You have probably heard this quite often…“Great Leaders are great Learners”. Learning is not in my top 5 strengths according to Strengths Finder…mine are Strategic, Futuristic, Relator, Significance, Deliberative. I have to leverage my top strength of Strategic to learn…it just doesn’t come naturally, but I would imagine its in my top 10. A key to learning for me has been the art of UnLearning! Please know, learning and unlearning is not always fun…it’s work, and it can really be painful at times. Often I overlook this concept, and struggle with the pain that learning often creates…but I am “learning” to lead through this better. Understanding the Human Brain is critical to understanding the importance of Learning and UnLearning…it’s all about constructing and deconstructing our habits, thought patterns, etc. Take 2 min and watch this video…it will put us on the same page.

The Human Brain from Geoff Schultz on Vimeo.

UnLearning is so important…it, in and of itself leads to Learning for me. Right now I am really learning so much, from so many different people and input sources.Let me briefly mention a few.

Cycling. I am learning so much about cycling right now, and it is helping me with so many areas of my life. Cycling is helping me improve my discipline, my drive, and most important it is pushing me back to square one of humility with some of the killer riders & racers I train with. One of my teammates Rob is freaking amazing on the bike. While riding with him I pay close attention to his form, how he peddles, how he shifts gears, how he approaches hills, how he rides down hills…I am paying attention to everything. I am learning a ton just riding with him…but you see, it would be so easy to miss these opportunities. I have noticed some younger and less experiences riders are not paying attention…they are spending more time trying to fit in, or worse – trying to impress other riders instead of  learning (that’s a whole other post about low self asteem as a guy). The humbling part is so good…gets me back to the basics of paying attention to my surroundings and just absorbing as much as possible; something I am learning to apply to all parts of my life.

My Boss. Let me just say I am blessed to have an amazing boss…yea, nobody is perfect, but Bobby brings so much to the table it’s crazy. One thing Bobby is continually modeling for me is the art of problem solving. Bobby has a natural gift of asking the right questions, and thinking in a uniquely gifted way to really assist with problem solving. I think problem solving is one of the greatest life skills. Until I met and interacted with Bobby, I thought I was great at it…but, he puts me to shame. I watch his interactions, pay close attention to his questions and try and predict what is going to come next. Through this I am training myself to get better. Much of the training part is UnLearning for me…to not assume so much, not to jump to conclusions and this is massive – to keep pressing…keep pressing. Oh, how it might drive me freaking nuts, but keep pressing. It’s good!

Another person I want to mention is Amber. Wow, I am learning so much from Amber…she models learning in the best of ways. Typically she can find herself in the middle of something she has never seen, messed with, or even thought about…and she figures it out. Amber and I have worked together now for a few years and her raw, natural ability to learn is one of the reasons she is thriving. Amber is a natural learner…and she models it so well for me, and anyone on our team who will pay attention. I should also mention that she doesn’t just leverage her natural ability to learn at work…she and her family are walking through the real issues with foster parenting and I can see how much God is using this time in her life, and how much she is learning…and more importantly, UnLearning!

Finally, and most important…I am learning a lot directly from God! He is speaking to me in a huge way through my pastor, Craig Groeschel and a ton in my daily time with Him. I can not be more thankful for taking a big step almost 2 years ago when I started spending time in the Word every morning. It is in these daily times where I am learning, unlearning and where God is speaking to me through His Word. As good as this has been, it has also been challenging, painful and flat out hard at times. But I know, without a doubt that I am a better man, husband and father because of it.

There are some many others I am learning from…just don’t have time to mention them all. Let me leave you with two quotes:

We should be careful to get out of an experience all the wisdom that is in it – not like the cat that sits on a hot stove lid. She will never sit down on a hot lid again – and that is well; but also she will never sit down on a cold one anymore. - Mark Twain

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experiences of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired and success achieved. – Helen Keller

Developing leaders is fun but very challenging. You can read a lot of books, blog posts, talk to leaders and mentors and honestly get tons of contradictory information. Why? Well, in my opinion developing people (or leaders) is an art…not an exact science. There is no magic formula, sprinkle dust or bag of tricks that you can use to simply develop leaders. EVERYONE is different, has unique gifts, talents and personalities…and every leadership “role” is unique as well. Yea, that’s a lot of variables.

I am no expert or professional leadership coach, but I have learned a lot, especially from my mistakes. I have found that developing leaders starts from the bottom up…or the foundation. Here are the 5 key foundations that I personally look for first.

1. Integrity – Trust. Character. Belief. Honesty. Everything must start with integrity!
2. Judgment - Judgment for me is all about clear, quick, and GOOD decision making. Sounds simple…but it is not. At its core, you must look for those who have the natural gift to be good decision makers…the ones who land on the right side of the gut check more often than not.
3. Vision - For me, it is important for leaders on my teams to lead with vision. Even the young leaders who are NOT visionaries, they must have the ability to connect people to vision and understand its importance.
4. Empathy - I know, you might think this is odd…but actually I have found its critical. Having empathy is critical to build trust…and being a great leader lives and dies on trust. Leaders strong in empathy can see things in their team that others will never see!
5. Humility - Humility – the antidote to pride. Pride is real, and a major struggle for most leaders! Having a core character trait of humility will help counter this and also set the stage for being developed, open for feedback, and admitting mistakes.