photo by jaxxon

I recently wrote about the Great Leadership Hoax and received some good feedback about the subject. However, one reader in particular wrote to me and said, “Don’t stop! How? “How what,” I asked. “How do you build influence?

What a great question! So here is my response; ten ways to develop influence with those you lead and minister with.

1. Be a person of integrity. In ministry, you have no choice. You must be a person who lives the gospel always through words and actions. Be a person of your word and act with good character.

2. Serve others…always!To be an effective minister and leader, we must constantly serve others. Servant leadership is the greatest form of leadership. Live it!

3. Focus on people more than programs. Ministry is always about relationships first and everything else is second. Be an effective relational minister. Care more about others than about yourself. As Dale Carnegie always said, “You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.”

4. Win. We all respect others that are successful. We receive certain credibility when we are good at what we do. Find success in ministry. When others see you as successful, they decide that they want to follow you as a leader.

5. Help others win. Winning yourself is one thing. But if you help others win, that is a phenomenal way to build influence with others. Equip and empower others to be successful in ministry and in life.

6. Constantly grow. I’ve been writing this series on personal growth for quite a few weeks now. I know that when people see me learning and growing, they want to do the same. They see me becoming a better person and they want to surround themselves with that. Keep on growing and learning.

7. Admit your mistakes. Sometimes as a leader, we want to hide our mistakes. The fact is we all fail from time to time. When we find a leader that is comfortable with their failure and is willing to learn from it, we have great respect for them.

8. Be flexible. In ministry and in leadership, we discover that flexibility is a great gift. Things often don’t go our way. Our attitude towards situations like this affects how others see us. Remain flexible and go with the flow. God will work through your flexibility.

9. Have a constructive spirit of discontent. The fact is that everything can be done better. Always evaluate what needs improvement and then come up with solutions. Anyone can name a problem. It takes a leader to come up with some solutions.

10. Have fun! Ministry should bring us joy, energy and passion. Let it show! What a great opportunity we have to serve the Lord!

Would you add anything to this list? If so, what?