leaders are busy

Busy doing good things. Managing conflict. Casting vision. Managing projects and workflow. Training. Having hard conversations. Adjusting, tweaking, evaluating. Hiring. Helping others transition well. Networking. Bridge building. Planning.

Retreating. Traveling. Team building. Conferencing. Budgeting. Purchasing. Proposing. Learning. Reading. Developing. Challenging. Teaching. Coaching. Advising. Counseling.

Of course, such is the life of a leader... at least, the life of a good leader. These are the things a good leader does, and does with excellence.

But my gosh is it a busy life.

Here's what I've noticed in myself over the past two months...

...and let me hit pause before I continue, and just camp on the phrase "the last two months" for a moment here. I've been absolutely deluged during these last 8 weeks. I've been exposed to so much, trusted to execute so much, leaned on so much that I haven't even had space to pause and reflect, much less had the energy to capture my thoughts and be motivated to write about them.

Ok. Unpause. Here's what I've noticed in myself over the past two months:

1. I have more capacity to do more things for a longer period of time without getting burned out.
2. Sometimes #1 is a good thing, and sometimes it is not.
3. I need to learn how to build a team of people that is strong where I am weak, rather than simply try to improve my weaknesses or manage them.
4. I like leading.
5. I am still very much emerging as a leader. A lot is being developed. A lot is rough.
6. The same things that serve me well as a pastor serve me well as a leader. I don't feel like I have to be a different person than who I am. I just feel like I have to keep growing into who I am... if that makes any sort of sense at all.
7. I still need to be led.

Not quite sure what to do with any of that, or even if there is a point. At this juncture, I'm just content to say "I'm new at this," capture these thoughts, and laugh at them by this time next year.