Jordan Ames (00:01.507)
Did you ever have to make a decision and take action when your team was willing but not prepared to follow, or even maybe when they were unwilling and unprepared? I learned in the military that two main responsibilities of a leader is first to accomplish the mission, and then second, to take care of the team. Sometimes accomplishing the mission and taking care of the team.
Requires the leader to use sound judgment and good initiative when the team may be unwilling or even unprepared to follow. So in this episode, we want to discuss what leaders should consider when the direction they need to go or the action that they need to take cannot be followed by their team. So welcome back to another episode of
Of the Red Letter Leadership Podcast. I'm joined today with Eric Albright, who worked with myself and Ben Hunter to produce the 370 plus lessons of a book called Red Letter Leadership: Leadership Lessons from the Life of Christ. And we use this podcast to expound on some of those lessons and have some discussion to really grow you closer to Christ.
As well as grow your leadership capacity. So last week, if you watched the episode or listened to the episode I did last week, it was about considering our approach whenever we present a vision or a message idea to our team, and they don't embrace it. They maybe just don't like it. They don't think it's a good idea. Well, I think today's episode is a good follow-up to that one.
But it's kind of looking at a similar situation, but from a different perspective. So this isn't about our team not embracing it or not being or not welcoming it, so to speak, but it's more of they are unprepared. Like they can't, even if they wanted to, they're not really at a position where they can follow us. And they may, they might also be.
Jordan Ames (02:27.638)
Unwilling to do so.
So I to read out of John chapter 13, verses 31 to 38. And it's, I'll paint the picture a little bit, but it's it's at the Last Supper, where Jesus is with his disciples before he is betrayed into the hands of the religious leaders who will then condemn him to death.
So I'll start reading and then I'll kind of just give a little bit of a little bit of context. So verse 31. When he was gone, they're talking about Judas Iscariot. So when he was gone, Jesus said, Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself and will glorify him at once. My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me.
And just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now, where I am going, you cannot come. A new command I give you, love one another, as I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples if you love one another. Simon Peter asked him, Lord, where are you going? Jesus replied, Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but
You will follow later. Peter asked, Lord, why can't I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you. Then Jesus answered, Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times. So the picture here is they're at the Last Supper, and Jesus just broke bread with them, and sitting next to Judah, Judas Iscariot.
Jordan Ames (04:25.197)
Jesus passed him the bread. This is detailed in the previous passage. He passes Judas the bread and then tells him, What you are about to do, do quickly. And then Judas gets up and leaves. And of course, we know that he went to betray Jesus to the religious leaders. So Judas leaves, and then Jesus has this conversation with his disciples that I just read.
So he's explaining to them.
Really, the sacrifice he's about to make. And Peter's like, hey, I can do that too. I'm willing to follow. Except we know that, of course, Jesus foretells it here. And we know later in that evening that Peter denies Jesus. And so even though Peter was saying he was willing to follow, he really wasn't willing to follow.
And it's because he wasn't prepared to follow. His heart wasn't there yet. He hadn't experienced the opposition and challenges that he was about to experience over the next several days. And then see the victory that Jesus had over that opposition. He didn't experience that yet. So he didn't, so he wasn't, he didn't fully grow into the person who would later lay down his life for Christ, as well as all the other disciples.
Jordan Ames (05:57.55)
So there's several points that we want to kind of touch on and learn from this passage. And from our book, this lesson that we're pulling out of here is titled When the Team Can't Follow You. Okay, because this is a situation where Jesus was moving forward with his mission, but his team couldn't follow him in accomplishing that mission. But in time.
They would, like Jesus said in verse 36, where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later. So I'm gonna I'm gonna start with talking about a a topic that we've learned in the military. It's called the fighter-leader concept. So it's basically, and we learn it at a very young time in the military, like entry level.
combat training. So basically whether you're a a leader of a small team of four or even a squad of twelve and you're you're training to advance on you know live fire combat type situations, sometimes the the bullets, the just the loud noises, the explosions, they're so loud that it's hard to communicate to the people
just a couple yards away. And so at that time, those times, it is really necessary for the leader when he's trying to direct his team or his squad and they're really not getting it. They don't understand what he's saying. They don't understand what he's telling them to do. So the fighter leader concept is sometimes that leader just needs to stand up. If he's trying to get his team to move forward, he just needs to stand up and start moving forward.
And then the rest of them, whether they are not moving forward because they just can't hear what he's telling them to do, they're not he's not communicating that, they're not receiving it, or maybe they lack the courage to move forward. In either case, that leader standing up and just moving forward is one communicating what he's requiring them to do, but it's also setting the example.
Jordan Ames (08:22.455)
Which can very much instill courage in the rest of his team to do the same.
Jordan Ames (08:30.851)
So I'm gonna bring Eric in and just start off by asking, what are the signs that a leader needs to act boldly when faced with the team's current incomprehension or or insecurity? So Eric, do you have any examples? Or even if you just wanted to expound on the the passage, like when a when a team is really unwilling or even unprepared or just doesn't comprehend the situation.
How does a leader need to act or or or what kinds of things does does he or she need to do to help their their team move forward?
Eric Albright (09:12.717)
It's good question, Jordan. I think the first thing it comes down to is you've gotta know your team first because and I say that because if your team's hesitating, the first thing you gotta do is perceive the fact that it's hesitating. And so do you have a team full of analytical thinkers and you're and they like their natural response and it's normal for them to like take a breath and consider and then execute? Or do you have a team full of, you know,
fighter leaders that are just are built to step off when you say go and they just i i and and if they hesitate it's a far different
reason than if your s if your deep thinkers hesitate, you gotta know your team number one and you gotta sense that if that they are hesitat that they are number one, you gotta know that they're hesitating. So you gotta know your team. And then if they are, do a little analysis like is this normal or is this abnormal, right? Because and then you gotta proceed accordingly. and and I would say a lot of that comes down to your team has if it why and you mentioned why is your team maybe it's it's courage
Or comfort, and so what I was thinking when you were talking through that is why are they not acting? So let's assume now that like you are you did perceive it correctly, they are hesitating, and it's because of a little bit of unease at some level. And so is it a courage thing? Maybe, if it's or is it a training thing? It's like, have I prepped them for the decision or for the task that I just gave them to do? And so what that goes back to, so that's you know, everybody's like, you know, us as leaders we need to ask.
ourselves okay so if they're not willing to do it is it because of a lack of ability or lack of confidence or attitude and if it's a lack of ability it's probably our fault because we didn't prep them to do the thing so I mean because if we'd have gotten to the point in which expect this command or expect this decision or expect this order whatever it is in the military and we got them a point when they're they're expecting it and then we tell them that they're gonna go do it but if
Eric Albright (11:20.463)
We didn't get them a point where they're expecting it, and then we ask them to go do it, they might hesitate. And that's because they back to a few episodes ago, you know, because we're asking them to operate not something that's illegal, unethical, or immoral, right? But just something that's maybe a little outside their comfort zone. And so if they're hesitating, it's a good chance it's because of fear, F-E-A-R, remember that, and we didn't do a good job of expanding that comfort zone for them, leading up to the moment in which we ask them to do the thing.
we just asked them to do. And so I don't have right off the top of my head, I don't have a good example, but I think that illustrates the picture of like, hey, look, it may not be the team and it may be us. And so right now, back to your in your hep time, are we prep are we prepping, preparating, are we preparing our team for the decisions we might have to ask from them in the future? Three, six months, a year from now.
Jordan Ames (12:20.865)
Yes, good. And the spot I love how you open that up with we have to know them. Right. What's and so what does it take to know them? Well, we have to spend time, spend one on one time getting to know them. Right? Like of course in the military we have, you know, we call them counseling sessions, but really it's just a a sit down and you're just getting some one on one time with the the people that
maybe serving under you. And hopefully the people above you are taking the initiative to do that with with you. yeah, so you have to know your team. And one thing I love about about this story is that Jesus recognized
that they were unprepared to follow him. And really, they were forever going to be unprepared until he set the example of laying down his life. Because until he lays it down, he cannot take it back up. Right. And really it's the resurrection, it's the resurrection and his victory over that death that gave them all the okay
Eric Albright (13:23.831)
Well
Eric Albright (13:29.675)
Yes, and
Jordan Ames (13:39.48)
We we get it now. Like we're we're now, and then of course they receive the Holy Spirit. Now they're fully equipped. They've had the earthly eyewitness experiences, but then they're now spiritually filled with the Holy Spirit. And they're ready to go. And of course, that's when Jesus' earthly mission was over and he ascended back to his father. But at that moment, they were unprepared. And of course, he knew that, but he knew.
That he had to take this step. Without that, they would never be fully prepared.
Eric Albright (14:13.803)
that's a good point. And I have two two things to say to that. Number one is when you say how well do you know your team, this it goes back to exactly and again there's parables and there's stories. Or there's parables and there's and there's factual
Recollections. This is a factual recollection. This is the wit eyewitness of this situation. This isn't a hyperbole or this isn't a hypothetical that we've gotten in parable. This is how it happened. Okay? This is real life how it happened, as per John's eyewitness account. So I say that to say this Jesus' example is one in this case again. and how do you know your team how well do you know your team? And do you well enough know them well enough to know what they're going to do?
Do before they do it right outside of the fact that he's outside of space and time and can see what's happening or already happened in the future, you know, Jesus himself, got the Godhead, but like he knew Peter was gonna deny him three times, and Peter didn't even know that. And so he knew his team so well and his people so well. He's like, No, this is what's gonna happen, and then he challenged him on it. So for us, it's like, well, we're not outside of space and time yet, so we gotta figure out predictability. And so, do we, but do we know.
Know our team so well that we know what they're going to do, or the mis and you've seen this as an instructor in some of the recon stuff that you're the Marstock stuff you do. You've seen this thing so many times that you know it's mistakes they're gonna make before they make them. And as a leader, you're probably either you're either one gonna give them the advice not to make it, or try to put implements in in case so they don't, or you're just gonna let them make the mistake so they learn from it, because it's an acceptable mistake, right? And how well do we know our team well enough to know you
Jordan Ames (15:58.488)
Yeah, experience is the best teacher a lot of times.
Eric Albright (16:01.495)
Right. Then do we know that well enough, our teams well enough to know the mistakes they're gonna make as a leader? Almost and not that we're outside of space and time, but sometimes we have a hard time separating ourselves from
the silo of excellence that we're leading. And we may have several silos of excellence that we're overseeing. And so call it as the you know the ex exo has potentially as ops, he's logistics, see his admin. But are we able to separate ourselves from our team, see the up and out vision for them and pr and foresee mistakes they're gonna make and provide them with guidance on how to pr to mitigate that prior to stepping off, right? So or same thing with same thing with that Jesus did with Peter here. He knows it's gonna happen and
And he's able to foresee that and provide some implements. He's like, but are you really going to do that? And he said, let me just give you this advice, Peter. And so that can we do that, number one. But the second thing is, there may be the other thing may be a reason that we're not being followed and why they're questioning us here is because of trust. Do they trust you? And have you built a climate in which
Trust is paramount and that you've earned it from them because if they do trust you, even if they don't understand it like Peter or any of these other disciples, they're going to do it anyways because you said to and you've built that level of rapport with them. And I'll stop there.
Jordan Ames (17:31.3)
Yeah. Yeah, I think that's a that's a good segue into talking about really the the the second point here I take away from this is the grace through his love that he offered his team. So I know as a leader when I might get frustrated if the team certainly if they're unwilling, but even if they're unprepared. And I made this mistake as a parent as well.
where thinking my my children should be held to a higher standard before I really have truly taught them and walked them through that standard. It's almost like just why why don't you know this? Why aren't you just doing this? Right? and yeah, that I I think as as a parent, that can be very easy if we don't wait, hold up. Did did I teach them those things? Did I walk
Eric Albright (18:30.412)
Yeah.
Jordan Ames (18:31.075)
through them. So so great. And and he so he tells them these things like they there it's about to get real here in a little bit, right? And he says, but hey, just love others as I have loved you. Like he he talks some heavy stuff and then he just simplifies it. A new command I give you love one another as I have loved you, so you must love one another. He simplifies that. And then
Eric Albright (18:39.223)
Amen.
Jordan Ames (19:00.867)
Of course, Peter asks him, Where are you going? He, of course, doesn't sp specify, but he says, Where I'm going, you cannot follow, but you will follow later. So he's given them the, and I say them because it's not like Jesus and Peter are in a single room, right? All the other disciples are there listening. Jesus is talking to all of them. Peter speaks up because he's usually always the one to speak up, right? but try and try and like put yourself in that.
Upper room where this conversation's happening, Jesus just threw some heavy stuff on them. One of their one of their you know closest friends of the 12 just took off. And Jesus knows what's happening, but everybody else in the room is like, he just gave him a piece of bread and said something into his ear.
Eric Albright (19:48.11)
He kn Yeah, and the crazy thing is he knew this was happening like a year or two before. Like he mentions it early in the gospel. Not Yes Anyway, that was just an aside, but
Jordan Ames (19:56.119)
Yeah, when he first called Judas. Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah he knows how it's all gonna play out. But like just he's still focused on the hey love one another. Like are we when we're when we know we're g we're getting ready to
Eric Albright (20:13.527)
Well he knew they were gonna need it, right? Because they're gonna face prosecution. Like they're gonna be beaten, killed, like tortured. Like he's like, Look, you will have nothing but you only thing you have left is love for one another, and do not lose sight of that.
Jordan Ames (20:19.171)
Yeah.
Eric Albright (20:29.867)
Do not lose sight of that. Will you are and what he asked him? He's like, Are you willing to suffer for me? Are you willing to die for me? Are you really willing And he did, Peter definitely did that. But he's like, Look, the only thing you have is love. That has to be your focus, fellas. Because for no other reason would you do what I know you're about to do or what's about to happen to you. And that's it.
Don't lose that. Be and and to some degree there becomes a little bit of bickering that he knows like, you know, between a few of Paul and Peter, I think, for one of later in Acts, a little bit of disagreements and how to proceed forward, but Yes, I mean you're right, Jordan. You're right, Jordan. Lord like the Lord, why can't I I would lay down my life. He's like, Look.
Eric Albright (21:20.033)
Yeah, a new commandment I give and new it's not really new, 'cause he gives this to them before. In Matthew twenty eight and I don't know in the sequence, but it wasn't the last supper. He's like, Love your neighbor, and and love God. Love God not in that order, right? Love God as though with all your heart, mind, and soul and love your neighbor as though he were yourself. So this is a similar tone and feel to the to the the two greatest commandments. But just as I loved you are you also love one another.
Jordan Ames (21:47.607)
Yeah, absolutely.
Eric Albright (21:49.91)
And that's the leadership. Leadership is a large part of that is loving your people, man. And not to see you know, that doesn't need to be weird and squishy. Like but do you genuinely care for them? Because they know if you don't. And you won't know them the way that Jesus knew Peter and the way that you need to need to to effectively lead them if you don't connect with them on a level that shows them that you care. You have to. To be effective you have to.
Jordan Ames (22:15.895)
Yeah. In this short in this short scene, I think there's like the the basis of leadership is kinda encapsulated in this these short verses. So you know, I think it's attributed to to John Maxwell. Leadership is influence. True. But what what is the the purpose of leadership and why it's influence is that it's you're influencing
Somebody else, I say where there's two or more people that are working towards a common goal, there's leadership and there's teamwork. With just one person, if it's just me, my own personal goal, I'm I'm really just leading myself. I may need to partner with somebody to help me whatever, lose weight or gain muscle or do whatever. Just if it's just a very personal goal, it's only affecting me.
Well, then I need to lead myself. But when they're when it's like two people, a marriage or you know, a team at work, what two or more people serving a common goal, there's leadership and there's teamwork. So in this passage, the common goal is that Jesus is setting up the advancement of his kingdom, right? He has to, he has to.
Eric Albright (23:38.37)
Yeah.
Jordan Ames (23:42.244)
Pay the penalty for our sin in order for the kingdom of heaven to be in us. And then he's developed this team of men around him that are going to advance that kingdom after Jesus leaves. So we have the leadership of Jesus.
Eric Albright (23:58.498)
Yeah.
Jordan Ames (24:03.437)
Kind of saying, hey, this is the goal, and I'm taking the bold step to kick it off. And then he goes into talking about love, which is like, here's how you're going to influence people to grow this mission, to grow the kingdom, to do the mission that I'm setting you up to do, that I'm developing you to do. So, like as leaders, like like you just said, it's
Eric Albright (24:29.751)
Yeah.
Jordan Ames (24:33.323)
It is leader. It's the basis of leadership. Just to love the people that we are serving, the people that are under us, the people that are working with us. Love them, meaning put them ahead of yourself. Right? So put the mission ahead of yourself, which Jesus did. Right. Put the mission ahead of yourself and put others ahead of yourself. When you're doing those things.
Eric Albright (24:48.919)
Love your neighbor as yourself, as though he were yourself, right?
Jordan Ames (25:01.869)
You're not you're not self serving. You're not just letting your selfish ambitions kind of guide your decisions.
Eric Albright (25:10.359)
You wanna know something crazy, Jordan? As you're saying all that, I'm like looking through. Like, that's what my head was looking through scripture right here in John. You know, we spent a lot of time. There's like the Sermon on the Mount's a really good t teaching a couple of chapters in Matthew 5-7. Buddy, look here. So
Gee, he's with he's with his disciples in the upper room, like the Last Supper. That sounds a lot to me like a weekly stand-up, you know, in in our world. Where, you know, XO gets everybody together. It's like a department head meeting. Okay? But here's the thing. If you want to look and get some serious wisdom, we're in John thirteen. When 'cause we you set me on this rabbit hole while you were talking there because you said something about this is this whole thing here is the exact example.
Jordan Ames (25:46.093)
Yeah.
Eric Albright (26:02.735)
There's so many lessons like front to back. So he gathers people in a room not the night before, not the week before, not a month before his he's getting arrested, the hours before, the night of.
Jordan Ames (26:08.205)
Yeah.
Jordan Ames (26:18.839)
Right.
Eric Albright (26:20.009)
And and then the very last thing is, you know, as they leave here, he's like, Look, when he's spoken, nope, that's not even it. It's not till 18, we're in 13, chapter 18. He's like, when Jesus had spoken these words, and then he went out with the disciples across the brook where there was a garden, and that's where Judas comes back and he gets arrested. Jesus gets arrested. So hold on, Jordan.
We're talking about he's telling all these things. Judas leaves, he's talking, he, you know, he tells Peter about his denial. Then he tells him, because I think it's Thomas asks him a question. He does. He said, Lord, we do not know where you're going. How can we know the way? This is an extension of what we just talked about. This is the beginning of 14. He said, Look, I'm the he's not from the south. So that inserted the look. But he said, Look, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes with the Father except through me. If you
Known me, you would have known my father also. From now on, you do know him and have seen him. Okay, that's more good wisdom. That's still at the Last Supper. We'll call it the department head meeting. The next big segment he talks to them is if you love me, you will keep my commandments, and I will ask the Father and will give you another capital H helper to be with you forever. The Spirit of Truth, whom will the world cannot receive because it neither sees him nor knows him.
Him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. Bro, that's the next thing he tells him at the Last Supper. The promise of the Holy Spirit. You talk about guidance and prep. They don't know about any of this. To your earlier point. And then he's like, look, peace.
Jordan Ames (27:57.624)
Yeah.
Jordan Ames (28:01.655)
I don't I'd like I don't know how they how they captured really I guess John how he captured all this information because you know it's like yeah Jesus wasn't like hey does everybody got a piece of paper and something to write with because you're gonna need it.
Eric Albright (28:06.209)
John.
No, dude, there's no takers. There ain't no question.
Eric Albright (28:17.845)
Yeah. Right. I mean if it's if the son of God is telling you something, you probably remember the details.
Jordan Ames (28:20.717)
Like
Eric Albright (28:26.167)
I'm thinking. And I mean, not to mention it was inspired by the Holy Spirit. And then he keeps going. He's like, look, I'm the vine. The father's is the vine dresser. That's also at the Last Supper. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You've heard that a hundred times in reference to the military. Guess where he said that? The Last Supper. The department head meeting.
Jordan Ames (28:28.803)
Yeah, that's true.
Yeah, hundred percent.
Jordan Ames (28:50.199)
The last supper. Yeah. Yeah.
Eric Albright (28:53.343)
Right? The department head meeting before the you know the colonel comes down and acts as the CO. And now guess what? You're left to figure it out. And and that not acts as the CO, you know, he doesn't fire the CO because he did a bad job. It's because he did a great job. Anyways, and then we go on to say, look, the hatred
Jordan Ames (29:11.363)
You know what though? Probably a
Pro probably a better description of this of the Last Supper meeting is not a weekly stand-up or department head meeting. It's probably more like the general giving a speech before the invasion. Right? That's probably more like a better analogy of what's happening here.
Eric Albright (29:30.72)
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah, that's fair. And he's by the way, and you're gonna do that invasion without me. I won't be there anymore. And what where I'm going, you can't come. But bro, you know. But he keeps go I mean, he keeps going in sixteen. He's like, when the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. That's in sixteen. Your sorrow will turn into joys in sixteen. I have overcome the worlds. Still at the Last Supper, the high priestly prayer. When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted his eyes up to heaven and said, Father, the hour has come. Glorify your son that the Son may glorify you. Since you had given him authority.
Authority over all the flesh to give eternal life to all of you who have given him, and he goes on. And you've I that I had with you before the world existed. So like if you just go ahead and start around thirteen and read everything and last thing here before you go into eighteen, is like, as you send me into the world, so you have sent them into the world. And do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word. no one comes with the Father except through me is in there. Bro, if you were just to go in a little study.
And you're like, I want to know everything I know about leadership, or like what it means to be a leader and and and Jesus at the same time. Start in 13 and just go read his Last Supper conversations. And it wasn't a poke in this is another good example, Jordan, to your earlier point. And I know I run out of time, but like he didn't go there and poke him in the chest.
And say, you shall, you shall, you shall. This was a conversation, right? Peter asked the question, he responded. Thomas asked the question, he responded. Another disciple asked. He's it's a back and forth, and he's just like pouring into those guys over and over. And didn't come off as like I have all the answers. You guys are dumb. It's like no, trust me, here's what's gonna happen, here's things you need to understand. And they're just absorbing all this stuff, man. So there's like five chapters of just gold gold
Jordan Ames (31:22.637)
Yeah, so good.
Eric Albright (31:24.591)
gold mine that you know of what of this last su I don't think I realized how much was actually encompassed in the last supper prior to today.
Jordan Ames (31:36.179)
yeah, that's and that's the one thing like of course for for the listeners we we talk about the book.
Eric Albright (31:40.257)
Hours before his arrest.
Jordan Ames (31:44.308)
Yeah. We we talked about the book and we wrote we committed to writing one lesson on each passage. So some versions capture passages a little differently. They they lump them together differently. We use the the NIV version, mainly the one from I think like early two thousands. But anyways, what Eric is saying is there's a whole lot more leadership lessons than we wrote on in the book, especially
concerning those chapters 13 through 17, 18. So yeah, we encourage you to certainly dig into those. And if you want a master class on Christ centered leadership, that's a good place to start.
Jordan Ames (32:30.595)
Well Eric, let me I know we gotta get going, let me just ask you to leave us with and always value how you can conceptualize and kind of put practicality and kind of some concrete actions or or things to you know application to to apply. So given the lesson we were talking about, what are maybe some maybe processes or systems?
Or just flat out simple actions that leaders can take on on some of the lessons we're we're discussing.
Eric Albright (33:10.861)
Yeah, that's that's a good that's good, Jordan. And I think, you know, given that we were talking about the Last Supper, here's what we need to do. Here's your practical takeaway. It's as simple. Take your team to lunch. That's it. Here's why. Take to lunch. Go break bread. Why? Because when you're eating you automatically have you know
What do you call them? You got the endorphins, people are already in a better mood, they're more willing to receive what you have to say, but not to one one because it builds the things, two things we're looking for. One, you get to know them. Take them out to lunch. Maybe you don't do anything about work. Or maybe you go out and be like, hey, look, I'm looking for some bottom-up refinement, 360-degree feedback. How are we doing? What am I not seeing? What needs fixed? They're gonna tell you more so in an informal setting than they will do in a formal setting, okay? Take them out to lunch and get to know.
them maybe it's a hate. I I just want to know maybe it's a one-on-one. Maybe it's a maybe it's the whole group. I just want to get to know you all and have a conversation that doesn't feel like it's scripted or or forced number one. Number two, as you do that you're naturally going to converse, you're going to establish relationships, love them more than you did because you're getting to know them and you'll you'll slowly over time develop the thing the other requirement we talked about which is trust. Okay? Because
Because they gotta know you and they gotta know your heart and they gotta know your intent and what's behind it before they trust you with their decision making, right? And so take so the practical takeaway, if you want to get to know your team and start to build trust and cohesion amongst the different individuals is simple. Take them to lunch. Just go get lunch. You can do that today. If you're listening to this on the way to work, you can do that today.
Jordan Ames (34:59.309)
That's awesome. Yep.
Eric Albright (35:06.381)
That's it. It's simp Jordan, leadership's not a difficult thing. It's not. We make it hard that's correct. It's just you just need to be intentional about it.
Jordan Ames (35:11.629)
Yeah, we make it difficult. Our flesh makes it difficult. Yeah.
Jordan Ames (35:19.233)
I love that Eric. And that's exactly what Eric's talking about is exactly what Jesus did. He, at the beginning of his ministry, he just served people. He spent time with them. He personally loved them, had compassion on them, healed their illnesses. He just served them and loved them. And if he
Eric Albright (35:42.859)
The first thing he did was wash their feet in the g when he went to the Last Supper.
Jordan Ames (35:46.37)
Yeah, and exactly. But but long before the Last Supper, all that heavy stuff he talked about the last supper supper, he had built a close relationship with them before even laying all that on him. Right. And I I think that's that's what Eric's saying is that's take them out to lunch, get to know them, be informal, build a relationship, build a connection, because you're in your preparation time.
Some of you may be faced with specific challenges right now. But while you're faced with challenges right now, you're also in preparation time for further challenges in the future. I mean Jesus even says that with
Butcher this. I think it's in Luke, but with where much is given, much is expected. Right? So whether you see what you've been given as much, you've been given something and you're expected to multiply it. You're expected to do more with it. So as you face challenges and you work through those, you're you may very well face more challenges. So really you're always in that preparation time. So to wrap this up.
Take Eric's advice. Take your team out to lunch. Take your kids out to lunch. Take your wife out to lunch. Do life with them. Make that connection. And then be the leader that they need.
Eric Albright (37:18.871)
Yeah.
Jordan Ames (37:19.395)
All right, that's it. Any last words, Eric?
Eric Albright (37:22.239)
Really good, Jordan. You mentioned the family thing, and it's exactly right. The other night I've got a 14-year-old daughter, and you know, she she decided to take me out to dinner, right? And here's why. And this is why it's important to date your daughters' dads, or or moms date your sons, because
Jordan Ames (37:35.787)
Okay.
Eric Albright (37:43.287)
You're gonna go out and you're gonna get talk with them and get to know them in ways that you didn't before. And she's like, Hey Dad, we'll be going out to dinner I'm like, hmm. She's asked me to go to dinner. This is fantastic. But here's the thing, the reason she asked me to go to dinner on a Friday night was because she had something to tell me. And if I'd have been too busy that she needed to tell Dad, there's this boy I like. That was it. And it took her three hours of the h the daddy-daughter date in the last sixty seconds before we pulled in the driveway for her to finally get up the courage to
Tell me that, but you're or to mention that to me, he's like, Dad, what you think? I just wanted to get your take on that. If I told you I like the boy, what would you think? That's what was essentially the question. And and so, but it took her three hours to go on that courage. But the point is, you've got to spend time with them, or they're not gonna open up and give, you know, talk to you about things like that, which was massively important to her. So if we don't make time for the people that we love, right, in this case my daughter, like we may not have ever had that conversation, and you're not developing the bond that you
need to whenever like you said, whenever she's gonna need to lean on you and you're gonna be like, well I never really got to know who you are, so let me start there. Bad to go. And so you gotta spend time with people before they trust you, there's another one. Before they trust to tell you the things that you need to hear. Like, hey there's a boy I like, what you think about that? It took her three hours and I've been living with her for 14 years over a day to figure finally say that, you know? And so without spending that time and putting that work in, she didn't trust me enough, you know, was she was testing my mood
Jordan Ames (39:07.267)
Yeah.
Eric Albright (39:13.161)
my response, how's that doing on the date? Let me, you know, before I finally had the courage to ask fear, to ask and trust to ask him and get in and hear what he had to say. That's a big deal, Jordan. So this is you're right, man. This isn't just work stuff. But yeah, that's all I got. That's all I got. It's powerful.
Jordan Ames (39:25.633)
yeah. Yep. No no. Yeah, that's good. All right, listeners, would you heard it. Take your team out to lunch.
