Leaders Never Stop Learning

"Leadership Student Since 1991"

I'm considering putting that in my bio. Maybe I'll have it made into a bumper sticker for my Toyota Avalon. Why? Because its true.

I can still remember the three events that began my journey into leadership. Both were rather small and today would seem rather insignificant. But, every journey needs a starting point, and I remember mine.


The first came in my church youth group. I was always a bit shy when it came to taking charge. It is a whole lot easier to be fifth or sixth to do something rather than the first. My default was to take the back seat. That changed when my youth pastor asked me to become the youth group vice president. It was a relatively meaningless position, but it was a start. The next year, I would become the group president.

The second came in my junior year of high school. I had just moved to a new town. Had been making new friends. And, on a whim I decided to run for class office. I was elected to be the senior class boy rep on the student council.

Apparently, I made an impression, because it wasn't long before the end of my junior year that I was chosen by my school's administrators to be one of two young men to attend Missouri Boys State. With an emphasis on politics and leadership, Boys State is where this journey started to gain some momentum.

To be honest, I didn't realize it (and I didn't put much focus on it), but I was gradually transforming from a shy teen into a young leader. It didn't fully emerge for several years, but the beginning of my education had started.

A pastor of mine took me under his wings during my 20s, and mentored me toward leadership. He pointed me toward John Maxwell and other leaders. It was Maxwell's book "21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership" that became a spring board for my desire to be a leaders. Many other great books have benefited my education.

Work and church opportunities allowed me to put some of what I was learning into practice. You would think that I might have learned most of what I would ever learn within the early to mid part of the past 20 years. But, that's not so.

The past couple of years have actually been the best for me as a leader. The difference came when I adjusted my focus to begin learning new ideas outside of my normal, little box. I started to see the world from new perspectives. I started to treat people a little differently. I started to mature as a leader, and share that knowledge with others.

I say all of that to point out that at 37, I realize I know a lot of stuff about leadership. I've practiced a lot of leadership. I also know without a doubt that I don't know it all. There is still more to learn. There is plenty of room to grow. There are more young leaders to mentor. There are new opportunities to tackle.

Leaders never stop learning. They make a conscious decision to learn new ways to solve problems or train their people. People in the School of Leadership at Hard Knocks U never graduate.

What are some horizons in your leadership that need to be broadened.