William Shakespeare wrote, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players; they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts . . .” This statement is especially true for leaders. Due to the nature of the job, leaders carry out their work before the watchful eye of others. Leaders typically lead from four primary platforms, and successful leaders perform well on all four.
1. The Home Stage. The first and most important platform is the home stage. This audience may consist of a spouse, children, parents, siblings, or anyone else in leaders’ intimate, personal world. These people see them at the end of the day. They are watching on weekends and evenings when leaders are technically “off duty” from their other responsibilities.
Sadly, this audience often misses the best performances, because leaders are exhausted or mistakenly don’t value those moments as they should. I was recently speaking to a group of business executives, and I asked them what would happen if they treated their families the way they treated their top customers and clients. That exercise provided much food for thought! Of course, leaders use their greatest charm on their prime customers. If a major customer is unhappy, they will go to great lengths to address any concerns. Yet when there is a problem at home, they may feel frustrated rather than inspired to make things better. It can be disconcerting to contrast how charming leaders are toward customers they seldom see with how rude or demeaning they can act toward family they encounter every day. It’s foolish to choose work relationships over family. After all, leaders may not always have their job, but they will always be a parent, child, or sibling.
This problem can be particularly acute for church leaders. Pastors may be so focused on their stage presence that they neglect the audience that watches them up close all week. Many pastors’ kids have grown disillusioned with Christianity because the parent they watched behind the pulpit was far different from the one they lived with at home.
D.L. Moody grew intensely concerned at one point because his son Will had turned away from his faith. Moody was the most popular preacher of his day, yet he understood that all the accolades he received were meaningless if he failed to make a suitable impression upon his own children. Wise leaders give their greatest performances to their families from the stage of their own home.
2. The Office Stage. The second platform is the office stage. This audience consists of leaders’ colleagues and staff. Great leaders understand that they must lead their own team before they can experience organizational success.
I faced this challenge many years ago as a pastor. I was focused on turning a declining church around as quickly as possible. I worked hard to prepare engaging sermons that would inspire my congregation and compel visitors to join the church. I had an administrative assistant who worked hard for me but was also going through a difficult time personally. After she got to know me, she began to ask me questions and seek my counsel. The problem was that I had a lot of things I needed her to do, and I grew impatient if she spent too much time talking instead of working. One day, God convicted me about my attitude. He made me aware that if I could not help this woman who saw me nearly every day, how could I expect to benefit my congregation who saw me just once or twice per week? I needed to attend to my own team if I wanted to have an impact on my congregation.
Leaders must strive to bring out the best in those they lead. Through the years, I have helped some of my staff earn graduate degrees. I promoted others into their first ever management positions. I have told many staff members to go home to their family instead of staying longer at work. I have tried to keep up morale when our organization was going through difficult times. I am convinced that I will never be successful with customers or clients if I misuse those I lead.
3. The Customer/Client Stage. The third platform is the customer, client, or congregants stage.It is a truism that the chief development officer is always the CEO. At times I have hired people to raise funds for my organization, but I knew my face was the one people identified with it. I had to communicate well with our donors and volunteers or we would lose them.
The same is true of customers. Businesses that are truly customer-focused tend to have many satisfied customers. Businesses that forget to treat their customers well won’t retain many. I am a public speaker. Whenever I speak at a conference, I am keenly aware that my job is to connect with and encourage the audience. If I don’t, I have failed.
I remember speaking at a conference in Canada several years ago. An American had been invited to speak at the same event. He had never been to Canada before, so I tried to offer him a few suggestions about how to connect with a Canadian audience. Unfortunately, he chose not to heed any of my advice! I groaned as he said several things I knew would offend his audience. Then, after the meeting concluded, that speaker hurried to the elevators to escape before anyone in the audience could speak with him. That man may have been a successful businessman and author, but he failed miserably on the stage that evening.
Not every leader is a good public speaker. But leaders must be able to engage with their core customers in some way. Pastors may preach from a stage during worship services, but they also minister to their flock throughout the week. I found that some of my congregants might not need much attention from me under normal circumstances. But if they suddenly were laid off work or had to undergo surgery, they wanted (and expected) to hear from me. In those crucial moments, I needed to be on my “game.”
Leaders must remember that they are on a public stage, and people are always watching them. Their role is to perform well on the stages assigned to them. If they don’t, it doesn’t matter how hard they work in the solitude of their office.
4. The General Public Stage. The final platform is the public stage. This audience may include neighbors, waitstaff, or the parents of their grandchildren’s teammates. They may not be a client or colleague, but leaders interact with them frequently enough to make an impression.
I listed this stage last, because in some ways it’s the least important. Certainly much less so than family or work colleagues. Nonetheless, leaders are public figures, and they ought to be careful how they conduct themselves in public.
You may lead a local company or congregation, but your community is watching you. Perhaps you coach your child’s little league team. Maybe you are the loud parent in the stands giving the referee grief! I have known leaders of organizations who aggravated local businesses because of their rude behavior and unreasonable demands. Conversely, I have known local leaders who were always welcomed in restaurants, coffee shops, and local businesses because they dispensed cheer and encouragement wherever they went. I knew one pastor who was such a blessing to his local community that the city named him “Citizen of the Century!” He knew he was always on stage, even among those he didn’t personally lead or serve.
Wise leaders understand that they are always on one stage or another. They can’t afford to let their guard down. Such is a leader’s job. Some stages are more important than others, but they all matter. Leadership is typically a public calling. Leaders may have different styles or degrees of eloquence, but all must know how to navigate a stage well in order to enjoy much success.
