Superhuman PerformerKen Blanchard

Called to Serve, Not Be Served

Ken Blanchard: Helping ordinary people achieve extraordinary results

…the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one

who serves. Luke 22:26 (NIV)

Name: Ken Blanchard

Position: Cofounder and Chief Spiritual Officer

Company: The Ken Blanchard Companies

Spiritual Gifts: Teacher & Writer

Ken Blanchard stood on the steps of the chapel and watched peace protesters picket his

employer. The growing number of students demanding an end to the Vietnam war spilled

over the lawns of the campus, threatening to disrupt Ken’s world in ways he couldn’t

imagine. Ken wasn’t sure what to make of the student sit-ins and the undercurrent of

social chaos percolating in the hallways outside his classroom, but he knew this: his

Methodist pastor was in the middle of the mess, lending his voice to those who thought

the war was wrong. Then it happened. National Guardsmen killed four students just a few

hours up the road at Kent State University. Shortly thereafter, Ken’s church fired its

pastor, not over doctrinal differences, but political. Walking away from the chapel, Ken

thought, If this is what Christianity is all about, you can have it.

“You know, after they fired our pastor, Margie and I turned our backs on the church

because we had seen so much bad behavior. And we never got back to it until the One

Minute Manager came out. That book was so ridiculously successful that I had trou-ble

taking credit for it. People would ask me, ‘Blanchard, why do you think this book took

off like it did,’ and I said, ‘I think God was involved somewhere.’”

Long before the One Minute Manager changed him from a college professor to

international best-seller, Ken struggled to find success.

“My first job at Ohio University was actually as an Assistant to the Dean of the College

of Business. I arrived in the mid ‘60s in the middle of all the student protests about the

Vietnam War. I’d taken a job as an administrator because, in grad school my professors

told me I couldn’t write. In fact, I took the College Boards four times before finally

getting a 502 in English. But, when I arrived on campus, the dean asked me to teach a

course. I’d never thought about teaching at the university level because I’d heard that if

you wanted to teach, you had to first be published and, based on what others had said, I

was a lousy writer. ‘Sure, I’ll teach,’ I told the dean.”

“Now, I’d taken enough bad courses to know I wasn’t about to teach one, so I really

prepared. About two weeks into the course, I came home and

told Margie, ‘This teaching

thing is really fun. This is what I ought to be doing.’”

She said, “Yeah? What about that publishing problem?”

“I don't know,” I told her. “Guess we’ll just trust that God’ll

take care of it somehow.”

“Some months later I went to Paul Hersey and asked if I could

sit in on his course. He

was chairman of the department and told me nobody audited his course, but I was

welcomed to take his course for credit. Then he walked away. I thought, That’s

interesting. Here I have a doctorate degree and he doesn’t,

and he’s telling me I’d have to

take his course like some undergrad.

I went home and told my wife and she said, “Is he any good?”

“For a manager to be perceived as a positive manager, they need a four-to-one positive-to-negative contact ratio.”Kenneth Blanchard

“In the past, a leader was a boss. Today's leaders must be partners with their people... they no longer can lead solely based on positional power.” Kenneth Blanchard

“Too many leaders act as if the sheep... their people... are there for the benefit of the shepherd, not that the shepherd has responsibility for the sheep.”Kenneth Blanchard

“He’s supposed to be great,” I told her.

“Then get your ego out of the way and take his course.”

“Next day I signed up for his class. The registrar didn’t know what to do with me because

I already had a doctorate. But I did the work and wrote all the papers. June of that year

Paul comes into my office and says, ‘Ken, I've been teaching leadership for 10 years. I

think I'm better at teaching this than anybody, but now they want me to write a textbook

and I can’t write. I'm a nervous wreck. I need a good writer… like you. Would you write

a textbook for me?’”

“I said, ‘That’s odd. You can’t write and I’m not supposed to. We ought to make a great

team. Let’s do it!’ We wrote a textbook called Management of

Organizational Behavior Utilizing Human Resources. It just

came out in its 10th edition and sells better today than it did in

‘69.” Fast forward a few years and Ken’s book, the One Minute Manager, hits the best-

seller list, proving that God can use ordinary men with a noble heart and limited skills to

perform at extraordinary levels.

“When I was writing the One Minute Manager, I knew my

mother was praying for the book, and me, when it had such

incredible success. As soon as I made the connection that God

was involved with the book, the Lord started sending all kinds

of people into my life. Right after that I got a call from our

publisher, asking if I’d write a book with Norman Vincent Peale.”

Suiting Up

“I wasn’t even sure he was still alive. I mean, my parents had gone to his church years

before I was even born. Turns out he was not only alive, but

doing fabulous. Norman and his wife, Ruth, took Margie and

me under their wings. They didn't pressure us at all. They’d

just say, ‘You know, Ken. The Lord’s always had His eye you. You’ve always been on

His team. You just haven't suited up yet.’ So, suiting up became our rallying cry.”

A short time later, God brought Bob Buford into Ken’s life, the author of Halftime, who

said, “Ken’s a great businessman with keen insights who asks really probing questions.”

“Next, I was introduced to Bill Hybels from Willow Creek and I began thinking, I guess

the Lord really does want me to be writing. I mean, he keeps sending all these high-

powered people into my life for a purpose.”

Ken’s calling as a writer and teacher forced him to look at the attributes of what makes a

great leader and ultimately, his search lead him back to the consummate leader: Christ.

“Undoubtedly, he's the greatest leadership role model of all time. Look what he did with

these 12 incompetent guys he hired. No one would have hired that group. But what’s

amazing is that all these concepts I developed over the years were really ones that were

given to me by the Good Lord. I mean, he knew me before I was born and so He figured

the world was in desperate need of a different leadership role model. When I realized that

everything I’d ever taught or written about leadership was summed up in Jesus, I just

laughed.”

The Consummate Leader

So, what is the consummate leader? How would Ken coach others struggling to lead and

achieve success? Here are his three tips for utilizing your gifts to perform at extraordinary

levels.

Hope

“Leaders help ordinary people achieve extraordinary results so, to be an effective leader,

you need to do three things. First, you need to be a bearer of hope. Leaders project

confidence. Jesus said over 300 times ‘fear not’ and the reason He told us not to be afraid

is because he also added, ‘I am with you.’ Don't quack like a duck; soar like an eagle.

People who produce good results feel good about themselves. Don’t wait until people do

things exactly right before you praise them. Great leaders are hopeful.”

Trust

“Second, you need to trust your team. Feedback is the breakfast of champions. You need

to treat your employees as if they’re your business partners and share with them

everything that's happening. They know where you can increase revenue. They know

where you can cut costs. You don't know. Trust implies risk. The fastest way to drive an

employee insane is to give him or her new responsibilities and fail to provide the

necessary instruction and training to do the job. Jesus spent three years preparing this

ragtag group of disciples to be his business partners. He shared everything with them,

even the difficult aspects of His death. And then He left them in charge of His work. As a

leader, the important thing is not what happens when you are there, but what happens

when you are not there. Catch people doing things right. Great leaders are hopeful and

trusting.”

Serve

“Finally, you need to be a servant leader. The key to successful leadership today is

influence, not authority. The biggest problem with business leaders today is that they

think leadership is all about them. They let their ego get in the way. Leadership is not

something you do to people. It’s something you do with people. Again, look to Jesus as

the model of a great leader. He was determined. He knew he was going to Calvary and

He kept his eyes on the goal. But, He was also willing to stop and serve others. He

allowed people to interrupt his life. Every king and queen in history sent others to die for

them. I only know one king that died for his people. That's humility. Great leaders are

hopeful, trusting and humble.”

“We see what self-serving leaders have done in the business community, churches, and

government. We desperately need servant leaders, people who are there to give, not get.

To serve, not be served. Humility does not mean you think less of yourself. It means you

think of yourself less.”

The gift of Teacher – Speaking Gift: Those with the gift of teaching, work in

partnership with the Holy Spirit, revealing God’s truth and instructing others on how to

apply His principles in their lives. Like Christ, they carry the mantle of authority when

led by God’s Spirit. They have a knack for making the seemingly complex easy to

understand. Again, in the example of Christ, a teacher will often use stories to

communicate a key point and illustrate the wisdom of God’s truth.

People with this gift: · Find enjoyment in reading, research, exploration and studying.

· Gain insight from meditating on Scripture.

· Feel inspired when others grasp the truths they’re teaching.

· Enjoy speaking to various groups of all sizes and demonstrate patience.

“He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they

invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately.”

Acts 18:26 (NIV)“For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.” 1 Timothy 2:7 (English Standard Version)

“Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we

may present everyone mature in Christ.” Colossians 1:28 (English Standard Ver-sion)

“Teach the older men to exercise self-control, to be worthy of respect, and to live wisely.

They must have sound faith and be filled with love and patience. Similarly, teach the

older women to live in a way that honors God. They must not slander others or be heavy

drinkers. Instead, they should teach others what is good. These older women must train

the younger women to love their husbands and their children.” Titus 2:2-4 (New Liv-ing Translation)

“Teach these things and tell everyone to do what you say.” 1 Timothy 4:11 (Contemporary English Version)

Ken Blanchard is one of the most influential leadership experts in the world and is

respected for his years of groundbreaking work in the fields of leadership and

management. He is cofounder and Chief Spiritual Officer of The Ken Blanchard

Companies®, an international management training and consulting firm that he and his

wife, Margie Blanchard, began in 1979 in San Diego, California. Starting with his

phenomenal best-selling book, The One Minute Manager®, coauthored with Spencer

Johnson, which has sold more than 13 million copies, Ken remains a prolific writer of

best-selling books like, Raving Fans®, Gung Ho ®, and Whale Done!. His books have a

combined sales of more than 18 million copies in more than 25 languages.

www.kenblanchard.com