{"id":962,"date":"2012-01-17T09:32:49","date_gmt":"2012-01-17T15:32:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/\/?p=962"},"modified":"2012-01-17T09:32:49","modified_gmt":"2012-01-17T15:32:49","slug":"the-leadership-laboratory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/the-leadership-laboratory\/","title":{"rendered":"The Leadership Laboratory"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our leadership lifeGROUP at Living Stones recently began a new series based on a book by Jeff Iog titled\u00a0The Character of Leadership: Nine Qualities that Define Great Leaders<\/a>. I’ll be sharing some of my thoughts in the coming weeks based on our series.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIn my twenties, I was determined to change the world. In my thirties, I tried to transform the church. In my early forties, I discovered I was the problem.\u201d \u2014 Jeff Iorg<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I can completely relate to this quote and perhaps you can as well. The more you learn about being a good leader, the more you realize you’re not “it.” One of the most important things to realize in our journey as leaders is to understand that leadership is about growth. Great leaders are never satisfied with things as they are. They see possibilties. They have the ability to look beyond the present situation and perceive how things actually could be. In our\u00a0naivet\u00e9, we think that the process is quick and painless. However, time portrays to us another picture.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>In the process of becoming great leaders, God puts us in what Iog calls the “leadership laboratory.” If you know anything about scientific laboratories, you know they are a place for study and learning. What is hypothesized to be truth is tested. After a lot of work, including trial and error, we come to some sort of conclusion based upon the process. The same is true in our growth \u2014 not only our growth as leaders but our growth as Christians. Often times, the process involves a lot of trial and error. Included in that trial and error can be found pain. Through pain, God highlights flaws in our character in order to motivate us for change.<\/p>\n

You see, God isn’t really interested in us “doing leadership” better. Rather, He’s much more interested in us “being” better people. As we are transformed through this leadership laboratory, we become more like Christ. As we become more like Christ, we become the great leaders that God has designed us to become.<\/p>\n

As I am encouraging myself, I encourage you to allow the pain and process of the leadership laboratory to change you into the likeness and image of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18<\/a>). I would love to hear your thoughts. Please share with me in the comments section below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Our leadership lifeGROUP at Living Stones recently began a new series based on a book by Jeff Iog titled\u00a0The Character of Leadership: Nine Qualities that Define Great Leaders. I’ll be sharing some of my thoughts in the coming weeks based on our series. \u201cIn my twenties, I was determined to change the world. In my […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[31],"tags":[58],"class_list":["post-962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-main","tag-leadership"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pzg9k-fw","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":211605,"url":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/support-leadership-fostering-ownership-and-partnership-for-results\/","url_meta":{"origin":962,"position":0},"title":"Support & Leadership: Fostering Ownership and Partnership for Results","author":"Jon Plotner","date":"May 8, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday, I attended a customer meeting with one of our customer success managers, and it turned into a real eye-opener about what leadership should be. 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