Millennial Leadership: What Is Your Role in Passing the Baton?
Seemingly random, disconnected events take place throughout life. Then one morning you wake up and have an epiphany, Everything I’ve experienced has been leading up to this. Your years of gaining skills, experiences, and wisdom have been weaved together for an extraordinary purpose.
Your leadership influence doesn’t stop when you achieve success, or when you retire.
There are two divergent pathways for leaders. Robert Clinton, in “The Making of a Leader: Recognizing the Lessons and Stages of Leadership Development,” reflects on his research of leaders, business, non-profit, and church leaders.
Which trajectory are you on?
Pathway 1: Some leaders build amazingly successful enterprises, dreaming of a successful retirement of relaxing, golfing, travel, or spending time with hobbies. They believe that’s what they’ve worked toward – freedom to do what they want, when they want it.
They are unaware that, in reality, they have been being prepared for the next stage of leadership, and the magnitude of it – the significance of faithfully passing the leadership baton to the next generation.
Pathway 2: Clinton terms it Convergence, the stage at which you can, if you choose, have the most far-reaching impact of your life. It’s when you realize that what appears to be the unrelated events of your life – are in fact, God preparing you for this climax.
Leaders Build Leaders
Top leaders are aware that the most significant legacy they will leave, in both their work and families, is of equipping the next generation of leaders. Leaders who have character, confidence, and collaboration as part of their leadership DNA.
In Luke 12:48 Jesus tells his disciples, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked” (NIV).
The Message translation provides an added layer of insight. “Great gifts mean great responsibilities; greater gifts, greater responsibilities!”
We as a business, sales, and non-profit leaders have indeed been given much. We live in the wealthiest country in the wealthiest time in history. We have greater gifts than many before us. Consequently, we have greater responsibilities. This includes being diligent in raising up the next generation of character-based leaders.
Rock Solid Principles in Times of Rapid Change
Now is an unprecedented point in world history. Millennials are stepping into a global economy that’s rife with trials as well as opportunities beyond what any previous generation has experienced. As a result, they face the unknowns with emotions that run the spectrum from eager anticipation to gut-clenching fear. Though wanting to make a positive difference, they lack the skills, knowledge, and experience to effectively proceed.
Our emerging leaders need the benefit of our deeply rooted character, confidence, and collaboration. They cannot maximize their influence in a global community or ensure the best long-term results without the benefit of highly experienced leaders equipping and partnering with them. We need each other in order to generate a positive influence – our experience collaborating with the advanced technology expertise and fresh insight of the younger generation.
Are you at a point of Convergence?
Millennials need us. And we need them. Countries around the world are undergoing rapid shifts, and millions of Millennials struggle day after day to gain solid footing. Amid the chaos of culture, values, and challenges to faith, next-gen leaders need each of us to pass on the baton of what we know.
When each of us, who is a builder of business and a leader of people, serves as mentors, young leaders will be able to run every good race with the best possible results. In return, we maximize our teams with the unique abilities Millennials contribute, mobilize them as leaders of character and realize the full legacy God called us to.
Pass the Leadership Baton
Don’t drop your baton of leadership wisdom by the wayside. Pass it to someone eager to carry it on.
Leadership Lesson: Our emerging leaders need the benefit of our deeply rooted character, confidence, and collaboration.
Leadership Question: What are you doing to equip the Millennial in your life to receive the leadership baton from you?
Copyright 2017, Danita Bye.
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