I had to search for a font the other day. On a different computer, I had previously used a font entitled “The Aeroplane Flies High.” Having transferred the file to my new computer, the document would correctly open without installing the font. The process of looking for the font reminded me of a leadership principle.
Often when a person encounters a problem, the easy response would be to just do some surface thing to cover it up. People selling homes paint over the mildew in their basements. A person with out-of-control spending habits applies for a refinance. A church with a poor self image buys new carpeting. A business with declining sales creates a new ad campaign.
Leaders know that most problems are not so easily fixed. Covering them up, or looking for the quick fix, is like installing a new font. You may change how it looks but the content remains the same.
Fonts don’t change how my computer operates, software does. It changes how it operates, how it allocates its memory, how it organizes information, how it allows me to access and manipulate information. Leaders know that solving problems often entails real change. Real change occurs in the software, it occurs in how a person, a ministry, an organization operates.
What’s your approach to problems, surface answers? Or is it time for an update?
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