George Barna - A Fish Out of Water: 9 Strategies to Maximize Your God-Given Leadership Potential

A FISH
OUT OF
WATER

A FISH
OUT OF
WATER

9 STRATEGIES EFFECTIVE LEADERS USE
TO HELP YOU GET BACK INTO THE FLOW

GEORGE
BARNA

A FISH OUT OF WATER

Copyright 2002 by George Barna.
Published by Integrity Publishers, a division of Integrity Media, Inc.
5250 Virginia Way, Suite 110, Brentwood, TN 37027.

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Published in association with Yates & Yates, LLP, Literary Agents, Orange, California.

All Scripture quotations in this book, except those noted otherwise, are from The Holy Bible, New International Version.
Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, International Bible Society.
Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.

Quotations marked KJV are from The King James Version of the Bible.

Quotations marked TLB are from The Living Bible, Copyright 1971. Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, Il.
Used by permission.

Cover Design: Bill Chiaravalle Interior Design: Inside Out Design & Typesetting

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Barna, George
A fish out of water / by George Barna.
p. cm.
ISBN 1-59145-017-9 (hardcover)
ISBN 1-59145-422-0 (trade paperback)
1. Leadership. 2. Christian leadership. I. Title
HD57.7.B3664 2002
303.3'4dc21

2002068910

Printed in the United States of America
06 07 08 09 10 VG 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to:
my mother, Connie Barna, a Situational leader,
my father, George Barna, a Strategic leader, and
my wife, Nancy Barna, an Operational leader
three people who have loved me and led me throughout my life.

CONTENTS

Managing and organizing are not the same as leading.

Recognize the difference between situational and habitual leadership.

Know the four typesdirecting, strategic, team-building,and operationaland how they work together.

We dont lack opportunities; we lack Gods vision for us.

If you believe people support leaders because of their skills, think again;its character.

Its a leaders job to train effective followersand it must be a priority.

If you want to be popular, become an entertainer;if you want to lead, get used to choppy waters.

There is no such thing as an effective Christian leaderwho puts spiritual growth on the back burner.

Understanding the life cycles of organizationsand which leadership type best fits each stage will help you progress.

J UST AS LEADERSHIP IS MOST EFFECTIVE when it is a team effort, so does the crafting of a book benefit from the involvement of a variety of people. This book has been blessed with the efforts of people whose assistance I would like to acknowledge publicly.

Throughout the years, my team at Barna Research has been instrumental in helping me study, understand, and communicate insights regarding various dimensions of reality. As I worked on this book I was supported by the current Barna Research team: Rachel Ables, Irene Castillo, Jim Fernbaugh, Meg Flammang, Lynn Gravel, Cameron Hubiak, Pam Jacob, David Kinnaman, Jill Kinnaman, Carmen Moore, Dan Parcon, Celeste Rivera, and Kim Wilson. Thank you, team, for your encouragement, your help, and your prayers.

Sealy Yates, Curtis Yates, and John Eames, from Yates & Yates, have served as my agents, capably helping me to navigate the strange and wonderful world of publishing. I am grateful for their initiative, wisdom, and professionalism in handling the business end of this work.

I am excited about the growing relationship with my friends at Integrity Publishing. I have known Byron Williamson and Joey Paul for years and am pleased to be partnering in this and forthcoming projects with them. One of the factors that attracted me to Integrity was Rob Birkheads creative ideas regarding this book; I pray that his vision will come to pass.

Everyone is exposed to great leaders throughout life. I have undoubtedly benefited from the efforts of the tremendous leaders who have invested in me. Among those leaders whose contributions are most significant are Warren Bennis, Bob Buford, Chuck Colson, Jim Dobson, Larry DeWitt, Wally Erickson, Archie Freeman, Barry Hawes, Jack Hayford, Howie Hendricks, Bill Hybels, Les Ingram, Ron Lehmann, Kevin Mannoia, Doug Murren, Larry Osborne, Janet Parshall, Jim and Molly Scott, Ron Sider, Jim Smith, Jim Van Yperen, Luder Whitlock, and Walt Wilson. My life has been enhanced by their input and example.

The most important team of all, though, is my family. For two decades, my wife, Nancy, has helped to lead Barna Research and has taught me much about the operational side of leadership. She has also been a tireless supporter of my efforts to help people and to love God. This book is as much a result of her life as it is of mine. She has been a continual blessing; may she reap her reward a thousandfold. In addition, my daughters, Samantha and Corban, have forever changed my life for the better. What I have not learned about leadership outside the home they have taught me inside the home. Their daily hugs, kisses, and encouraging comments move me to continue to pursue Gods calling with passion and energy. A major motivation behind this book is to try to improve the quality of leadership in the world so that their lives might benefit.

Ultimately, everything in life is a spiritual choice. I have chosen to follow Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, striving to live a life that honors him and reflects his principles. I pray that this book is an acceptable and pleasing offering of love and obedience to him. If anything good results from this book, may all the glory go to God, all the joy to my family and colleagues, and all the benefit to his church.

The greatness of an organization will be directly proportionalto the greatness of its leader.

HENRY BLACKABY

I CANT STAND FISHING. The long wait between catches, the slimy bodies, getting the hook out of the creatures bloody, rubbery mouthwell, you get the picture. Ernest Hemingway Im not.

However, because my daughters love fishing, our family occasionally heads to a nearby dock and fishes for a few hours.

Early one morning the girls were dangling their rods over the railing. I sat on a nearby bench and pondered some difficulties I was facing within our company. The gentle ocean breeze, the lighthearted banter between my wife and daughters, and the absence of telephones and other interruptions were conducive to clarifying reflection.

That is, until both little girls started whooping, frantically reeling in a big one. After a few minutes of comical efforthave you ever fished with girls who are five and eight?they managed to secure their prized catches and proudly placed them in their bucket.

Buoyed by their prowess, they baited their hooks anew and expectantly returned to mining the seas. I returned to my bench and tried to pick up my interrupted trail of thought. But it was not to be, due to the flapping of those two fish in the plastic bucket. I couldnt help but consider their plight. If only they had understood their environment better, they could have avoided their fate. If they had just worked together, they might have discerned the trap and swum around it.