Thursday, April 21, 2011
Leadership in the Emergent Generation
This article is questioning whether leadership looks different from what it did in past generations. The author says that people of the past generation see a lack of leadership within Generation X. Therefore, it may be a difference of what leadership is thought to be. Ward states that it “depends on who you ask.”
There is a variety of reasons given for why leadership appears different today. This article discusses a study that has been done on leadership which shows that the life experiences of Gen-Xers has caused them to be “reactive” and also “suspicious of authority.” This causes them to not trust the institutions and to not want to be part of any institutions. Therefore, they do not want to be leaders of these institutions.
The Gen-Xers say that they are leaders, but are influencers instead of people who hold authority and positions. This is a different style of leadership. It is seen by church leaders quoted within this article that there are some very strong leaders who have come from Generation X. They see leadership today more about relationships than position. It seems that in this new view a leader has to be identified by characters that he or she has that can be trusted and then this leader is followed because of those characters.
As long as leaders are accomplishing the work of God in the churches and helping to lead people to become disciples of Christ it should not matter whether they are emergent or tradition, because there is a need for both.
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dibbs
ReplyDeleteI agree with the analysis that it depends on who you ask! Leadership looks very different based on differing philosophies as well as personalities. I appreciate this class because it is giving me time to reflect on my current philosophy and style, which will help me to understand other leaders’ philosophies and styles.
ReplyDeleteI agree the genuine leadership comes when a person has won the right to influence others because of who they are and how they have lead. However, it is impossible to deny that there are components of the traditional model of leadership at play today. For example a professor holds authority based on his position as the teacher and the agreement of the students to the learning contract of the syllabus when they register for the class. Does the professor have to earn their respect in order to influence them? Perhaps at some level, but position gives the initial authority to instruct or lead the class as he or she feels is best for the development of the students.
I think that your right to say there is a need for both. We start with a position in the church, but immediately begin working to build relationships and trust among God’s people. A position is not enough.