9 Things A Leader Must Do

I swung by the bookstore yesterday to pick up a needed resource. I was immediately captured by the title of another book written by the same author that led me to the bookstore in the first place. As you might guess, I purchased both.

The premise of the book is simple: Successful leaders possess a shared set of behaviors and common actions.

Chapter one shares the first of nine things a leader must do: Excavate the soul. Dr. Cloud contents that buried in the soul of every person is a treasure. He goes on to say that successful leaders are those that "dig up the treasure of the invisible soul in order to bring dreams, desires, and talents into the visible world."

Dr. Cloud also adds some thoughts on why this treasure often remains hidden. I was quickly reminded of what has taken place in my life in the past thirty+ months. I couldn't help but see myself in each of those paragraphs. I spent far too many years allowing the treasure to be hidden. I did nearly everything in my power to dig, but often found myself cowering in the corner. I was afraid and paralyzed by a plethora of feelings, doubts, and questions.

I can look back over my shoulder now to find defining moments that provided the necessary courage to dig again and the relationships that gave me the much needed push to do so. With every day that passes, I am gaining more and more strength to keep digging. I continue to discover new ways to make the invisible visible.

You might be reading this post and feeling that some excavating needs to take place in your soul. If so then let this post be one of those defining moments in your life. Grab a shovel and dig with all you have. Buried deep within you is an invisible treasure. You have been uniquely created and called by God to make that treasure visible to the world.

Do not miss it or waste it. Dig. Dream. Live big!