Wisdom for the practice of leadership

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Podcast Season 3: Year In Review

Year 3 is ending, and year 4 is ready to begin, and I will be continuing the series called “Lessons on Leadership from the Little Things in Life.” What’s in store for the next year is in God’s hands, but beyond that, what I would hope for is that God would bless this work and put it in front of more people who would benefit from what He has given me to share. So, if you have read the book, followed the website, or listened to the podcast, and have found any of those to be good for your leadership, would you tell at least three other people? With your help, I believe that God can use these resources to better equip leaders who will make an impact for His Kingdom.

Thank you for following and listening! On to the next year!

Here is the link to the podcast.

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Year 3 In Review

A little less than three years ago, I had embarked on a new (and scary) journey. For the needs of my family, I had stepped away from over 30 years of ministry in Christian education, with 24 of those years as a principal or superintendent/head of school. I wasn’t retiring, but my personal family circumstances necessitated making a change so that I could be at home every day. So, I stepped down from my position at the place where I had served for 8 years as the Head of School to start a new journey using my experience and abilities to serve God and develop people. And that led first to this venture at www.LeadershipEzra.com. I did not know what would come of this, but I was looking for a way to give my experience and wisdom to the Lord to be used for His purpose in reaching and developing other others.

At the same time, God was gracious in providing work to teach an online graduate course on leadership and an undergraduate online course on education, and to mentor doctoral students in their dissertation and research project work. What made all of this scary was that I was starting something completely new in my life, while still needing to provide for my family, with no idea of what the outcome would be. Along the way and in the process, I accumulated what I began to call “Joshua Stones,” those unique and specific events that were clear evidence of God at work, events that would stack up to become my personal memorial marker that served to remind me of God’s divine presence and leading in my steps. Ultimately, where God primarily directed and placed me was in working for two different universities, one (Gracelyn University) with a focus on education, and the other (Columbia International University) with a focus on organizational leadership.

My desire with the website, though, was that God would use Leadership Ezra in a much greater way to grow others in their leadership. The initial idea for this had come about out of a lot of prayer, and in that process, what the Lord had made clear to me was that I needed to connect faith, wisdom, and leadership in a way that would help other followers of Jesus grow in their leadership and make an impact. That original dream of an idea turned into three things: the self-publication of a book on Amazon (Leadership Ezra), the creation of the Leadership Ezra website, and the initiation of a corresponding podcast, streaming on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. The overarching theme became “Faith. Wisdom. Leadership.: Connecting biblical truth with wisdom for leadership.” As an added bonus, I included a weekly feature on the website called “Quote Your Dad,” where I simply shared wisdom-filled quotes that I would often hear from my dad.

In the first year of both the website and the podcast, I shared leadership principles and ideas that I have learned, but primarily in standalone articles and podcast episodes. They were important ideas, but initially each was its own idea, not necessarily connected to others. As the year progressed, I started grouping ideas together to form series. By year two, I had shifted to communicating with series, and I shared three different series over the course of the year. The first was called “Who’s in Charge Here?” and it was a review of the ideas I covered in my book, Leadership Ezra. The second was called “The Five Be-Attitudes of Better Leadership,” and it was about five groups of attributes that are essential to good leadership. The third was called “The Character of Leadership,” and it was focused on identifying a character trait representative of a biblical character, and learning valuable lessons about leadership from it.

By the time year three got underway, I had moved into a year-long series called “Lessons on Leadership from the Little Things in Life,” where I would share a typical, everyday experience or life event, and connect it to a leadership lesson. They were usually personal, every day experiences, but they would serve as analogies or illustrations of leadership lessons. As the year progressed, this settled into a rhythm that worked well, so, moving forward, I am going to continue with the same idea. I don’t know if I will return to any of the other original series or ideas, or initiate something new, but for now, I am enjoying sharing everyday stories that teach us something valuable.

As always, what’s in store for the next year is in God’s hands. Beyond that, what I would hope for is that God would bless this work and put it in front of more people who would benefit from what He has given me to share. So, if you have read the book, followed the website, or listened to the podcast, and have found any of those to be good for your leadership, would you tell at least three other people? With your help, I believe that God can use these resources to better equip leaders who will make an impact for His Kingdom.

Thank you for following and listening! On to the next year!

God Bless,

Jeff McMaster

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Podcast Season 3, Episode 48: Lessons on Leadership from the Little Things in Life – Transparency Doesn’t Mean You Share Everything with Everyone All the Time

Life is full of examples that teach us lessons. That’s why stories and illustrations make learning so much more effective. When a story can be used to illustrate or demonstrate a valuable lesson, the story makes it much more understandable, relatable, and memorable. With that in mind, I want to take some time to do just that – share examples of circumstances and stories experienced in everyday life which illustrate leadership lessons that we can learn and apply. This is one of those examples, and it serves to point out that transparency does not mean that you should share everything with everyone all the time.

Here is the link to the podcast.

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Lessons on Leadership from the Little Things in Life: Transparency Doesn’t Mean You Share Everything with Everyone All the Time

Life is full of examples that teach us lessons. That’s why stories and illustrations make learning so much more effective. When a story can be used to illustrate or demonstrate a valuable lesson, the story makes it much more understandable, relatable, and memorable. With that in mind, I want to take some time to do just that – share examples of circumstances and stories experienced in everyday life which illustrate leadership lessons that we can learn and apply. This is one of those examples, and it serves to point out that transparency does not mean that you should share everything with everyone all the time.

The last couple of episodes, I’ve shared stories about experiences with my brothers, and leadership lessons that came from those. So this time, seems that it is only appropriate to share a story about my sister, and this one involves her wedding day. Her wedding was a beautiful ceremony and a wonderful occasion of celebration for our family. My siblings and I were all part of the wedding party, and we thoroughly enjoyed everything about her special day.

Unbeknownst to her, though, I was experiencing a significant difficulty beneath the surface. You see, about a week before the wedding, I was working in my backyard, removing some weeds. We were living in a rural farming community at the time, and what I did not realize was that one of the “weeds“ that I removed was actually poison sumac. I had been exposed to plants like poison ivy, but had never had a reaction, so I’m sure that I wasn’t being as careful as I should’ve been. I did not recognize it for what it was, and so I used my bare hands to remove it from the yard.

By the next morning, I had started to develop a painful and extremely itchy rash, and within the next couple of days, it had spread over my whole body. I went to an urgent care facility, where I was informed that I had had a reaction to poison sumac, and so I contacted my doctor to get help. I tried the medication and ointments that he prescribed, but they were of little benefit to the pain and the itching. So, when the wedding day arrived, I had no choice but to put on the tuxedo over the rash from the poison sumac, and keep a smile on my face while fully dressed in a suit on a hot summer day. I really did enjoy the wedding, and it was a blessing to be a part of it, but at the same time, it was a miserable physical experience. But this was her day, and an important day, so I kept it to myself.

That experience provided an interesting parallel lesson for my leadership that is a great reminder for you as well. Research has shown that transparency is important for building and maintaining relationship and trust within an organization, but that doesn’t mean all the details, challenges, and flaws need to be openly exhibited. Sometimes, there are issues that you are navigating behind the scenes or beneath the surface, and they need to be dealt with privately. I once heard a pastor say that we ought to confess and address public sins publicly, personal sins personally, and private sins privately. Some issues that you are dealing with are private to your organization, and that privacy needs to be protected while you deal with it. That’s not a justification to cover up and excuse wrongdoing, but it is a reminder to be careful of how much you share, and with whom you share it.

That’s the lesson on leadership from this little thing in life, from quietly dealing with a reaction to poison sumac on my sister‘s wedding day. There are difficult things you have to deal with in your organization, relationships, and life. It is important that you deal with those appropriately, but also that you do so in the right context and with the right audience. Yes, it is important to be transparent, but to protect your organization and your people, make sure you exercise wisdom, discernment, and discretion in what you share, when you share it, and with whom you share it. As my dad once said, “There is no shame in your struggle, but it’s still wise to be careful who you share it with. Because being transparent does not mean that you share everything with everyone.

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Podcast Season 3, Episode 47: Lessons on Leadership from the Little Things in Life – Work Within Your Strengths

Life is full of examples that teach us lessons. That’s why stories and illustrations make learning so much more effective. When a story can be used to illustrate or demonstrate a valuable lesson, the story makes it much more understandable, relatable, and memorable. With that in mind, I want to take some time to do just that – share examples of circumstances and stories experienced in everyday life which illustrate leadership lessons that we can learn and apply. This is one of those examples, and it serves as a reminder that you will typically work best if you work within your strengths.

Here is the link to the podcast.

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Lessons on Leadership from the Little Things in Life: Work Within Your Strengths

Life is full of examples that teach us lessons. That’s why stories and illustrations make learning so much more effective. When a story can be used to illustrate or demonstrate a valuable lesson, the story makes it much more understandable, relatable, and memorable. With that in mind, I want to take some time to do just that – share examples of circumstances and stories experienced in everyday life which illustrate leadership lessons that we can learn and apply. This is one of those examples, and it serves as a reminder that you will typically work best if you work within your strengths.

My younger brother is two years younger than me, but when we were kids it seemed like we were always viewed as a pair. At Christmas time, we would get the same clothes, but in different colors (it seemed like often I would get the blue shirt and he would get the green one). We would get different versions of the same toys, like G.I. Joe action figures. And sometimes people would even refer to us as a pair, calling us things like “mutt and Jeff.”

However, and in spite of the fact that we were often connected together, it became apparent as we grew older that we had very different personalities and traits. I was as introverted as he was extroverted. I was an internal processor, and he was an external communicator. I was reserved, and he was expressive. I strategized, and he motivated. Clearly, we were two different people with different sets of strengths. As we grew older, we learned to use those differences to our advantage, whether it was to sell candy bars for a school fundraiser or to do a presentation in our youth group. We learned to work together, with each of us using our strengths, so that together we could be more successful.

That’s an important concept for your leadership. Like everyone else, you have strengths and you have weaknesses. You will tend to be more successful if you learn to work in a way that uses your strengths, while working with someone else who has strengths where you have weaknesses. When you do that, your strengths can compliment and offset each other. The end result is that you become better working together than you would have been working alone. But that can only happen if you know and work with your own strengths and are willing to let others work with theirs.

That’s the lesson on leadership from this little thing in life, from the way in which my strengths were complimented by my younger brother’s. It’s like when my dad was teaching me how to use a saw, and I remember him saying, “Let the saw do the work.” Rather than fighting against the saw blade, he was trying to teach me how to let the tool work in the way that it was designed, and to let it do its job. Learn to see your strengths in the same way. You have been designed and equipped to function best in a particular way, so as much as possible, let that be the way that you operate, and be willing to let others do the same. If you want to work your best, work within your strengths.

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Podcast Season 3, Episode 46: Lessons on Leadership from the Little Things in Life – It’s Ok to Laugh at Yourself

Life is full of examples that teach us lessons. That’s why stories and illustrations make learning so much more effective. When a story can be used to illustrate or demonstrate a valuable lesson, the story makes it much more understandable, relatable, and memorable. With that in mind, I want to take some time to do just that – share examples of circumstances and stories experienced in everyday life which illustrate leadership lessons that we can learn and apply. This is one of those examples, and it serves as a reminder that you need to be able to laugh at yourself.

Here is the link to the podcast.

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Lessons on Leadership from the Little Things in Life: It’s Ok to Laugh at Yourself

Life is full of examples that teach us lessons. That’s why stories and illustrations make learning so much more effective. When a story can be used to illustrate or demonstrate a valuable lesson, the story makes it much more understandable, relatable, and memorable. With that in mind, I want to take some time to do just that – share examples of circumstances and stories experienced in everyday life which illustrate leadership lessons that we can learn and apply. This is one of those examples, and it serves as a reminder that you need to be able to laugh at yourself.

I feel like this month has been all about laughter and joy. A couple of episodes ago, the focus was about laughing in the circumstances, then there was a reminder of the importance of celebrating milestones on a journey, and now this illustration is in the same vein of joy. It happened when my older brother and his wife came to visit. They had been missionaries in Brazil for about 30 years, and recently had moved back to the United States to work as representatives of their mission agency. Because they had been living in another country, my grandchildren had never met them in person.

They were excited when the day came for their arrival. When the knock on the door came, I opened it, and they stepped inside. My granddaughter was there, waiting to meet them. When she saw my brother, she put her hands on her cheeks, and started jumping up and down and laughing and exclaimed, “Where is your hair?!” She knew he was my brother, and she expected him to look like me, so it completely surprised her when a bald man came in the door.

What I appreciated was that he laughed along with her, and then bent over so that she could touch the top of his head. She did, and she laughed some more, and even after they left, when she saw his picture, she would say that he forgot his hair, laugh, and call him the funny man. It was important that my brother was able to laugh at himself in this situation, and show that to my grandchildren. He modeled for them what it means to not take yourself too seriously, to not take offense too easily, and to laugh at yourself, even at your own expense. Those were important lessons for my grandchildren to learn.

And those are important lessons for you in your leadership. If you take yourself too seriously, other people will not. If you take offense too easily, you will get easily offended frequently. If you cannot choose to laugh at yourself, you will instead become bitter and angry. It is better for our emotional, mental, and social health to be able to laugh at ourselves, and in the laughter, bring joy to others. This truth is emphasized in Proverbs 17:22, which tells us, “A merry heart does good, like medicine.”

That’s the lesson on leadership from this little thing in life, from my granddaughter laughing at the bald head of my brother. You are different than others and you will make mistakes, and people will sometimes laugh at you because of those things. My dad was a pastor, and I can remember as child after the sermon laughing at mistakes he made while speaking when he would mix up words, and hearing him join in the laughter. It is important that you are able to laugh at yourself in those moments as well. Don’t take yourself too seriously, don’t get offended too easily, and choose to express joy.

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Podcast Season 3, Episode 45: Lessons on Leadership from the Little Things in Life – Don’t Forget to Celebrate!

Life is full of examples that teach us lessons. That’s why stories and illustrations make learning so much more effective. When a story can be used to illustrate or demonstrate a valuable lesson, the story makes it much more understandable, relatable, and memorable. With that in mind, I want to take some time to do just that – share examples of circumstances and stories experienced in everyday life which illustrate leadership lessons that we can learn and apply. This is one of those examples, and it serves as a reminder that it is important to celebrate.

Here is the link to the podcast.

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Lessons on Leadership from the Little Things in Life: Don’t Forget to Celebrate!

Life is full of examples that teach us lessons. That’s why stories and illustrations make learning so much more effective. When a story can be used to illustrate or demonstrate a valuable lesson, the story makes it much more understandable, relatable, and memorable. With that in mind, I want to take some time to do just that – share examples of circumstances and stories experienced in everyday life which illustrate leadership lessons that we can learn and apply. This is one of those examples, and it serves as a reminder that it is important to celebrate.

It’s graduation season, and I have had the privilege of participating in many graduations over the last 35 years. This past weekend was no exception, when I participated in the graduation ceremony for a class of education students who had completed their bachelors’ degree in Transformational Education. Family and friends were there to mark this milestone achievement, there was a beautiful ceremony in which they participated, they received a diploma as a marker of the accomplishment, and words of affirmation and encouragement were shared with them. It was a wonderful time of celebration.

It was also a reminder to me of the importance of celebrations to mark the milestones and events that we experience. These milestones and events can be the completion or accomplishment of something major, they can be steps on a path or a journey, or they can be reminders of a significant past event. Regardless of which of these it may be, it is important that we take time to celebrate!

When we celebrate, we put a flag or a marker around an event or an accomplishment that draws attention to what was achieved. It highlights something important that has been done and gives us the opportunity to draw attention to that. Then, because we have marked it, it is something that we can point back to to remind ourselves of what we’ve done. Too often, our attention is grabbed by obstacles or difficulties or struggles or failures, so we need to be intentional about celebrating the positive achievements. It builds morale, and can help to maintain motivation throughout the journey of a project or a process.

And that’s the lesson on leadership from this little thing in life, from celebrating another graduation. There are moments of accomplishment along the paths of our lives and in the processes and projects that we undertake, and it is important that we celebrate those. Doing this lets us affirm the accomplishments of others, reignites joy, and helps people to keep moving forward. So when good things happen, don’t forget to celebrate.

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