LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"The key to successful leadership is influence, not authority." Ken Blanchard

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

We're going to explore this word INFLUENCE over the next number of weeks. I'm hosting a Global Leadership Summit in Georgia in March with Leader Mundial, and the theme this year is The Influence of a Leader. While we have a number of topics, books and presentations to address this, I wanted to simply look at some quotes that explore this more.

Look at these 2 words that are both connected to leadership:

AUTHORITY - INFLUENCE

AUTHORITY: Power is given by position

Authority is the formal right to make decisions, give orders and expect compliance. It comes from a role, title, or a structure.

INFLUENCE: Power is earned through relationship

Influence is the ability to shape someone's thinking, behavior, or decisions without forcing them. It is relational, not positional.

Think about different people in your life who have been in leadership above you. Did they use AUTHORITY for their power, or INFLUENCE?

• I remember a baseball coach, early in my little league career, say, "I am the coach! You have to listen to me!" That's AUTHORITY.

• I remember a boss in college say to me, "Russ, what do you think would be the best decision to make? That's INFLUENCE.

• I remember when I had to fire someone that reported to me early in my career... I tried the influence route, and that didn't work, so I pulled the authority card and fired him because of insubordination.

In leadership, there are times where we need to use both kinds of leadership, and both are important, however I think it's much more important to emphasize INFLUENCE over AUTHORITY, in fact if you lead from a position of influence, you won't need to rely on authority because of the trust that has been built through relationship.

Look at this:

• Authority can make people obey. Influence makes people believe.

• Authority works when you're present. Influence works even when you're absent.

• Authority makes you the leader on paper. Influence makes you the leader in reality.

• Authority changes behavior temporarily. Influence changes hearts and minds long-term.

What kind of leader do you want to be? Where does your power come from: AUTHORITY or INFLUENCE?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"The true measure of leadership is INFLUENCE - nothing more, nothing less." John C. Maxwell

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

We're going to explore this word INFLUENCE over the next number of weeks. I'm hosting a Global Leadership Summit in Georgia in March with Leader Mundial, and the theme this year is The Influence of a Leader. While we have a number of topics, books and presentations to address this, I wanted to simply look at some quotes that explore this more.

A definition of Influence is simply this: "The capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone or something."

Basically to "shape" something.

Here's a story of influence. I've shared this in the past, but it's such a good story, I want to tell it again.

When I was in High School, my dad was a pastor. He hired me as the church janitor, and my job was to clean the church during the week, and get it ready for Sunday Services. I usually spent a few hours on Saturday cleaning, then I showed up early on Sunday to dust and to make sure things were set for the day.

My dad showed me what he wanted done, and being a teenager, I looked for ways to do the minimum required and keep my job. Sometimes I didn't vacuum all the floor, or I wouldn't empty out all the trash cans. I remember trying to just get through it as quickly as I could, and sometimes I didn't really care about the quality.

My dad would point things out to me, and he'd remind me what I had committed to do.

But then, on Sunday Morning, if something wasn't done right, he would just do it. He'd dust the piano that I hadn't cleaned. He'd empty out the trash, or line the chairs up the way he wanted them to be.

He just did it. And I watched him.

Soon I realized that this job that I had was important. My dad really cared about what the sanctuary was like on Sunday Morning, and while he was the Pastor, he cared about the little things like picking up leaves and trash that blew into the entrance way overnight.

I watched him do it, and then I began to do it. I didn't want him doing my job, so I tried to do it better.

His simple attention to detail taught me something, and challenged me.

Here's the funny thing: Today, when I'm hosting an event, I pay attention to the little things, in fact I obsess about them. If something isn't right, I fix it. If there's paper on the floor, I pick it up. I care what things look and feel like.

Guess where I learned that. From my dad.

There was some teaching, but there was a lot of just "showing me" what was important.

This is influence. He shaped the way I worked and the way I think about preparing a room for something important.

WHO has influenced you in some way, large or small? WHO taught you or modeled for you something that has become important to you?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"Reset, Refocus, Readjust, Restart, as many times as you need to. Just never give up." Unknown

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

It's a New Year, and this month we're going to talk about the word BEGINNINGS.

Here's one last thought on BEGINNINGS. You can read the other posts and quotes HERE.

This past week I had the opportunity to travel to connect with a ministry and a group of ministry leaders. We had a great time doing a "deep dive" into understanding the scope of ministry and identifying some of their key issues.

While it was a full week of engagement, it also offered me some "windows of time" that have been a little illusive over the past month. I sat for hours on a plane, spent time in the airport, had some time driving and then in a hotel.

In the midst of a full week, I kept finding these opportunities to think, to listen, to wonder and to just be.

This year has started with a BOOM! It's now February, and I have no idea where January went, and today I'm feeling a little overwhelmed by the items on my list... in fact, I've felt this way since the beginning of January. I'm having a hard time keeping up and keeping focused.

This quote above just spoke to me last week.... RESET, REFOCUS, READJUST, RESTART. Powerful words. And then the kicker... NEVER GIVE UP!

I don't know where you find yourself today. Are you disappointed in the start of 2026? Did you have big goals and you now realize those things were unrealistic? Do you find yourself drowning in all of the things you thought were going to be great, but now just feel like work! Did you think you were going to get more done, but now you're frustrated and you just want to throw it all out the window?

If you identify with any of those things, You're Not Alone!

TODAY, take a deep breath. Just slow down for a second and assess where you're at todoy, and determine what your next step needs to be.