Leadership Word PuzzleJim was a great volunteer at my church where I served as Minister of Media. We had come to the church to take an old and outdated television ministry to a new level. There was lots to do, both in planning and in execution. Jim was valuable, and was wise. I love these kinds of folks.

One day Jim walked up to me and said, “Hello, Lone Ranger.”

You may know the movie or TV shows based on a story of a lone Texas Ranger who righted wrongs, usually all by himself. I asked Jim what he meant. He said something to the effect that when something needed to be done, I usually did it, rather than looking to others to help get the task done.

Ouch! That stung a bit. He was saying I was accomplishing some good things, but not building a team who could help do these things…and much more. I learned a valuable lesson from Jim that day, and it made a huge difference in my life and ministry work.

In a recent blog, my friend Don McMinn talked about that very thing.

[blockquote author=”” link=”” target=”_blank”]There is a significant difference between an achiever and a leader.

An achiever gets the job done.
A leader gets the job done through other people.[/blockquote]

In both cases the job gets done. But when other people are involved in the process, much more happens. McMinn continues his thoughts.

“Many people have honed their ‘get it done’ skills; they live disciplined lives and are able to accomplish immense amounts of work. They are achievers. Give them a job and they’ll get it done. I admire these people, but I don’t consider them leaders, because leaders accomplish work through others.”

Do you know the name Peter Drucker? He was a business consultant and was often referred to as the father of modern management. Here’s what Drucker had to say on the subject of an achiever vs. a leader.

“The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never say ‘I.’ And that’s not because they have trained themselves not to say ‘I.’ They don’t think ‘I.’ They think ‘we’; they think ‘team.’ They understand their job to be to make the team function.”

The Apostle Paul, under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, said this:

[blockquote author=”Romans 12:8a NLT” link=”” target=”_blank”]If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously.[/blockquote]

So, are you an achiever or a leader? You can be both.