The State of Heart Leadership-Andy Stanley (part 1)

Leaders who fail to monitor their hearts jeopardise their organisations. If we neglect the arduous work of monitoring what's going on inside of us, our organisations will suffer. In Matthew 15:19, Jesus warned that,
"... out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander."

Can you think of anyone who derailed his or her organisation or career because of anything on that list? I'll bet you can. In fact, I know far more stories of failure rooted in these issues than those resulting from a lack of competence or skill.

Look at Jesus' words again. Everything we say and do springs from our hearts. The implications of this verse are huge for those who manage people and organisations. What's in our hearts eventually affects our ability to lead effectively. Consequently, learning to guard or monitor our hearts is critical to our success as leaders. There are three things in particular that if ignored have the potential to create chaos in the heart of a leader and consequently in his or her sphere of organisational influence.

The first is guilt.

Leaders who carry unresolved guilt are forced to hide a part of themselves from those to whom they are closest. They have a secret. They are forced to expend time and energy to ensure that no one finds them out. They know they are not completely trustworthy. Often they assume no one else is either. Guilty leaders have a difficult time trusting. Consequently, guilty leaders have a difficult time building teams.

The second enemy of the heart is anger.

Angry people live as if the world owes them something that they can never quite put their finger on. Angry leaders are impossible to please. Angry leaders attract followers and employees that are more concerned with making their bosses happy than doing what's best for the organisation. Employees' poor decisions eventually put them at odds with their angry bosses and the cycle of dysfunction continues.