[My Wednesday blogpost series is connected to my 2020 4Q program in which I share my personal responses to the questions raised in the worksheets.]

How are leading out of pride and fear connected?

When people are our ultimate audience we lead from either pride or fear. Pride says, “I’ve got this…I can handle this on my own.” Fear says, “I don’t know if they’ll like my decision…how should I go about this in order to make them like me?”

Prideful leaders become arrogant and over-confident. Their leadership is marked by exploitation and conflict. Fearful leaders resort to manipulation and are often paralyzed when it comes to making decisions. Their leadership is characterized by suspicion and procrastination.

Pride leads to self-promotion and self-exaltation whereas fear to insecurity and therefore self-protection. Have you noticed a common theme? Self is the ultimate driver. Our audience may be people but self is the primary focus. And if we’re not careful we can quickly end up doing crazy things to promote or protect self. We please people if we think it will benefit us. We make decisions based on fear rather than on doing the right thing. Our leadership is based on what will ultimately serve us. 

I personally struggle with both fear and pride in my leadership. In my family, I often think I have the best idea and will power over other members in an attempt to get my way. In public leadership roles, I want people to like me and will therefore make decisions based on my perception of how they will accept what I do and say.

Sometimes my pride causes me to drop names or make myself look better than I really am. Why? Because I am fearful some may think I am a fraud. My pride produces fear and my fear goads me toward boosting my self-esteem.

I need to constantly go back to who I am and Whose I am. Consider this: I am who I am because of Whose I am. I have an ultimate Audience of One! When I seek to please, honor, and serve God I will speak the truth, be decisive, and honor those I serve as made in the image of God.

Now it’s your turn. What connection do you see between pride and fear? How have pride and fear affected your leadership? Go ahead, write something down…you are a serving leader!