7 Challenges Immature Leaders Cause A Church Or Organization

John Maxwell famously said, “Everything rises and falls on leadership.”  So what happens when you have immature individuals in key areas of leadership?

Because of the off-the-field behavior of Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Jameis Winston, the defending national champion Florida State Seminoles are currently dealing this very issue.  The team has become a real-life case study many leaders are watching and commenting on.

One such leader is the incredible ESPN analyst Louis Riddick.  On Wednesday, September 24th, the former scout and league executive appeared on The Herd With Colin Cowherd radio show to discuss many issues, one being Winston.

As Riddick spoke, I gleaned the following 7 Challenges Immature Leaders Cause A Church Or Organization.  All the comments below are from Riddick unless otherwise noted.

1. Immature Leaders Must Be Constantly Evaluated – “People have been building the case for and/or against him already.”
2. Immature Leaders Make Poor Decisions – “What usually determines success or failure on a large scale where guys blow up and don’t make it or blow up and become superstars is about competitive make-up.  It’s about their mentality.  It’s about the decisions they make off the field.”
3. Immature Leaders Are Irresponsible – “If you keep saying, “He’s going to grow up.  He’s doing the same things I used to do.  He’s just being a young kid.’  Well, that may fly in regular life but that doesn’t fly when you’re the quarterback of a National Football League team.”
4. Immature Leaders Are Constantly Surrounded By Chaos – “The 61 last quarterbacks drafted in the NFL, (only) six are thriving.  All six that are thriving (have) no chaos outside of football.” – Cowherd
5. Immature Leaders Are High Maintenance – “At that position all you’re trying to do as a personnel guy is remove obstacles that would preclude someone from becoming a success.  You’re trying constantly to eliminate the possibility of you being wrong.  So you want as ‘clean’ a prospect as possible, especially at quarterback.”
6. Immature Leaders Prepare Poorly And (7.) Lack Accountability – “It’s just more difficult as a coach when you know you’re dealing with someone who off the field you know is probably not doing everything they can possibly do to hold themselves accountable and preparing themselves to be as good as they can be.”

As a bonus, Riddick provided three additional insights into New York Jets quarterback Geno Smith and what the team needs to do to ensure this young leader’s success:

1. You Can Ensure A Young Leader’s Success By Creating A Healthy Culture – “That relationship between the back-up and starter is critical.  That relationship can make the quarterback better or tear it apart.”
2. You Can Ensure A Young Leader’s Success By Removing Doubt And Insecurity – “When you do that (threaten their position) it will create doubt in a young quarterback’s head.”
3. You Can Ensure A Young Leader’s Success By Putting Great Teammates And Resources Around Him – “Keep putting better stuff around him.  Keep helping him out and he’ll come along.”

What challenges have immature leaders caused you?

To subscribe to this site and get my latest FREE eBook 999 Leadership Quotes On Leadership: Wise Words And Timeless Truths From The 2014 ARC, Passion, Orange, and Leadercast Conferences (and others) clickhere or on the image to the left.