Leadership And The Temptation To Manipulate People

There is an incredible temptation to want to manipulate people when you are in a leadership position of any kind.  Often those of us who are in leadership positions may even convince ourselves that the way in which we want to manipulate people is “for their own good.”  When we can convince ourselves that we’re doing something noble then we don’t feel guilty about it.

I’ve pulled this kind of stuff.  It has a lot to do with insecurity.

Leadership is a valid and necessary gift.  We need good leaders.  I’m not suggesting that leadership itself is an inherently flawed concept.  It’s not.  But I believe good leaders do not manipulate people.  We inform.  We instruct.  We point the way.  We encourage.  We exhort.  We pray.  We paint a picture of what could be.  We do what we are calling others to do. 

But manipulation is not necessary when we are doing what God calls us to do.  We need to allow God’s Holy Spirit to move, prompt, illuminate and convict.  And if the work of the Holy Spirit is not enough to motivate people to the actions we are hoping to see then we should not presume that we need to compensate with our own clever forms of manipulation.

(This thought is primarily directed at myself, but I thought some others might find it interesting or helpful, as well.)