Trust the People!

Wow! Why do people try to micromanage everything in the world? I would never do something like that! Not Doug Burrier! I would never be controlling, demanding, wanting it my way or trying to get something done a certain way – just that way exactly.

I have some lifetime critics – who I should write about so that other leaders will know that they are not alone – who would certainly tell you the opposite. Of course, their testimony is flawed because they would tell you the opposite about anything I said or taught. After all, they are the only, sole repository of all of God’s knowledge and direction. Oh, you have met them – good – same people, different names.

But for once, let me one up my lifetime critics by confessing that I have been all of those things. I have been controlling, demanding, self-righteous, wanting it my way and have tried to get certain things done certain ways and just those ways exactly. I have been all of those things at times. At times, I was those things in the perfect will of God, and at times, I was those things not in God’s will. At times, I was those things because of need, and at times, I was those things because of me.

The next few articles are going to cover the central idea of trusting the people. It has been said, “Love is not love until you give it away.” I propose to you that leadership is not leadership until you give it away and giving it away requires trusting the people. As leaders we must trust the passion, the call, the sincerity and the qualifications of those who follow us. We must allow them to participate, to grow the organization and to innovate. We must allow them to vent, to dream and to try it on their own. Akin to true love, we should not abandon them when they fail but be bound to them for the long-run goal.

Certainly, I understand that there are times that the people should not be trusted – like at first sight, without walking with them for a while, when they are unproven or when they have failed you repeatedly. I also understand that there are certain things (like the shape of the wheel) that do not need to be reinvented. There are procedures that are tried and true and that can and need to be simply applied. There are paths – well worn with good traffic – that do not need to be recharted.

However, we need to trust the people. We need to be able to give them opportunity. If we could do it ourselves, then we do not need to be leaders. If we cannot trust the people, then perhaps we have failed in preparing or selecting them. We must trust the people with wisdom, in preparation and even more in heart if we are to lead them. Likewise, if you do not trust them and do not let them follow and grow, they will leave you – thus making you a “not leader” for you have “not any followers.”

Anyone can lead robots and dummies because that is not leading but programming. Try leading people, dynamic beings in volunteer work or in employment – then you are leading. Try leading people who are executive or professional class in whatever they do – then you are leading. These people have to be trusted to be followers with brains and brawn.

Every leader will trust great followers and fellow leaders or find himself alone or with a bunch of robots and dummies.