Leaders are not normal.

May 1, 2009 in Leadership with 11 Comments

Had a great conversation with Kem today. She knows me, so she was trying to beat some sense into me.

We served together in ministry for a number of years, so she knows some stuff that others do not. She confirmed some things about me that I already knew. She didn’t pull any punches on the stuff that needs to be refined. God’s still doing a work in me. I think God uses people like Kem to do some of that work faster.

In our conversation, she reminded me of this. These are her words:

Leaders are not normal. They are:

  • the strong
  • the rebels
  • the skeptical
  • the intelligent
  • the independent
  • the positive deviants

Try to control these people, and you’ll never be able to rally their potential. Try to normalize these people, and you’ll never be able to sustain their positive impact.

That’s why Kem is one of the wisest people I know. She puts into simple language some of the most difficult concepts for us to grasp.

Leadership is complicated. Leading leaders is even more complicated.

I still don’t know how to do it. I’m still learning. If you get this figured out before I do, will you let me know?

11 Responses to “Leaders are not normal.”

  1. Chris Hill May 1, 2009 at 4:50 pm #

    “positive deviants” …love it.

    tony, in your opinion, what does normalizing someone look like?

  2. Jeremy McGinnis May 1, 2009 at 5:12 pm #

    I need a Kem. God is challenging those areas in me and reminding me to lead leaders with these principles in mind. Thnx Tony and Kem.

  3. bob robbins May 1, 2009 at 5:24 pm #

    WOW that was good! thank for sharing!

  4. Adam Forney May 1, 2009 at 5:59 pm #

    Wow! That was fantastic! Thank God for the “Kem”s in our lives. Continue to enjoy your blog!

  5. Joshua Blankenship May 2, 2009 at 12:58 am #

    It’s amazing how positive deviation often appears like plain, old deviation without proper communication and clarity of intent.

  6. Graham Brenna May 2, 2009 at 11:58 am #

    Whoa… I’m all those bullet points… hmm

  7. Jim Gray May 2, 2009 at 10:00 pm #

    i’m reaching for the headache candy…

  8. Marc Millan May 4, 2009 at 12:30 pm #

    I’ve struggled to put in words for years how God has wired me, now I’m seeing it in my 4 year old daughter, this is a super helpful and positive post, sometimes I feel like the X-men, Mutans…

  9. Nathan Snell May 16, 2009 at 9:03 am #

    Tony, I’m curious on the normalizing as well, it’s actually been something on my mind.

    When you say being normalized, are you meaning something like downplaying the potential and ability of the leader to that of a more a “follower” type person in an organization?

    I ask simply because, the Lord having called me to be a leader and change agent, the majority of companies I have been in I have not been normalized (or caged up, is kind of how I consider it) and great things have happened. However, for those companies that I feel I have been “normalized” (or held back, is really how I feel) I immediately see its effect on my work, my future vision for the company, and my ability to execute on it.

    Here’s another question with that: To not be normalized is to be treated as an exception. As someone who isn’t just like everyone else. Say you are called to be a leader, and you function better outside the normalized state- how does that play into being humble, considering others better than yourself?

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