Reflections on: High Altitude Leaders by Warner and Schmincke

Dangerous, unproductive, dysfunctional behavior, termed DUD, can irrevocably damage your organization.

Eight Dangers for Leaders

1. Fear of Death – Don’t let the fear of being let go, losing your job, or someone else losing their job keep you from continuing to climb (great story on a perilous expedition Warner had on K2).

2. Selfishness – This can result in DUD behavior. Whenever someone puts themselves and their prosperity ahead of the team or organization production suffers decreasing by up to 50%. Combat this by inspiring passion through the use of story.

3. Tool Seduction – The best facility, network, parking lot, advertising, lights, cameras, bands does not translate into successful leadership. If somebody uses the lack of tools as a reason for a lack of leadership then they have an adaptation problem. Make adaptability a screening tool when interviewing.

4. Arrogance – Do your employees or you think that you know it all, fail to connect with customer base or fail to recognize competitive threats to the organization? If yes to any of the three, then you have an arrogance problem. Do an exegesis of your congregation and your community needs periodically. Take an occasional poll to determine a series that is 4-6 months away.

5. Lone Heroism – Always be willing to share the load because it’s necessary for succession planning, and improves morale of the team if they share in the success.

6. Cowardice – You must admit you are wrong, or things are going wrong, or things went wrong and why. The fear to do so will cripple organizations

7. Comfort – Change is painful but necessary, and sometimes the change that is necessary causes you to abandon your goal.

8. Gravity – Here the authors say that you have to have a little bit of luck on your side to be able to succeed. In the Church I think we can replace luck with the Will of God. If we are in His Will then who cares if we get burried in an avalanche.