5 Tips for Leading Strong-Willed People
Ron Edmondson

Have you ever tried to lead someone who didn’t want to be led? The same children that were labeled strong-willed by their parents often grow up to be strong-willed adults. Perhaps you know one perhaps you are one. (I know one personally me!)

I believe leadership should be individualized for the needs of the follower. Read a similar post here. With that in mind, here are five tips for leading strong-willed people:

1. Give clear expectations. People respond best when they know what is expected of them, especially those with strong opinions of their own.

2. Be consistent. Strong-willed people need boundaries. They will test them, but they want to know the limits of their freedom.

3. Give freedom within the boundaries. Once the guidelines and expectations are established, allow followers to express themselves freely within them.

4. Pick your battles. Don’t cross a strong-willed person for issues of little importance to the overall vision of the organization. If you back them into a corner, they may bite.

5. Respect their opinions and individualities. Strong-willed people ultimately want to be heard (as all people do), but they resist most when their voice is silenced. Learn what matters to them, and give credence to their opinions.

Ron Edmondson is a pastor at Immanuel Baptist Church in Lexington, Ky.

The above article, ‘5 Tips for Leading Strong-Willed People,’ is written by Ron Edmondson. The article was excerpted from ronedmondson.com web site. May 2013.

The material is most likely copyrighted and should not be reprinted under any other name or any other author. However, this material may be freely used for personal study or research purposes.

This article may not be written by an Apostolic author, but it still contains many excellent concepts and principles that can be adapted to most churches. As the old saying goes, ‘Eat the meat. Throw away the bones.’