Dr. Nthabiseng Legoete shared the deep challenges she encountered in establishing Quali Health and reminds you that challenges are an important part of a purpose-filled journey. Challenges should not be a deterrent. They should spur you on.
Your generosity goes a long way. When you equip, empower and encourage someone through the GLS, you expand their impact in their community and change lives around the world!
At the end of August, we launch the 2018 international Summit season, which continues to train up leaders throughout the fall and spring months in another 135 countries!
Be encouraged and inspired by our friends who express their thanks for the impact you have already had on their lives and in their countries, and please continue to pray.
On behalf of the GLS in Uganda, and the whole movement, thank you. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your giving that has changed lives and made a difference in the way we lead our nation. Thank you for sponsoring the tool that has opened doors for us to go to leaders in places we never thought we’d reach. Thank you for supporting us in discipling our nation one leader a time. Sometimes as we do this work in our country, it occurs to us that on this side of heaven, you may never know what your contributions have done. But every time we hear a message or a testimony of lives changed, it is our prayer, just as the Bible says in Proverbs 11, “he who waters will himself be watered” that God would water you, and bless you and your families. We pray that God would enlarge your territories as you serve him. I would like to challenge you to go that one extra mile. With every gift, you touch a leader, and every time a leader is touched, a nation gets better. We’ve seen this in Uganda, and we know it can happen in any other country. May God richly bless your heart. Thank you for your giving.—Betty Byanyima, GLS leader, Uganda
On behalf of the Thai people, pastors and leaders, we would like to thank you for supporting the GLS so we can have the GLS in Thailand. We need the Gospel, and we need a lot of help, especially in terms of leadership development. Most of our people do not speak English, so we have very limited Christian leadership resources. But the GLS has been translated into Thai and now we have the chance to help many pastors and leaders in our country where we have less than one percent of the population are believers. If we can help Christian leaders get better, the church will win, and the Thai people will win with the Gospel. Thanks so much for helping us. Please continue to support the GLS in Thailand.—Anuparp Wichitnantana, GLS leader, Thailand
We want to say thank you to our beloved donors and friends. Without you, The Global Leadership Summit would not have been possible in my part of the world—Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Because of your support, encouragement, and because of your prayers, the GLS is now in our part of the world. In Liberia and Sierra Leone, you may have heard about what happened with the Ebola crisis, but because of the GLS, and because leaders are getting better, things are changing. So thank you. We are very grateful, and we appreciate you. We pray that the Lord will continue to bless you for all you are doing for WCA and the GLS. Your support will never be in vain. Thank you so, so much, and God bless you.—Philip Tutu, regional leader for the GLS in West Africa
I would like to thank each one of the donors who has made the GLS possible in the different countries. In Colombia, I’m witnessing a country that is flourishing and going through a transition. It makes a difference when a leader is impacted and transformed. I myself am a part of a process, as I’m also seeing other leaders be a part of a process of transformation. It makes a difference in many areas—one of them is when someone believes in you, and encourages you to move forward. I believe the GLS is helping others move forward by believing in them. I see God moving. And I believe we need to learn to see more of where God is showing up or moving, because he is everywhere. I believe there are nations right now, not just Colombia, that desperately need what the GLS is providing. If leaders are exposed to this level of training or this level of influence, then they can step up and be a solution to the issues in our countries. That is what is key right now in investing in the GLS. I want to thank each one of you for making this possible for the world, and for my country. Thank you.—Camilo Bedoya, GLS leader, Colombia
What has happened in our country would not have been possible without you guys who have put your finances on the line in order for lives to be changed. You are putting your finances towards people you don’t even know—people you’ve never even met, and I want to guarantee your resources are being used wisely, and are creating a better future for our young people. May the Lord truly bless you for the work you’re doing. You don’t have to be there, but your resources are representing you and are representative of what you guys have done. May the Lord bless you. Thank you so much.—Harold Chilowa, GLS leader, Zimbabwe
The Summit in India is growing exponentially. We went from 6 to 16 to 34 to 54 sites, and now we have 84 events planned for 2017. The need is great. We see God using the GLS in a great way. And we really want to thank you—all our donors and supporters—for all the support you’ve given so we could make a change in our country, and so our leaders could have a greater opportunity for change. Our churches can have incredible influence because of your contributions.—Binu Varghese, regional leader for the GLS in India
Willow Creek Association donors, supporters and people who love the GLS, I am Carlos Arroyo from Latin America, and I have the blessing and the opportunity to serve several countries in South America, as well as Panama and Cuba. I’ve seen all the needs we have met through your resources. Thank you very much. Without your heart for giving, we could not have had the GLS in many countries like Bolivia, Ecuador, Cuba, Chile, Peru and others in the rest of Latin America. I encourage you to continue with your great heart and gift of giving. I challenge you to invite others to be part of this movement. Under-resourced countries like ours, need your support. I am certain that God will bless you, because this GLS movement is in the heart of God. Thank you very much.—Carlos Arroyo, regional leader for the GLS in South America
I’m very thankful to the donors who’ve contributed to help us continue our journey with the GLS in Nazareth. Their contributions have helped us and enabled us to reach and impact more and more people that churches are generally not able to reach—key people in the community in Nazareth, the home town of Jesus. Thank you for believing in us and believing in the vision. With God’s grace and favor, we are trying to accomplish that mission and vision for his glory.—Botrus Mansour, GLS leader, Nazareth
We are very thankful for the ongoing commitment of Willow Creek for leadership development in Haiti. We know the GLS happens through donors who share sacrificially so leaders in Haiti can have access to this leadership training. This training helps people, and helps leaders by encouraging them not to quit. It helps leaders by providing resources and insights. Thank you. We hope people will continue to support the cause so we can create more sites and more people can enjoy and benefit from the great mission of the GLS.—Edner Jeanty, Haiti coordinator for the GLS, Haiti
On behalf of the GLS in Myanmar, we just want to say thank you for all your giving and contributions to this wonderful country. Leadership is so vital in this country. The GLS has brought so much transformation. So we want to thank you for giving. We hope you continue to give and to contribute. We know there are a lot of things God has in store for Myanmar, and we hope to see this coming into play. Thank you for all you have given and continue to give.—Peteullia Foo, regional leader for Southeast Asia, and GLS leader in Myanmar
I want to express my appreciation to our donors for their gifts towards The Global Leadership Summit. It has helped us raise and multiply leaders in our communities, and it is changing our communities. We see the Lord moving our people from poverty. We see the Lord helping the nation to become a better nation. I pray the Lord will multiply their seed and cause their harvest to multiply.—Julius Msheliza, GLS leader, Northern Nigeria
I want to thank you very much for your donation and support for the GLS in Egypt. Last year we had a great Summit. For the first time, 150 people attended from outside the church. We had both Muslims and Christians there together. This is historical in our city. Newspapers wrote about it, and national television came to cover the Summit as well. We believe that next year, because of your support, we can have even more impact in our community. Thank you so much.—Samer El Daief, GLS leader, Egypt
First of all, I really appreciate all the help that the GLS provides in Ukraine, and for helping us start the GLS here. My personal thankfulness is for people who invested in Ukraine and our GLS because God is using that tool to touch so many hearts and a new generation of leaders who will form what will happen in our churches and our society. In the midst of all the trouble we’re going through, true leadership is what we really need. Without a true leader, and without a true vision, we don’t really have a future, so thank you for investing in our future and our leadership development in Ukraine.—Yaroslav Pyzh, GLS leader, Ukraine
I just want to say thank you, all of you, who’ve contributed in making this GLS come to Ghana. I know I’m subsidized, because you gave. I want God to bless you, and I want you to know you should not stop what you started, because there are so many more people out there who need to have this experience. As you continue to give, God will reach out to them, and we will have a world with good leaders, and everybody will win. Thank you, and God bless you.—Rosemond Quarcopome, GLS leader, Ghana
I want to thank you very much for the continued support for the GLS in Jordan. We have been doing it now for seven years, but it was in the last year that we saw the breakthrough we were looking for. We saw the numbers double in attendance and how the community came. I just want to thank you so much because you believed and you kept on supporting and helping until we reached this point. You could have stopped supporting a few years ago, because there didn’t seem to be much success, but you continued to say, ‘We’re going to support the leaders.’ And now we are looking forward to a greater thing that will happen through the GLS in Jordan. Thank you very much for your support and prayers, and every person who is trying to put a small seed in the GLS. I thank you so much and pray that God will bless you richly and support you.—Randa Halaseh, GLS leader, Jordan
I want to thank the donors of The Global Leadership Summit for their investment in something that is so phenomenal. Your investment is making a big difference in the Bahamas. Our country and the lives of our people are being transformed as a result of your investment. I, myself, am being improved as a leader as a result of your investment. I encourage you to continue to invest.—Gadville MacDonald, GLS leader, The Bahamas
On behalf of Southern Africa, we would really like to express our heartfelt thanks for the commitment you’ve shown to our countries. We’d like to thank you for the sacrifices you’ve made so that leaders in our countries could attend The Global Leadership Summit and have their lives changed, which in turn will help to change their communities and their countries. From the bottom of our hearts, we would like to extend our thanks and our appreciation for everything you have done for us.—Janine Couchman, Willow Creek Association South Africa, and regional leader for Southern Africa
On behalf of my country, The Philippines, we would really like to thank all of you who have been supporting the GLS, especially the GLS in our country. It is very helpful and important. My prayer is that you would continue to support us, and also partner and pray with us. I believe when the leaders of our country become better, our country can change. The Philippines can change when leaders become better. Thank you.—Jesusito Bong Baylon, GLS leader, The Philippines
Sheila Heen compares the potential pitfalls for anyone who may shift or absorb blame.
Co-Founder & Senior Pastor of Life.Church, Craig Groeschel describes leading with a “you-centered” mindset when taking on a new leadership role.
Willow Creek Association president, Tom De Vries, explains what has happened since the allegations against Bill Hybels were made and what steps we are taking as we pursue truth and justice.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5MfBKzGoT0?
People would rather follow a leader that is real than one that is always right.
What is the most creative thing you could do as a leader?
Strive Masiyiwa and T.D. Jakes talk about the nature of consistency as a bridge between short-term wins that lead to long-term vision achievement.
Week after week, Mari sits in team meetings. She wants to say something, but can’t quite figure out how. She’s worried that she’ll step on someone else’s turf, slow down the process or come across as defensive. Plus, it’s hard to get a word in with George and Julie dominating conversation. By the time she musters up courage to say something, it feels like the conversation has moved on, so she doesn’t.
Saying what you mean—in ways that others can hear—can be hard, and especially in a group. Often there are plenty of voices already in the mix. We can’t quite figure out what we want to say, aren’t sure how others are going to react, and then of course, the time allotted for the meeting is up and we’ve all got to move onto the next item on our tightly packed calendars.
The absence of certain voices in the conversation means we miss important information.
Yet the absence of certain voices in the conversation means we miss important information, limit a group’s creativity and make decisions without key input. A 2010 study by researchers from MIT and Carnegie Mellon noticed that a kind of “general intelligence” exists for teams—some are simply smarter than others, and get better outcomes. They wondered why.
So they constructed teams of 2-5 people, who worked together to complete short tasks involving logical analysis, brainstorming, planning and moral reasoning. The teams that did better didn’t do better because the individuals on them were smarter, or more motivated or more extroverted. The teams that did better had more equal participation, and more ability to read others’ complex emotional states. 1
The ability to speak up matters. It is critical for collaboration and your team’s success. And it’s critical for your own career, job satisfaction and peace of mind.
So what helps?
“I’ve had three clients mention to me that they wish we offered more follow-up. Have others heard this from their clients? I wonder whether we should start thinking about what we might offer?”
Worried that you’ll come across as disrespectful or disagreeable? Naming the role that you’re adopting helps others know what you’re doing. “I’m going to play devil’s advocate.” Or “I’m going to push you here.” Actively adopting a temporary role helps separate the move you’re making in the moment from the relationship as a whole.
It can be easy to think, “If I say something, I’ll hold up the meeting.” Or, “It seems like the conversation has moved on.” And because of these reasons, we don’t speak up.
Instead, articulate those concerns so that the rest of the group knows where you’re coming from, what you’re wrestling with, and have a more complete picture of the dynamics in the group, on the call, and impacting the project. “I don’t want to hold up the process. At the same time, I’m worried that if we don’t consider the impact of this initiative on end users that it will come back to bite us in the future.” When we articulate our concerns, the dilemma becomes part of the meeting rather than a reason to abstain from it.
Now some people just won’t speak up in meetings unless asked, and even then, find it tricky. So if more equal participation is important, then we want to also be thinking about how to invite others into the conversation.
We want to also be thinking about how to invite others into the conversation.
Particularly for individuals who are junior or not as quick on their feet, having advanced notice about the role they will play during the meeting can make it easier to participate. Before the meeting, ask them, “Can you talk the group through the options you’ve identified?” This gives them a specific role to own and avoids them being caught off guard in the moment.
If you notice that someone has been uncharacteristically quiet or noticeably silent, asking, “What would you add?” invites them into the conversation and assumes that they have something valuable to add. Or bring others into the conversation this way: “I’m noticing that the volunteers in the room are surprisingly quiet. What’s running through your minds?” Those running the meeting may be so focused on figuring out the next action item that they are missing key dynamics in the conversation.
It’s hard to speak up and be heard when it doesn’t seem like anyone is listening. Even if you initially disagree with what someone else is sharing, pause to make sure you are hearing them accurately before responding. “So it sounds like you are worried about whether we’ll make the timeline. Is that right?” Or “I can’t tell if you are worried about the current project, or are raising something more long term. Can you say more about that?” Check your understanding, before adding your own thoughts to the mix, or moving on in the conversation.
1 Chicago: Woolley, Anita Williams, Christopher F. Chabris, Alex Pentland, Nada Hashmi, and Thomas W. Malone. “Evidence for a collective intelligence factor in the performance of human groups.” science 330, no. 6004 (2010): 686-688.
It’s nearly time!
There are just two days left until hundreds of thousands of leaders from around the world will gather together to invest in their leadership.
Many of you are polishing off your projects, setting up your out-of-office, and preparing your heart for all you will experience at the 2018 Global Leadership Summit.
You are leaders who care about growth, invest in your development and commit to get better. We want to equip you with everything you need to have an incredible GLS experience!
Here are 10 tips to make the most of your 2018 Global Leadership Summit!
Get speaker biographies, the daily schedule, speaker polls, order speaker books and DVDs, save and share session notes, register for 2018 Summit, and more!
For year-round leadership development, GLSnext provides more than 700 videos from world-class Summit faculty with new videos added each week.
Read the following verses ahead of time to prepare for the talk! 1 Kings 19, 2 Kings 2, 2 Kings 4, 2 Kings 7, 2 Kings 13
What challenges are you encountering on those teams? Create a list of challenges and bring them with you to the conference.
Was it positive? Was it hurtful? Sheila Heen will bring research and expertise to teach us how we can be better prepared for those difficult conversations in our organizations.
How did that experience affect you? What made the hospitality so radically different? Restauranteur Danny Meyer will teach us how great organizations can practice world-class hospitality.
Where do you fall on the scale of how well you anticipate the future?
1 = Low Ability to Anticipate
5 = High Ability to Anticipate
One of our speakers will help us learn how to grow in this critical leadership skill. He will start his talk with this quote from Wayne Gretzky: “Most players skate to where the puck is. I skate to where it is going to be.”
How much does your faith affect the work you are doing? We will hear three stories about individuals who have claimed a grander vision for their lives.
Follow @wcagls on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Tweet, post and share about your experience, and connect with Summit enthusiasts all across the globe! This year’s official hashtag is #GLS18.
Add a daily prayer this week: “God, prepare my heart to hear the message you need me to hear at the Summit. Guide me to know where to focus my growth for the next leadership season.”
“We welcome and encourage comments on this site. There may be some instances where comments will need to be edited or removed, such as:
If you have any questions on the commenting policy, please let us know at heretoserve@globalleadership.org”
Recent Comments