The Motive — Receive It!
The Motive — Receive It!
The Motive — Receive It!
The Motive — Receive It!
Why do you work? Why do you lead? The reason — the why or motive — behind what you do impacts your effectiveness as a leader and is the single greatest influence on whether you find joy and meaning in your work life and leadership.
Why do you work? Why do you lead? The reason — the why or motive — behind what you do impacts your effectiveness as a leader and is the single greatest influence on whether you find joy and meaning in your work life and leadership.
In his bestselling book, The Motive, Patrick Lencioni explores the motive of leadership to help leaders understand the importance of why they’re leading in the first place. Like his previous books, Lencioni begins with an engaging story of an executive who is struggling with their purpose. After this story, he provides a straightforward summary, combining a clear explanation with practical advice to help executives examine their true motivation for leading.
Rewards or Responsibility
One of the most insightful distinctions Lencioni makes is the difference between reward centered leadership and responsibility centered leadership.
Reward centered leadership is leadership that is motivated by rewards. These leaders want to be rewarded and view leadership as a prize that is gained after years of hard work. Rewards centered leadership is dangerous and the reward is often power, status, money, prestige, etc.
“If you are leading for your own personal economics — and I don’t just mean financial economics, but also what it does for you — you’re going to get really frustrated because leadership is never economically sound.” – Patrick Lencioni
In short, rewards centered leadership places the leader and their ego at the center of the equation, and this limits the health and growth of both the organization as a whole and the individuals the leader is supposed to be leading.
Responsibility centered leadership, on the other hand, is defined by service and sacrifice. These leaders put the needs of their team before their own, and sacrifice their own preferences, time, and energy whenever it is necessary for the good of the team.
Things that characterize responsibility centered leaders are the ability to have difficult conversations with others, management of direct reports, graciously repeating themselves, active team building, and good meetings. When done well, each of these essential characteristics of responsibility leadership requires significant sacrifice — sacrifices that reward centered leaders abdicate.
Patrick Lencioni does an excellent job getting to the heart of what true leadership is — sacrifice. Lencioni says, “All leadership is servant leadership. There is no type of leadership that is not servant leadership.” Leadership, true leadership, that replaces selfish ambition with humility and sacrifice is beneficial for the leader, their team, and organization as a whole.
Of course, when we are responsible with our gifts and put the needs of others ahead of our own, we are often rewarded. And, if you have the right motive, rewards and responsibilities can be synonymous.
Here is how.
First — Receive Your Purpose
“For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.” – Romans 11:36
Too many leadership gurus talk about finding and defining your purpose or your why. God gives us a perfect purpose — a real job description — described throughout His word. Like any good job description, God explains and clarifies our major purposes with action verbs — making the work we are to do perfectly clear.
1. Co-create and Rule — from the very beginning, humans were made in the image of God, and given the privilege to create, rule, and subdue the earth (Genesis 1:26-28). We do this when we invent products and create solutions to problems. We do this when we confirm the value and dignity of our coworkers. We do this when we lead others to God.
2. Witness — everyone is a witness to something. We are made to know, believe, and give witness to God (Isaiah 43:10). Every day we have the opportunity to work in a way that gives witness to God by humbly serving the needs of the others — witnessing to the God who takes care of us.
3. Love God and Bless Others — our truest purpose is to love Love God with all our hearts, minds, and souls (Mark 12:30) and to be an outpouring of God’s love to bless our neighbors (Mark 12:31). When we take the time to see every moment as spiritual, our eyes are opened to the will of God and how to serve others.
4. Follow and Lead — Jesus makes clear from the beginning of His earthly ministry that followers of His will quickly become leaders — fishers of men — so that all can have an opportunity to know Jesus (Matthew 4:19). This is not about passing out verses, this is about knowing the true needs of people and serving them winsomely so they will want to know the living truth we possess.
5. Serve Like Jesus — Jesus, who was the exact representation of God (Colossians 1:15 & Hebrews 1:3), came to serve — not to be served — and give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). Jesus makes clear throughout His teachings we are to do the same (Luke 10:37). This means we quit asking, “what about me” and start asking what about my co-workers and friends. We don't just lay down our lives recklessly. We lay them down for the benefit of our friends, coworkers, and neighbors.
6. Sent Like Jesus — The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit pray we would be one with them (John 17:2–22) and send us to do the same work that Jesus was sent by the Father to do (John 20:21-22). When we know we are sent by the King, we do things His way — relying on His word and staying connected to Jesus in prayer in order to serve those we lead (John 15:5).
7. Make Disciples — Jesus commissions us with purpose just before He ascends into heaven (Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8). He makes clear that our work — as we go — is about helping others know His saving grace. Making disciples means that eventually all our best servant leadership will lead people to want to truly know Jesus. Then we can be ready to explain what Jesus has done for us and how He died to do the same for them.
Second — Respond With Worship
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God — this is your true and proper worship.” – Romans 12:1
The motive is worship! We can never pay God back, but we can enjoy responding to His mercy, grace, and love by doing the same thing He has done for us.
Think about the 7 point job description in the above section, now consider how you lead this way as your response to God. God does not require sacrifices, saying the same prayer over and over, or suffering as payback. He much prefers that you mimic His Son, Jesus. We all have endless opportunities to love and serve the people around us this way.
It’s not outlandish for our motive to be more like Jesus. One day, we are going to fully know Jesus. And, when we see Him, we will be much more like Him as perfect versions of ourselves in heaven (1 John 3:2-3). All who have this hope — this motive — will not be disappointed!
Third — Renew Continually
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.” – Romans 12:2
As Lencioni points out in The Motive, leadership that follows the patterns of the world may be natural, but this natural fallen pattern is dangerous because it will never satisfy.
The way to renew your mind and your motive is through God’s word. As we have seen, we receive our purpose and our motive from God. In the same way, we can continually be made new by testing and approving God’s will in our daily life and work.
This week, try testing kindness, patience, and self-control at home and in the office. Test keeping the eyes of your heart focused on Jesus as you serve the people God has put in your care. You will see, it works!
Resources
Why do you work? Why do you lead? The reason — the why or motive — behind what you do impacts your effectiveness as a leader and is the single greatest influence on whether you find joy and meaning in your work life and leadership.
In his bestselling book, The Motive, Patrick Lencioni explores the motive of leadership to help leaders understand the importance of why they’re leading in the first place. Like his previous books, Lencioni begins with an engaging story of an executive who is struggling with their purpose. After this story, he provides a straightforward summary, combining a clear explanation with practical advice to help executives examine their true motivation for leading.
Rewards or Responsibility
One of the most insightful distinctions Lencioni makes is the difference between reward centered leadership and responsibility centered leadership.
Reward centered leadership is leadership that is motivated by rewards. These leaders want to be rewarded and view leadership as a prize that is gained after years of hard work. Rewards centered leadership is dangerous and the reward is often power, status, money, prestige, etc.
“If you are leading for your own personal economics — and I don’t just mean financial economics, but also what it does for you — you’re going to get really frustrated because leadership is never economically sound.” – Patrick Lencioni
In short, rewards centered leadership places the leader and their ego at the center of the equation, and this limits the health and growth of both the organization as a whole and the individuals the leader is supposed to be leading.
Responsibility centered leadership, on the other hand, is defined by service and sacrifice. These leaders put the needs of their team before their own, and sacrifice their own preferences, time, and energy whenever it is necessary for the good of the team.
Things that characterize responsibility centered leaders are the ability to have difficult conversations with others, management of direct reports, graciously repeating themselves, active team building, and good meetings. When done well, each of these essential characteristics of responsibility leadership requires significant sacrifice — sacrifices that reward centered leaders abdicate.
Patrick Lencioni does an excellent job getting to the heart of what true leadership is — sacrifice. Lencioni says, “All leadership is servant leadership. There is no type of leadership that is not servant leadership.” Leadership, true leadership, that replaces selfish ambition with humility and sacrifice is beneficial for the leader, their team, and organization as a whole.
Of course, when we are responsible with our gifts and put the needs of others ahead of our own, we are often rewarded. And, if you have the right motive, rewards and responsibilities can be synonymous.
Here is how.
First — Receive Your Purpose
“For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.” – Romans 11:36
Too many leadership gurus talk about finding and defining your purpose or your why. God gives us a perfect purpose — a real job description — described throughout His word. Like any good job description, God explains and clarifies our major purposes with action verbs — making the work we are to do perfectly clear.
1. Co-create and Rule — from the very beginning, humans were made in the image of God, and given the privilege to create, rule, and subdue the earth (Genesis 1:26-28). We do this when we invent products and create solutions to problems. We do this when we confirm the value and dignity of our coworkers. We do this when we lead others to God.
2. Witness — everyone is a witness to something. We are made to know, believe, and give witness to God (Isaiah 43:10). Every day we have the opportunity to work in a way that gives witness to God by humbly serving the needs of the others — witnessing to the God who takes care of us.
3. Love God and Bless Others — our truest purpose is to love Love God with all our hearts, minds, and souls (Mark 12:30) and to be an outpouring of God’s love to bless our neighbors (Mark 12:31). When we take the time to see every moment as spiritual, our eyes are opened to the will of God and how to serve others.
4. Follow and Lead — Jesus makes clear from the beginning of His earthly ministry that followers of His will quickly become leaders — fishers of men — so that all can have an opportunity to know Jesus (Matthew 4:19). This is not about passing out verses, this is about knowing the true needs of people and serving them winsomely so they will want to know the living truth we possess.
5. Serve Like Jesus — Jesus, who was the exact representation of God (Colossians 1:15 & Hebrews 1:3), came to serve — not to be served — and give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). Jesus makes clear throughout His teachings we are to do the same (Luke 10:37). This means we quit asking, “what about me” and start asking what about my co-workers and friends. We don't just lay down our lives recklessly. We lay them down for the benefit of our friends, coworkers, and neighbors.
6. Sent Like Jesus — The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit pray we would be one with them (John 17:2–22) and send us to do the same work that Jesus was sent by the Father to do (John 20:21-22). When we know we are sent by the King, we do things His way — relying on His word and staying connected to Jesus in prayer in order to serve those we lead (John 15:5).
7. Make Disciples — Jesus commissions us with purpose just before He ascends into heaven (Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8). He makes clear that our work — as we go — is about helping others know His saving grace. Making disciples means that eventually all our best servant leadership will lead people to want to truly know Jesus. Then we can be ready to explain what Jesus has done for us and how He died to do the same for them.
Second — Respond With Worship
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God — this is your true and proper worship.” – Romans 12:1
The motive is worship! We can never pay God back, but we can enjoy responding to His mercy, grace, and love by doing the same thing He has done for us.
Think about the 7 point job description in the above section, now consider how you lead this way as your response to God. God does not require sacrifices, saying the same prayer over and over, or suffering as payback. He much prefers that you mimic His Son, Jesus. We all have endless opportunities to love and serve the people around us this way.
It’s not outlandish for our motive to be more like Jesus. One day, we are going to fully know Jesus. And, when we see Him, we will be much more like Him as perfect versions of ourselves in heaven (1 John 3:2-3). All who have this hope — this motive — will not be disappointed!
Third — Renew Continually
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.” – Romans 12:2
As Lencioni points out in The Motive, leadership that follows the patterns of the world may be natural, but this natural fallen pattern is dangerous because it will never satisfy.
The way to renew your mind and your motive is through God’s word. As we have seen, we receive our purpose and our motive from God. In the same way, we can continually be made new by testing and approving God’s will in our daily life and work.
This week, try testing kindness, patience, and self-control at home and in the office. Test keeping the eyes of your heart focused on Jesus as you serve the people God has put in your care. You will see, it works!
Resources