Language is a potent tool for peace and unity and it is also a tool for tearing apart, and to cause disharmony. When you see a nation, a marriage, business, organization, ministry and any other corporate body in a disorganized state lacking progress and focus, you will trace their problems to an inability to understand each other, and their leadership lacks the capacity to unite and speak to them in a language that they must understand. Perhaps you are a leader reading this piece, and you are beginning to say to yourself “but I have been speaking”; it will interest you to know that it is one thing to speak and it’s another thing for your followers to understand.
What you have been speaking, do they understand? It is more important to understand and communicate in the language of the followers, acquiring the power of language is a basic requirement for every leader. What is language? Language is referred as a system of words or signs that people use to express thoughts and feelings to each other.
From this definition, I’m sure you would agree with me that “actions speaks louder than words.” Language is not only expressed by speaking; it also involves body signs, facial expression, gesticulation and behavioral patterns . These means of communication other than verbal is called (body language). It goes a long way in communicating a strong message to followers, observers, colleagues, spouse, and to employees.
This is where I want you to begin your reflection; as the leader of that organization, the home, the ministry and political party. Evaluate yourself to actually know the reason why you are not effective, why you haven’t been able to accomplish that project with your followers, perhaps you have been communicating with the wrong programming code. Is the signal of your followers strong enough to download the message you are sending across? Maybe I would have to say here that if your followers must listen to you and believe in your vision or in whatever you have to say; then upgrade their network signal, meaning that: you must speak to the right audience who has the same mentality and orientation as you do.
I will talk about this more later as you read on. For effective communication to take place there has to be understanding in language, if the receiver finds it difficult to decode the message a sender is trying pass across then; there would be a communication failure. When this begins to happen then there would be friction and every tendency that the both go their separate ways.
No matter how direct you have received your vision; perhaps you were caught up in the third heavens, or maybe you where intercepted by a bright light from heaven, when you received your mandate. However, if you lack the capacity to communicate your vision and revelations, effectively, then you have wasted heavens resources, trust and investments.
A leader who lacks the capacity to communicate and relate his vision to the people, would be likened to a man who didn’t have any vision at all. When you lack what to speak, not because you don’t have what to speak about; but because you don’t know how to speak what you want to speak; the way you should speak it, then it is right to say that you actually don’t have anything to say. This is an example of a scenario where a leader is speaking a language and his followers are interpreting processing and understanding something very different.
A leader who lacks the power of language is like a leader who is running without a destination and he expects his followers to also run along with him. But they actually don’t know why they are running or where they are running to, soon enough they will get tire. Apostle Peter, a disciple of Christ had this challenge and he asked his leader “we have left everything to run after you, what shall we gain?” And the answer to that question made them run even more with zeal and perseverance. The response was simple and precise. Assuming the answer Jesus Christ gave was not convincing or could not communicate His purpose, I’m sure they would have all left.
Does it not bother you so much that in spite the signs and wonders they saw, even with the revelation of Him being the Messiah “you are Christ the Son of the living God” the same Peter still needed to ask Jesus in order to be convinced via the power of language.
It is one thing to receive revelations, visions and dreams; it is another to speak it in a plain, simple, loud and audible language so that it may run who ever reads it or hears it. Your character must speak, your emotions must speak, you must also speak by writing, everything about you must speak one language to your followers. This matter is so important to God and we must not treat it with levity.
How vast and knowledgeable you are doesn’t matter here, how direct you received your vision from God doesn’t matter here, how powerful that revelation is; doesn’t matter as well . even if you are caught up in the third heavens and you can’t relate, or communicate these experiences to your followers, then we must say that you have been wasting our time. We better go to a place where we can hear and speak the same language with the leader.
When Jesus Christ, the ultimate leader spoke with two of His disciples on their way to Emmaus; they admitted that their hearts was burning within them. A man who has not grown to become a leader that has the capacity of stirring fire to burn in the hearts of his followers has missed his purpose and needs to trace it back immediately else he would lose all his followers. Effective leaders motivate and give hope to their followers, they embrace and encourage the broken hearted, this is also a leadership language. If leadership is about the people and leadership is about followership then how do you relate with the people? You must understand the people’s language, and lead by speaking their language.
Irrespective of tribal, religious, social or ethnicity, an effective leader is a leader that must communicate in one language and it should be the language that all the followers must understand. Jesus never spoke a double language to confuse His followers. If you do not want your organization to scatter then understand the language of God. The secret of language is what Christ said: as I hear my Father say, I say, as I see my Father do I do. For I have not spoken on my own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave me a command, what I should say, and what I should speak. Did you see that?
Effective Leadership language rises and falls on this statement that Christ made. A leader who has not learnt to understand and speak the language of God is not fit to shoulder responsibilities and does not deserve to be followed. When you as a leader is not working at par with the will of God and in line with your vision and with the purpose of your organization, then you are also speaking a different language.
Double standards of life, insincerity, corruption, lack of integrity and compromise are all bad languages to speak and exhibit before your followers. They are bad programming code, like a virus they will hang and crash your leadership system.
Source: [Centre for New Dimension Leadership]
