I was reminded again this week that no matter how good of a leader you are, if your character doesn't match, it will eventually crumble. Great leaders, long-lasting leaders are people with great character.
For years in the Christian world, people talked about accountability. Accountability partners to ask if you were looking at porn, if you were faithful to your wife, etc. The problem is this, and we've talked about this a lot in our staff discussions, you are only as accountable as you want to be. I have seen people lie to their accountability partners. You can say one thing and be doing the opposite. You're only as accountable as you want to be.
So, here's a couple thoughts for maintaining great character:
1. Set up very specific boundaries and don't fudge them. They might seem stupid to others. Better for others to think you're being stupid, then to do something stupid and have everything fall apart.
2. You HAVE to be connected to Jesus on a daily basis. If that's not happening, nothing else matters much.
3. Don't let your church or business become #1. If your ego and identity is in that, you are sure to fail.
4. PRAY, PRAY, PRAY - for your marriage, for your purity, for you staff relationships
5. Handle your money well, and live generously. If that falls apart, other areas often follow.
6. Understand the gravity of your sin. Understand how broken we are, and how close we are to doing something stupid. If we start to think "it can't happen to us", we position ourselves to be arrogant and to be careless.
7. At the end of your life, you won't wish you'd spent more time at work or on that project. But, if you spend more time at work or on that project, you'll wish you spent more time with your family.
What other things are key to great character?