Many organizational leaders preach of changing the organization, but few preach on changing themselves. As novelist Leo Tolstoy said, “Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.”

Change is hard. Change is difficult. And it’s never more uncomfortable than when the change must occur within ourselves. But growth is impossible without changing one’s self. Remember, in our world change is inevitable, but growth is optional. Things will change around us all the time. Change will happen to us. But real growth only comes when we intentionally allow change to take shape IN us. People unwilling to grow will never reach their God-given potential. To change your world, you must change yourself.

Here’s a few points on how to do that:

  1. See yourself clearly. This means we must take personal inventory and regular introspection of ourselves. Do you have a daily or weekly time where you take self-inventory? Do you scour your heart, mind, and spirit? Have you checked for hidden toxins lingering from hurtful relationships? Are there destructive habits we are overlooking? Are there daily attitudes or approaches holding us back? Is our character reflective of Christ? Am I renewing my mind so that I can consistently test the will of God for my life? (Romans 12:1-2)
  2. Admit your flaws honestly. Many people prefer to stay busy rather than slowing down for personal inventory because they are afraid of what they might find in their character when they get still. It’s important for us to open our Bibles with the intent that it will read us rather than us reading it. We must let the Holy Spirit show us our flaws so that we can grow beyond them and change despite them. We should openly confess our flaws to God and not be intimidated to share them with others. People who matter will see you no different. The people who judge you for your flaws don’t matter anyway. Admitting your flaws is a good filter to determine who is important in your life.
  3. Discover your strengths joyfully. It’s important to celebrate not only the wins in our lives, but also winning traits. What are your strengths? What did you do well this past week? Zero in on those strengths and ask yourself how you can spend more time living from those strengths rather than micro-managing your weaknesses. Focus on those strengths and let power emanate from your life as you give yourself more diligently to working out of those strengths. John Maxwell suggests we spend 70% of our time and energy focusing on developing our strengths, 25% of our time on new things, and only 5% of our time minimizing our weaknesses (delegating, managing, etc.). I have found this to be a good rule to live and lead by.
  4. Build on those strengths passionately. Leaders who stop learning stop leading. It’s not enough to merely know your strengths; become a daily student of how to grow your strengths. We must sharpen them, hone them, and build on them. Develop a personal growth plan to intentionally build on your strengths. Read all the books you can on your particular skill sets. Subscribe to blogs. Listen to podcasts. Find coaches with similar strengths. Don’t be too proud to ask someone else who is gifted like you about how they develop their strengths. Formulate your plan, and get to work on building your strengths; their current muscle density isn’t sufficient for the plans God has for you in the future. Keep growing. Keep changing. The world needs you!

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