old and unskilled at public presentation skills. The Bible teaches a lesson that is relevant for all but especially for the believer. Leadership is not ultimately about your title, your level of charisma, or your age. How old are you right now? The reason I ask is that I want you to know that you are at the perfect age to be a leader…as am I. Leadership is not measured by age but by your willingness to influence, grow and lead. You can begin when young and apply it when old. That is how effective leaders maximize their leadership.