Leadership Principles I Learned From Missionaries

Part 1

I have had the privilege of working in several different job sectors over the years. I started after college in a corporation. After receiving my master's degree, I moved into a non-profit organization. From there, I moved to serve as a missionary overseas. I had a lot of great leaders that I was able to learn from in all three positions. Of all three, the ones that had the most significant impact on me were those serving as missionaries. It sounds odd since many believe the business world leads the way in leadership principles.

In part 1 of this 2-part series, I want to discuss some leadership principles I observed in some of the best missionaries I know. What I observed can benefit all of us, no matter what field we work within.

Passion and Purpose: Missionaries are driven by a strong sense of purpose and passion for their mission. People give up a good life in their home countries mainly because of a sense of purpose. They are willing to a lot of struggle to carry out their purpose.

Likewise, successful leaders in business should have a clear purpose and a passion for what they do. Business is a challenging, competitive environment. You or your team need a clear purpose and a passion to carry out that purpose to ensure your business will thrive. Good leaders inspire and lead their teams to see the why of what they are seeking to accomplish.

Resilience: Missionary work can be challenging, facing various obstacles and setbacks. I have known missionaries who had to move to several different cities three times in one year. Some have had visa problems, struggles with the local religious leaders, or many other difficulties. In all these situations, the missionary continued their mission. They had resilience.

Likewise, successful business leaders have a wide range of changes and setbacks that come their way. Leaders of all types should possess resilience, persevering through challenges. Resilience is something they can also lead their teams to develop.

Adaptability: Missionaries often work in diverse and challenging environments. They learn to adapt quickly to new cultures, languages, and situations. This adaptability only sometimes comes naturally. It is taught from the beginning of missionary training. Adjusting to your audience helps the missionary thrive in a foreign culture.

The business world should be no different. Learning to be adaptable is crucial as markets, technologies, and customer demand constantly change. A mindset willing to adjust and adapt to do what it takes to get the job done goes a long way in developing a thriving business.

Effective Communication: Missionaries must be excellent communicators to convey their message clearly across language and cultural barriers.

Business leaders need to master communication skills to articulate their vision, goals, and expectations effectively. This takes time and intentional effort to know who your audience is. It also involves the leaders learning from those within their target audience to learn how to communicate effectively.

Servant Leadership: Missionaries often adopt a servant leadership style, focusing on serving others rather than wielding authority. In business, servant leaders prioritize the needs of their employees and customers, which can lead to increased loyalty and productivity.