Best-selling author of The One-Minute Manager , Ken Blanchard, along with Phil Hodges, offers guidance for how to become a successful modern-day servant leader modeled after Jesus Christ. Based on years of leadership study and proven leadership styles, Blanchard gives established and up-and-coming business leaders solid examples, tools, and methods for life-changing results in their leadership of others. Servant Leader summarizes the Four Dimensions of Leadership: leadership assumptions and methods - application and leadership behavior - using the heart to overcome selfish motives and barriers - the habits of leaders Readers looking to expand their effective leadership skills, to experience the transforming power of Blanchard's unconventional teachings, and to grow as leaders and as business executives will benefit greatly from Servant Leader . Ken Blanchard is the coauthor of The One Minute Manager® and fifty other books, including the New York Times business bestsellers Gung Ho! and Raving Fans. His books have combined sales of more than eighteen million copies in more than twenty-seven languages. He is the chief spiritual officer of The Ken Blanchard Companies, a full-service global management training and development company that he and his wife, Dr. Marjorie Blanchard, founded in 1979. The Servant Leader Transforming Your Heart, Head, Hands, & Habits By Ken Blanchard Phil Hodges Thomas Nelson Copyright © 2003 Blanchard Family Partnership and Phil Hodges All right reserved. ISBN: 978-0-8499-9659-7 Contents Introduction...............................................{page 8}Whom Do You Follow? How Will You Lead?.....................{page 12}The Heart of a Servant Leader..............................{page 16}The Head of a Servant Leader...............................{page 42}The Hands of a Servant Leader..............................{page 60}The Habits of a Servant Leader.............................{page 84}Next Steps & Resources.....................................{page 112} Chapter One Jesus called them together and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lorded over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave-just as the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many." -Matthew 20:25-28 Whom Do You Follow? How Will You Lead? In His instructions to His first disciples on how they were to lead, Jesus sent a clear message to all those who would follow Him that leadership was to be first and foremost an act of service. No Plan B was implied or offered in His words. He placed no restrictions or limitations of time, place, or situation that would allow us to exempt ourselves from His command. For a follower of Jesus, servant leadership isn't just an option; it's a mandate. The truly exciting part of following Jesus is that He never sends you into any situation with a faulty plan or a plan to fail. Because of who He is, when Jesus speaks on a subject He guides us in a path that is in harmony with the molecular structure of the universe. When He speaks on leadership, He speaks to us of what is both right and effective. Come all of you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble at heart and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. -Matthew 11:28-30 Would you hire him? A common barrier to embracing Jesus as a role model for leadership often lies in skepticism of the relevance of His teaching to your specific leadership situations. One way of putting Jesus to the test would be to apply the same criteria to His knowledge, experience, and success that you would to the hiring of a business consultant. Take a few moments to reflect on the following leadership challenges you might be facing and see if you would hire Jesus as your personal leadership consultant based on His earthly experience as a leader. Does Jesus have any relevant practical knowledge or experience in dealing with the following types of leadership issues I face day to day? (Yes/No) ____ Dealing with and accomplishing a mission with imperfect people ____ The need to establish a clear sense of purpose and direction ____ Recruitment and selection of people to carry on the work ____ Training, development, and delegation issues ____ Constant conflicting demands on time, energy, and resources ____ Fierce competition ____ Turnover, betrayal, and lack of understanding by friends and family ____ Constant scrutiny and challenges of commitment and integrity ____ Temptations of instant gratification, recognition, and misuse of power ____ Effective handling of criticism, rejection, distractions, and opposition ____ Pain and suffering in serving the greatest good Wit