Leadership is Built One Brick at a Time

Leadership is Built One Brick at a Time September 2, 2014

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Building with bricks is not something we do lightly.

The strength and integrity of a brick wall depends on working well, not necessarily quickly. Each brick relies on the other bricks around it, especially those that went before it. Each brick must be placed exactly where it belongs and joined to the others around it. While each one is important, but no single brick can be a complete wall on its own.

Choosing bricks, mixing mortar, and fitting each one into place are each important to building a good wall.

A strong wall is built one brick at a time.

When we look at our wall, we can see where we have done well and where we could have done better work.

Parts of my wall look traditional, with straight lines and right angles. Parts of my wall look like I was learning.

My wall includes some very creative twists and turns. There are places where it appears I did not have much of a plan. Some of those places are the most beautiful parts of my wall, some are not.

There are places where my wall  appears to fade away or just disappear. It looks like there were times when I got tired or discouraged or overwhelmed and stopped building. I have been able to go back and convert some of those places into ornate, beautiful gates.

It is encouraging to remember that we are building brick by brick, one brick at a time. I may expect myself to know every answer or have a plan that anticipates every challenge. The essential step is to build one brick at a time, finding the place where each brick fits.

Take your time and build the wall you have the potential to build.

What kind of leadership wall are you building?

Where will you place your next brick today?

[Image by marc falardeau]


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