Last weekend, I had the privilege of reading The Mentor Leader by Tony Dungy, former head football coach for the Indianapolis Colts. Dungy is very focused on leadership and mentoring. This book is a great read for anyone that desires to invest in relationships in a way that will outlast them for the glory of God and the good of others. The book is easy to read and really gives the impression of sitting down to talk with Dungy as he shares stories of people who invested in him and choices he has made to invest in others. Here are some things I highlighted while reading…
- Some self-doubt is a healthy attribute in a leader.
- At their title suggests, mentor leaders seek to have a direct, intentional, and positive impact on those they lead.
- Becoming a mentor leader is not rocket science.
- Mentor leadership can be taught and learned; but in order to be absorbed, it must be practiced.
- Mentor leadership focuses on developing the strengths of individuals.
- Mentor leadership works best when the ones being mentored are aware that the mentor leader has a genuine concern for their development and success.
- Unity of purpose and a desire to make other people better must start at the top if these goals are going to ripple through an entire organization.
- The key to becoming a mentor leader is learning how to put other people first. You, see the question that burns in the heart of the mentor leader is simply this: What can I do to make other people better, to make them all that God created them to be?
- Leadership must first and foremost recognize that it is not enough to be successful in the world’s eyes.
- Building a life of significance, and creating a legacy of real value, means being willing to get your hands dirty. It means being willing to step out in your life and onto the platforms of influence you’ve been given and touch the lives of people in need.
- The mentor leader looks at how he or she can benefit others-which ultimately benefits the individual and the organization.
- Mentor leaders look beyond themselves, focusing on the people they lead and where they should be going together.
- The audience in situational leadership will affect which style is appropriate at which time.
- Our long-term focus should be on building into the members of our organization so that they learn how to respond properly.
- If you do it right, as a mentor leader you may make it all but impossible for other people to give you credit.
- Understand and appreciate that the journey is as important as the destination.
- This is a reminder that we all must count the costs and make our decisions as congruent with our priorities as possible.
- Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it. -Dwight D. Eisenhower
- Mentor leaders cast a vision well beyond themselves and their own interests.
- Craft a mission to the best of your ability, encapsulating the items that make your family or team unique, and then run with it.
- Values tell us and others what is important to us-as leaders, as an organization, and as individuals.
- Mark 10:45
- John 13:3-8
- Servant leadership flips the world’s model upside down: leaders who serve-not just when it’s convenient, neat, and acceptable, but when it’s timely, needed, and right.
- What can you do in your organization to “wash the feet” of the people you lead?
- The unexamined life is not worth living. -Socrates
- Not everything that is faced can be changed. But nothing can be changed until it is faced. -James Baldwin
- Unloving people are unloved people. The people who are hurting you are hurting themselves. Hurt people hurt people. -Ken Whitten
- Our relationships and other commitments should leave us more fulfilled and energetic for our jobs and other important pursuits.
- We should surround ourselves with people whose strengths complement our weaknesses.
- Wherever you go, I will go. Ruth 1:16
- But the truth is that right actions done for the wrong reason do not help to build the internal quality or character called a “virtue”, and it is this quality or character that really matters. -C.S. Lewis
- In times of crisis, people gravitate toward the person of highest character.
- To be trusted is a greater compliment than to be loved. -George MacDonald
- Mentor leaders are competent.
- Mentor leaders remain focused on integrity.
- Mentor leaders are secure in their own skin.
- Mentor leaders are secure enough in who they are that they are able to invest themselves in helping others grow and develop to their full potentials. Secure leaders are free to lift up others who will eventually replace them.
- Mentor leaders must be authentic.
- Mentor leaders demonstrate courage and are willing to lead by example.
- We are drawn to leaders who are right there in the trenches with us and who are willing not only to stand with us, but also to stand against others on our behalf-leaders who are not above the fray, watching from a distance.
- Mentor leaders keep the vision and mission out front.
- Mentor leaders exercise faith.
- Leading with faith requires a level of optimism that isn’t always easy to maintain.
- Mentor leaders are always willing to examine and change paradigms.
- Mentor leaders are accountable.
- Mentor leaders understand the importance of being available and approachable.
- Mentor leaders exhibit loyalty to those they lead.
- Mentor leaders shepherd and protect their followers.
- When a wolf comes and threatens the flock, the shepherd rises to the defense of his sheep.
- Don’t worry about your platform; focus on your impact.
- 1 Corinthians 12:5-6
- As a mentor leader, you must be aware that you are also a role model. So live intentionally and remember that whatever settings you find yourself in, a lot of eyes will be on you, seeing things that you don’t even realize you’re modeling.
- What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? James 2:14
- Leading through your words and actions-whether someone’s watching you or not-tells the world who you are, and more important, who you believe God created you to be.
- When you’re a teacher, you talk when you teach. You don’t talk during the test.
- Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God…And who is adequate for such a task? 2 Corinthians 2:15-16
- The secret is to work less as individuals and more as a team. As a coach, I play not my eleven best, but my best eleven. -Knute Rockne
- An organization that values employees will work to understand and appreciate the differences among people. Diversity is not something we should merely accept as a legal mandate. Rather, we should recognize that our diverse backgrounds and life experiences enhance the synergy of a high-performing team.
- When a leader creates an appropriately healthy, stimulating, and nurturing culture and is dedicated to mentoring people, valuing them, and giving them the tools to succeed, the organization’s vision and mission are not only achievable but also sustainable.
- The culture you create permeates everything you touch.
- 1 Corinthians 12:4-6
- Truly value others.
- Don’t see yourself as above service.
- See yourself as an ambassador for God.
- Over the years, I’ve found that “important but not indispensable” is a much healthier and less pressurized way to view myself.
- Success is something we will achieve together.
- Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many advisers bring success. Proverbs 15:22
- Teamwork doesn’t tolerate the inconvenience of distance.
- A true open-door policy is a matter of attitude and approachability, not just whether the office door is propped open.
- Our job as a coaching staff is to show you what to do and how to do it. Your job as players is to do it consistently. -Chuck Noll
- Correction does much, but encouragement does more. -Goethe
- The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit. -Nelson Henderson