There are some similar words that leaders often get confused. And it could be dangerous to their leadership.
Everyone who has ever served with me on a team could probably agree I am not a wordsmith. I often say to people, “Listen to the principle of what I’m saying more than the actual words I use.” I tend to think and act very big-picture and am less in tune with the details of things.
At the same time, I recognize that words matter. Greatly.
I’ve noticed we confuse a lot of words in leadership. Some may seem related, or even used interchangeably at times, but they are very different.
Words we often get confused as leaders:
Possibility with Probability
Just because something has a chance of happening doesn’t necessarily mean the chances are good. When making changes, for example, I want to know what’s possible—what might happen—and also what is probable—what probably will happen.
The leader needs to be clear about the risk involved and not pretend every possibility is a probability—and vice versa.
Opportunity with Obligation
Just because I could do something doesn’t mean I have to do it or even that I should. This is incredibly important for those of us who struggle to say no at times.
We can easily become ineffective when we make every opportunity an obligation.
Challenge with Impossibility
Sometimes we dismiss the hard work, because it seems impossible, when really, if we are honest, it’s just a bigger challenge than we are willing to accept. We don’t always like the things that make us walk by faith into the unknown. But what is really impossible if it’s of God?
I know numerous pastors, for example, who have made change in the church seem impossible, when really it’s just harder to implement than they care to tackle, so they live with status quo.
Delegation with Assignment
Some leaders I know confuse assigning someone a task with delegating. Delegating is far more than that. Giving an assignment is easy. I tell someone what to do and get to walk away from it.
Delegating involves much more. It’s ensuring the person assigned a task has the skills, training, and resources to complete the task and then folowing through with them until the task is complete.
Responsibility with Authority
This is a personal pet peeve of mine. Responsibility means I have an obligation to do something. Authority means I have the actual freedom to get it done in a way that matches my skills and talents.
If you want me to be a good follower – give me responsibility. If you want me to develop as a leader, and feel like a valuable part of the team – give me authority.
Idea with Initiative
Ideas are many. Actually working to make an idea a reality is very rare. Most organizations and leaders (like me) have far more ideas than we have initiatives.
It’s important that every idea you want implemented has a plan, a strategy, and people given the authority and accountability to make it happen. That’s when an idea becomes an initiative.
Leadership with Management
Before picking up a stone to throw on this one, please know I’m a huge fan of both when done well. (I have a chapter about it in my book The Mythical Leader.)
Leading involves taking people somewhere, often into an unknown, where they may not go otherwise without leadership. It involves facing risks to achieve a vision, but where the path to attain it is many times unclear.
Managing involves helping people achieve and maintain a known, predetermined vision, by implementing systems and procedures to effectively move people forward.
Leaders tend to thrive in tension and challenge. Managers tend to thrive in details and structure. Both are needed, and there are overlaps for sure, but overall they are very different.
Intentional with Conventional
Okay, this might be a stretch in words, but the thought behind it is not. In reality, we may not even use the words, but we certainly confuse the actions.
By intentional I mean doing things in the best way possible to get the job done – doing whatever it takes to be successful. By conventional I mean doing the same things we’ve always done and hoping progress continues.
Both of these may be working towards a worthy vision, but one lasts for a season. The other lasts longer – much longer.
Change with Progression
Progression is actually a form a change, but it’s the easy one. Everything changes. People get older. Buildings wear out over time. That’s a change. Ignoring this kind of change is an impossibility. Progression happens whether we want it to or not.
It is one thing to let things progress naturally over time and it is another to make intentional changes for the good of the organization. Letting things progress is easy. Making intentional change, even when resistance is heavy, is the hard work of leadership, but a necessary part if we want to continue to grow and remain healthy.
Promise with Principle
A promise means it’s going to happen as promised. A principle means this will generally work as stated, under normal conditions, provided the described conditions are met.
The danger is living as if a principle is a promise. It will make you very disappointed when conditions weren’t in place for the principle to perform like a promise. (I promise. In principle.)
(Side note: We confuse these last two words in our relationship with God sometimes. – “train up a child in the way he should go” for a classic example. In those cases, we have to ask if God promised it or if He provided a principle.)
