Leadership Lids 3 (of 5)
Choosing Easy Over Right
When things are running smoothly, most of us don’t like to “rock the boat.” Instead of addressing important issues, we’ll often let potential challenges go unaddressed. I call it “choosing easy over right.”
The easy thing might be to let a weak staff member stay weak.
The right thing may be to coach, correct, or release that staff member.
The easy thing might be to stay in your current building.
The right thing may be to build, move, or add an experience.
The easy thing might be to allow a struggling ministry to continue.
The right thing may be to overhaul it, change the leader, or dismantle it.
The easy thing might be to avoid talking about money.
The right thing might be to challenge the church to be more generous and be better stewards.
The easy thing might be to preach on a subject that will draw a crowd.
The right thing might be to preach on something that will shrink the crowd but honor God.
Is there an area in your ministry (or life) where you’re choosing easy over right?
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Craig…your posts on leadership are consistently valuable. When you start a series I find myself looking to see when the next one is posted. This series on leadership lids has been so valuable. Thanks for posting your insights. They’ve grown me.
Craig, here’s a few more that resonate w/ me:
The easy thing might be to comment on someone’s blog post
The right thing might be to write your own post
The easy thing might be to wear the same pants as yesterday
The right thing might be to iron another pair
The easy thing might be to eat leftover pizza for breakfast
The right thing might be to eat fruit
(Unfortunately, I took the easy way on all 3 2day…blerg!)
Don’t you wish that “easy thing” and “right thing” would’ve hooked up? Everywhere I look, “hard” and “right” seem impossibly woven together–try as I may to find a way to unravel them!
Sometimes, though, doing the right thing now saves you from even more work down the road. I should stop drinking my AM coffee now (easy) and make my 2-year-old stop throwing his cereal on the floor (oh so hard).
Dennis, Thank you so much! I am pumped to know that the blogs are making a difference in your life and ministry! Blessings to you.
Bryan, Hilarious. (I always thought you could wear the same pair of pants all week…) :)
Scott, Do you have a book of Scott Williams quotes that you’re pulling from?
Heather, You are so right about hard and right often being intertwined. Have fun cleaning up the cereal.
Where am I choosing easy over right??? Laundry-avoid it (my nemesis or “cat”)…
What else in this “Drive-thru everything”, “You deserve it”, “At the touch of a button”, “without leaving the comfort of your home”, “fast and easy money solutions”, “ fit in 5 days”, “you can be everything and it’s all about YOU (ME) being comfortable”… WORLD! I guess you get the point!
It is so easy to be lazy in this culture. Sometimes I am just tapped out of energy and choose “Easy Street”.
thanks for the series! and especially for today’s post. this is a great challenge for leaders today, and especially for church leaders. we are so quick to do the “easy” thing because…it’s easy.
to me i see so many times that if the “right” thing would have been done in the first place…it would have prevented so much. and down the road doing what is needed to make things “right” costs so much more.
thanks brother!
Just recently, I decided to choose “right” over easy in my role as one of our producers.
I finally recognized it was “right” - because the Holy Spirit led me there - to speak some challenging words rather than take it “easy” and simply hope change would appear.
Part of the stretch was getting to the place where I could trust that what was stirring was from Him; that it was not me jumping on a soapbox and proclaiming my preferences.
Hope ya have a great day, Craig!
Jenn, I’m with you on laundry!
Jon, Very wise words. Even though right may be hard the first time, it is even more difficult after doing wrong.
John, Way to go! Have a great day to you, too!
How about the easy thing is to accept a good paying position. But what God wants is to stretch you by raising $30K.
the easy thing may be to kiss up to get ahead and be favored, polpular, and develop a fan base - the right thing may be to challenge the status quo for the sake of the Kingdom
i verbally shared the satan Rich video with a friend on the train today - he may never visit LC now! but, as i pass judgement here, i’ve known him for 25 years and the $ has always been controlling him in one way or the other, ususally in the form of debt.
we should always ask - “why in the Kingdonm are we doing this thing this way?”
Man, that’s a tough one! For me the easy thing to do right now is get a secular job in a big city where I can make lots of money and not have to worry about the stress or financial strain of planting a new church.
It sure would be easier to do that but I know it wouldn’t be near as fulfilling. I also know that the same God who has called me to do this will give me the grace to overlook what is easy to do what is right.
Thanks for the great post.
Brad Ruggles
http://www.bradruggles.com
it’s easy to get caught up in little distractions
instead of disciplining yourself to do what’s right
Kevin, God is still stretching you, huh?
Tony, I love your phrase, “Why in the Kingdom…”
Brad, Man, I know what you are saying. Have a “hard” and good day! :)
Anne, So true.
the easy thing to do might be to focus on lights, sound, look and design on a building to draw people in.
the right thing to do might be to focus on running after Jesus and letting Him draw people in.
Craig, actually my record is 9 consecutive days. That’s right…9! It may not be right, but it sure was easy.
I notice this to be a problem with some of my core leaders and paid staff. I think we all struggle with choosing easy over right. But, the reasons we do this is “fear of man” instead of “fear of God.” Part of my struggle is motivating my leaders to choose the right thing over the easy thing, even when they protest. The challenge for me is to explain to them why they need to this new policy etc. rather the coming down hard and saying, “I’m sorry you feel this way but this is what we’re doing.”
wow that was some good stuff
it is easy for me to watch an hour of sportscenter here and an hour of seinfield there.
it is right for me to spend more (or time at all) with Jesus.
We in our Society are taught that it is all about life being easy, and our children are suffering an easy mentality…. It is a struggle to teach them what is right and then have society show them easy is better… We are lucky that we have faith, and therefore our responsibility grows. I however have found that what is right is also easy for me personally, prayer is always my answer and it is also the easiest thing we can do if only we remember what is right…. GOD, answers all things according to his great glory if only we ask, I love you guys, let us remember faith isn’t as hard as we make it, if only we could always be as little children in our faith… they know God hears them and they don’t question…..
Craig - Leadership is all about choices. In our drive to have our rights, I think it has somehow slipped our minds that it is more important to choose right. Thanks for your post.
For me…
The easy thing…stay at my full-time job with a great salary, great benefits, and great security!
The right thing(for me)…leave my full-time job to focus full-time on what God has called me to do. Trusting that He will provide. And he has!
Aaron, Great thoughts. Thank you!
Bryan, You are the “stinkin” man!
Charlie, The fear of man thing is a problem, isn’t it?
Jihun, Thank you.
Blake, It is “The office” that gets me.
Trina, Thanks for your words on “faith.”
Tim, You are welcome.
Mike, Way to go! Thanks for sharing.
Great list! I recently have been put in charge of a project- a scared cow- that has been exactly the smae for the last 18 years. This year I have been given the opportunity to revitalize it. That requires asking lots of hard questions, becuase I would be easy just to stay with the follow.
Being Super Bowl Week, I”ve got football on the brain…You here alot nowadays from new coaches that say they are going to come in and DO things the “Right Way”. Most of the time, this means its going to take a while. Most team owners are looking for a 5 year plan to success or something tangible. In the church world, doing things the right way isn’t always flashy or glamorous. Thanks for this post and for doing it the “Right Way”
For me, the easy thing to do would have been to stay in IL and go back to the corporate world. The right thing was to move 800 miles, stay in ministry, and be part of the amazing LC.tv team. I’m glad I did the right thing.
JD, Good luck with changing the sacred cow!
Charles, I guess you could say the right way might take longer but should also last much longer…
Sunny, I am personally glad you did the right thing. Thank you to your family for taking the leap!
This one is somewhat close to home for me. I started out taking “easy street” until it led me in the opposite direction from where I was trying to go. I absolutely refuse to even go near easy any longer.
Man…
Craig, you have really changed a lot in perspective over the last ten years…
I was with you in the old bike shop on 122nd, and stayed for 7 years until Jesus called me out to travel and train evangelists..
It may be a subtle change to some, but it is very visible to me…
I know as a leader it is important for you to hear stuff like this…
I am not fluffing your feathers, I’m thanking God for the wisdom pouring out of you! I learn a lot from your blog!
That is good stuff. Thanks Craig! I hope I never take what is easy over what is right. And now for a careful evaluation of everything…
I appreciate your leadership in taking the road less traveled and leading others in the direction that glorifies God! Thank you, Craig!
Joseph, Way to avoid easy street!
Avery, I’ve missed having you around, but know you are doing what you are supposed to do. Thanks for the generous words!
Terrace and Princessjes, Thanks to both of you!
This is a very helpful series Craig! Easy vs. Right is at the heart of many ministry issues (and other real life stuff too!). For example, the drift toward complexity is the product of decisions to just say “yes…go for it!” instead of “no…that’s not where we’re going.”
mark
Great post Craig-often times the right choice isn’t easy, you might shake things up and make some people upset but ultimately, it’s the right thing to do…the easy way is a way that i’m not a fan of..it usually means giving everyone what they want and trying to not ruffle any feathers…i’m not sure how much we can accomplish always taking the easy way out…how many people are missing out on heaven because someone took the easy way out?