Revolution

Leadership & Your Personality

Right now I'm taking a Christian Leadership course for my Master's Degree along with Church History, & the two subjects were to collide as we were discussing Martin Luther in Church History and Personality/Temperament Profiles in Leadership. In the Church History class, the statement was made that Martin Luther was too crude & abrasive. I almost laughed out loud when I heard the professor say that. Here's why:

Would the all powerful Roman Catholic Church have listened to a polite, boy scout type reformer?

Of course not. Yes, Luther could be crass, rude, and abusive to his opponents, but those "flaws" or "weaknesses" in his personality were the very things that God redeemed & used to get the attention of the Catholic Church and the people of Germany & Europe. Luther's personality type is what set him apart & made him the right man to be the leader of the Reformation.

Whatever your personality type is, you can lead. You might not be able to lead in the same way that your "favorite" leader does. Too often we try to imitate a leader who is uniquely designed to lead how they lead. In the process we forget that we are also uniquely designed to lead how we lead. So by all means, learn what you can about yourself, other leaders, & their personality traits, but don't define yourself & confine yourself by what you learn. What if Luther had agreed that he was too direct and rude & had decided to just keep his mouth shut?