Biblical Principles for Resilience in Leadership

Theory and Cases

Carlo A. Serrano

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN:
  9783030371005
• eBook ISBN:
  9783030371012
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business Ethics
• Index: Business

Through sound exegetical methodologies and the current research on organizational leadership, this book uses biblical examples to explore the realities of leadership fatigue. Addressing topics such as stress, crisis, and pressures in leadership, this book offers biblical principles in each chapter that practically connect theory with application. The chapters explore topics such as leadership transitions, the value of followership, crisis management, and leadership in large organizations. Using contemporary organizational leadership research, grounded in biblical theology, this book will appeal to those studying leadership, organizational behavior, and human resource management.

© The Author(s) 2020

C. A. SerranoBiblical Principles for Resilience in LeadershipChristian Faith Perspectives in Leadership and Businesshttps://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37101-2_1

Begin Abstract

1. What’s So Hard About Leadership? Stress, Crisis, Trauma, and the Resilience Factor

Carlo A. Serrano¹

(1)

Grace College of Divinity, Clarksville, TN, USA

Carlo A. Serrano

Email: [email protected]

End Abstract

How the Mighty Have Fallen: Leadership Failure

“Suck it up and drive on!” I spent years haunted by that phrase. During my five years on Active Duty in the US Army, I learned that the only way forward was to “Embrace the Suck” and never show weakness as a leader. In the military, leadership is all about standing out, being first, and setting the standard for all others to follow. Of course, principles such as sacrifice, selfless service, and teamwork weave throughout the military ethics. However, what is “taught” and what is “caught” are not necessarily synonymous. When I transitioned from the military and into vocational ministry, I was shocked to see that there was not much difference in the leadership culture of a large traditional Church and the famed combat unit that I served within Iraq. In my new ministry context, we were taught to “Never let them see you sweat” and to never be transparent with our weaknesses, lest we undermine our authority and leadership. I am sure that this line of reasoning was, on the surface, nothing more than the by-product of my leader’s 40 years of ministry experience. Still, that reasoning submerged me into a culture where failure was fatal, final, and a flaw best kept locked away. It is no wonder that leaders are facing what appears to be an epidemic of burnout and ethical failure. While the military has sought to develop intentional strategies to help service members bounce back from the pressures of military life and leadership, it seems as if other industries are struggling to grasp a critical construct: Leadership is hard and traumatic. It turns out that “suck it up and drive on” is much easier said than done.

The evidence for the reality of leadership failure exists across virtually every industry. For example, the financial scandals of the early 2000s and the financial crisis of 2008 link to several micro-ethical failures that, when compounded over time, led to the near-collapse of the global economy. As a result, companies such as AIG and Enron are now synonymous with the erosion of ethics in leadership (De Cremer, Tenbrunsel, & Dijke, 2010). We would be irresponsible to assume that the leaders of these companies woke up one day and decided to lie, cheat, and steal. Yet, lie, cheat, and steal they did.

Conversely, we would be disrespectful to those who suffered during these crises if we tried to justify the unethical behavior of people such as Bernie Madoff, Bernie Ebbers, or Dennis Kozlowski. Perhaps the most straightforward way forward is to acknowledge that there is something inherent in the role of leadership that uniquely impacts ethical and moral decision-making. Leadership is hard in the most literal sense.

Other examples of the hard reality of leadership dwell within the realm of ecclesial leadership. Ecclesial leaders not only wear a wide variety of vocational hats but also measure against the highest standards of morality. Yet sadly, these leaders succumb to the same types of scandal and burnout found within the business and political arenas. From 2012 to 2019, at least 15 American evangelical megachurch pastors were fired or forced to resign. That does not account for leaders who stepped down during that period who were not well-known celebrity pastors. Although often unknown by the masses, these non-celebrity ecclesial leaders are known by their congregations, and that matters. It matters because of the reality that leadership matters. It matters because every one of those leaders represents organizations and communities that have been forever altered by leadership failure. It matters because there is an ever-increasing distrust in leadership that connects to unethical and immoral decision-making (Brown & Treviño, 2014; Schaubroek et al., 2002; Zheng et al., 2015). Some of these leaders stepped away by choice due to burnout. Most lost their jobs or quit because they made unethical and immoral decisions that led to sinful behavior. It would be the epitome of judgment to stand on the sidelines and throw stones at these leaders for their failures. However, it would be equally irresponsible not to try to learn something from their failures.

It is also important to note that not all leadership failure is unethical or immoral. For example, in the National Football League (NFL), the Head Coach is hired to do one thing: Win. Yet, most NFL coaches are only given four seasons to produce winning results. For example, 40 percent of the NFL’s 32 teams change head coaches every three and a half years (Suneson, 2019). Several variables go into a winning season in the NFL, many of which are outside of the head coach’s control.

Nevertheless, they are held accountable for wins and losses. Simply put, these high-profile leaders lost their positions due to a perceived failure in their leadership. However, one could argue that failure in this industry is highly subjective at best. Liu (2010) suggests that instead of only exploring failure from the perspectives of blame or outcome performance, it is vital to examine the often-overlooked aspects of failure. According to Liu, failure framing is the process whereby explanations for failures are given to enhance a leader’s reputation and aid in recovery from failure. Unfortunately, some misunderstand framing as inauthentic leadership. This misunderstanding may inadvertently cause leaders to move away from transparency and toward the cover-ups and isolation that are associated with unethical leadership.

There is a story arc in The West Wing television show that perfectly encapsulates this discussion on leadership failure and failure framing . For the record, I believe that The West Wing is one of the greatest television shows in history, and I am not alone in that judgment (Sheffield, 2016). In the show, President Josiah Bartlett (played by Martin Sheen) lied by omission, both before and after his election to office, about his having Multiple Sclerosis. Spoiler alert: his secret eventually leaks out, and the administration goes into spin mode. As more and more of the president’s advisors deal with the news, the entire administration faces two choices: Own the failure or cover it up. One of my favorite scenes in the story arc takes place between Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman (played by Bradley Whitford) and White House Press Secretary C. J. Craig (played by Allison Janney). In the scene, Josh stops C. J. to talk to her about their current crisis. Josh tells C. J., “The President is worried that it’ll look like we announced the MS to the public because we took a poll” (Sorkin, Caddell, & Misiano, 2001). C. J. laughs incredulously and says, “You guys are like Butch and Sundance peering over the edge of a cliff to the boulder-filled rapids below, thinking you better not jump because there is a chance that you might drown. … You’re worried that the polling might make us look bad? It’s the fall that’s gonna kill you” (Sorkin et al., 2001). For many leaders, the pressures of organizational life, the stress of other’s expectations, and the height of the pedestal make it easy to self-sabotage as a way of hitting the eject-button (Woodworth, 2019). When leaders fail, many focus on saving face, placing blame, or quickly moving on as if nothing happened. What we should realize is it is the fall that is killing us. More than that, we must figure out a way to help leaders bounce back from the fall or, better yet, avoid the fall altogether.

What Causes Leadership Failure: Leadership Fatigue

What is so hard about leadership? This question is one of the issues that fueled my doctoral research. According to several studies, leaders are always faced with internal and external pressures that if left unchecked, often lead to stress and burnout (Diaconescu, 2015; Diestel, Cosmar, & Schmidt, 2013; Grosch & Olsen, 2000; Hendron, Irving, & Taylor, 2012; Maslach, Schaufeli, & Leiter, 2001; Zheng et al., 2015). External pressures include things such as environmental uncertainty, geopolitical realities, and economic instability. Internal forces include things such as perfectionism, performance stress, and people pleasing. There is also an element of trauma that includes burnout and stress.

In the same way that not all failure is equal, not all trauma is related to life and death situations such as a mass shooting or combat operations. For some, a forced termination is a traumatic event that produces symptoms that correlate with post-traumatic stress generalized anxiety symptoms (Tanner, Wherry, & Zvonkovic, 2013). Moreover, just the thought of being fired causes anxiety and stress in leaders, which often negatively impacts their decision-making. I believe that the catalyst behind much of the failure we see in leadership is leadership fatigue.

I define leadership fatigue as a combination of internal and external trauma, work-related stress, and morally intense situations that impact and influence a leader’s decision-making and behavioral processes. Understanding the why behind leadership failure helps us to understand how leaders can bounce back from failure. Take, for example, the ethical and moral shortcomings already discussed in this book. The CEOs and ecclesial leaders who were fired at best and imprisoned at worst did not fail because they did not know how to work hard, communicate with charisma, or think strategically. They failed because their moral compasses were compromised. If we can get ahead of the impact that leadership fatigue has on our moral compasses, then we can bounce back from failure or prevent failure from happening in the first place.

The Power of Resilience: What the Data Says About Standing Firm and Bouncing Back

If you are old enough, then you may remember two American pop-cultural icons that, in many ways, embody the concept of resilience. The first is the Weeble. The Weeble became a household name because of its catchy and accurate slogan: “Weebles wobble, … but they don’t fall down.” These egg-shaped toys were all the buzz for children in the 1970s and 1980s. No matter how hard you pushed them over, they would always bounce back to their original upright position. Perhaps a more scientifically accurate slogan for Weebles would be: “Weebles wobble, but they don’t STAY down thanks to a perfectly placed weight that keeps them anchored and thanks to the laws of physics that all but ensure the Weeble’s safe return to an upright position.” Obviously, that would not play well in a commercial, but you get the point. The Weeble bounces back up because it is grounded and shaped to do just that. The other American pop-cultural icon that best embodies resilience is the Timex watch. Although there is nothing inherently fancy about a Timex watch, they remain trendy. Their popularity is due mainly in part to advertising executive Russ Alben. Alben coined one of the greatest taglines in advertising history: “Timex—It takes a licking and keeps on ticking” (Russell, 2012). According to Timex’s adverting machine, the watches could survive everything from a deep plunge into the ocean to the rigors of construction work. Both the Weeble and the Timex are essential to the conversation on resilience because they both cover the dual nature of reliance. Resilience is not just the ability to bounce back; it is also the ability to stand up under pressure.

Resilience is a bit of a buzz topic in the world of business and finance. Moreover, the last 18 years of military operations in the Global War on Terror have made resilience a buzz word in military leadership circles as well. However, resilience is not a new concept by any stretch of the imagination. The late Norman Garmezy is known as the father of resilience theory. His decades of research into resilience helped the idea evolve from its early focus on mental health to child development and organizational life. Garmezy (1991) argued that if the right internal and external variables are in place, then adults and children can bounce back from the difficulties of life. Masten (1994), who worked with and built upon the work of Garmezy, argued that resilience is indee...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Front Matter
• 1. What’s So Hard About Leadership? Stress, Crisis, Trauma, and the Resilience Factor
• 2. Amazing Grace: The Bible and the Gift of Leadership
• 3. When Bigger Is Not Better: Moses the Shepherd
• 4. When the Only Easy Day Was Yesterday: Joshua, the General
• 5. Should I Stay or Should I Go? Samuel, Reputation, and Transition
• 6. Power, Wealth, and Morality: A Tale of Two Davids
• 7. Leading in the Upside Down: Peter the Rock
• 8. Leading Under Pressure: James and the Shadow of Jesus
• 9. Bouncing Back: Closing Thoughts
• Back Matter