The View from the Summit - Part Five

You don't have to talk to me for very long before you realize that Andy Stanley is one of my favorite leadership authors. So, I was particularly excited to see that he was on the faculty of this year's Leadership Summit.

My thoughts about Andy were affirmed when Bill Hybels introduced him by saying that "Andy's success has not gone to his head or his heart."

The Upside of Tension

Myth: "Great leaders with mature organizations will resolve all the problems and eliminate tension."

Fact: "Some tensions are never resolved and some problems are never solved. The key is to leverage the dynamics in a way that creates progress. We need to manage pressure and tension in a way that results in progress."

I. Every organization has problems that shouldn't be solved and tensions that shouldn't be resolved.

A. What's more important? Examples: effectiveness or efficiency? responsiveness or profitability? academic rigor or relevance? Evangelism or Discipleship?

B. If you "resolve" any of those tensions, you will create a new tension.

C. If you resolve any of those tensions, you create a barrier to progress.

D. Progress depends not on the resolution of those tensions but on the successful management of those tensions.

II. To distinguish between problems to solve and tensions to manage, ask the following questions:

• Does the problem or tension keep resurfacing?
• Are there mature advocates on both sides?
• Are the two sides really interdependent?

Example of a tension in a Biblically Functioning Church: Is our primary role as a Church to create mature believers or is it to keep it attractive and safe for non-believers?

III. The role of leadership is to leverage the tension to the benefit of your organization.

A. Identify the tensions to be managed in your organization.

B. Create terminology for a 3rd category: "Tensions we have to manage."

C. Inform your core. Make sure the key players understand the fact that this is not ever going away!

D. Continually give value to both sides.

E. Don't weigh in too heavily based on your personal preferences. A leader's opinion/personality will accidentally take things off the table. As leaders we need to understand the upside of the opposite side and understand the downside of your side.

F. Don't allow strong personalities to win the day. I need passionate people who will champion their side and mature people who will recognize the reality of needing to live with tensions.

G. Don't think in terms of balance. Think in terms of rhythm. In the rhythm of an organization's life there will be times to lean heavily and times to lean away. Make the call under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.

As a leader, one of the most valuable things you can do for your organization is differentiate between tensions your organization will always need to manage vs. problems that need to be solved.