I just finished the Herculean task of completing year end check ins with my team. I have a love/hate relationship with this process. I love that I get to check in with each member of my team and make sure I really know where they are emotionally, spritually and in their work. I love that it’s a time for open dialogue and hopefully an honest assessment of how I’m leading them and if it’s working. And sincerely, I like that it gives me concrete ways I can improve and be a better leader.

I don’t love that it’s very time consuming and truly takes up much of my time in January.

But one of my team said something in their check in that I can’t get out of my head and reminds me why we do these things.

“I love how you never see someone as just the job they’re currently in. You’re always encouraging me to grow and see what might be next. You always see me as something more.”

Um, yeah, how awesome is THAT?!?!?

I don’t lead this way because I’m smart or because I read it somewhere. I learned how to do this from people that led me. My favorite leaders have always been the ones who saw not just where I was, but my potential for all I could be. And then gave me the encouragement and resources and opportunities to stretch and grow.

The insecure leaders were the ones who felt the need to keep me in my place and be sure I didn’t get too big for my britches. I didn’t learn much from them. Other than what NOT to do when I had a team of my own.

It’s why I started at the church where I currently serve as a teacher in the “bed baby” room. And now am on pastoral staff and part of the Lead Team. It’s been a wonderful journey but without people who believed in me, I never would have believed that this was supposed to be my story.

So if you lead people today, let me ask you, are you seeing what they are or are you seeing all they could be? I’ll warn you that the down side is they may outgrow their current position and may even end up being your boss someday. And I can’t think of ANYTHING that would be more cool than that.

Jen