VALID Leadership
The pursuit of sustainable leadership concepts has been the passion of many. This quest remains fertile ground for new ideas and philosophies because leadership is a personal venture. Leadership is something we are, more than something we do. Concepts, which work well for some, do not always transfer to others successfully.
The very definition of leadership differs significantly. Seldom do you get the same definition from multiple leaders. I would venture to say, the number of leadership concepts is only eclipsed by the number of leadership definitions. What is my leadership concept and definition?
A Leader is defined as: One who sets a vision and provides his followers with the resources and guidance to bring the vision to fruition. Leadership then is the act of doing so. Valid is defined as: sound, just and well rounded; producing the desired effect.
VALID Leadership (VALID) is how we lead consciously and sub-consciously to produce the desired effect. Valid leadership consists of five factors. The first three, “V”, “A”, and “L” comprise the foundation and must be present in all leaders. The “I” and “D” are variable and intangible factors. These can be adapted to the individual to help in the areas needing improvement. The factors of VALID are as follows:
1. V = vision. Without vision there is no need for leadership. Vision is seeing the future and blazing a trail toward it. (Proverbs 29:18 NASB)
2. A = association. Our inner circle is crucial to our success. Do we protect who we let populate our inner circle? How well we get along with others? (Proverbs 11:14 NASB, 2 Tim 2:23 MSG)
3. L = love. Leaders need to love others. If you dislike being around other people, you will not make a good leader. (Romans 12:8-10 NASB)
4. I = involvement, intuition, improvising, and ingenuity.
a. Involvement is being a participant, not a spectator. There is much more to leadership than being the boss. James 2:14-26
b. Intuition allows you to feel what is going on around you.
c. Improvising lets you adapt quickly to any situation effectively.
d. Ingenuity brings out new ideas needed to keep the vision alive.
5. D = discernment, determination, demonstration, and development.
a. Discernment is insight and keen judgment, which every leader needs. 1 Chron 22:11
b. Determination to succeed means never quitting, regardless of the obstacles ahead. Phil 1:6 Romans 12:8
c. Development of skills never ends. Change is inevitable, but self-improvement is optional. Your improvement program will be the difference maker at some point in your life. Joshua 1:8,
d. Demonstrating your leadership by being engaged sets a positive tone. It also brings your commitment into action. Leaders go first and this has to be demonstrated, not discussed. Heb 10:24-25
These areas are flexible and matching the “I” and “D” factors will produce great synchronicity. Understanding where you are in your journey, and where you want to go will guide you to the area with the highest priority. If you are a new leader you may need to work on all areas.
Applying the VALID concepts of leadership will help you produce the desired effect. And this what we are trying to accomplish, isn’t it?
The nondiscrimination clause is weakened by this piece tucked in at the end: “…in a way that causes harm to users or competition.” Verizon and the others have continuously argued that prioritization causes no harm to users or competition, so it’s hard to see how the Google agreement, with this exception, compels them to change anything about their approach–unless the FCC can argue that prioritization practices are harmful in some way, which it has yet to successfully do.
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