Leadership doesn’t happen without relationship. Let’s say that again, leadership doesn’t happen without relationship. The foundation of leadership is relationships. The foundation of ministry is relationships. The foundation of the church is relationships.

And I’m not great at relationships. In fact, several years ago, I would’ve said I was pretty terrible at them.

It’s something I’ve had to work on throughout the years, and while I’ve definitely improved in that area, I’m still not where I’d like to be.

Relationships require you to connect with people’s hearts. Get to know them. Do life with them. Yet, my naturally tendency as an introvert is to isolate myself.

Relationships require you to appreciate people for who they are. Not just tolerate, but appreciate. Yet, my natural tendency is to try to fix people.

So, I’ve really had to be intentional about getting out of my comfort zone in order to build relationships.

Because I know no one is going to follow me unless they trust me, and trust comes from relationships.

Hopefully, that’s not the case for you. Hopefully, you’re great at building relationships, and you have a line of people already following you.

In order to keep them following, you need to have these three qualities.

1. Encouragement

Everyone struggles with self-doubt. Discouragement is a reality of life. The thing that will keep your followers moving is encouragement. It provides hope. It builds their confidence. It makes them feel good. If you are an encourager, you won’t have to seek people out. They will gravitate to you. People are drawn to leaders who build them up.

2. Inspiration

A good leader inspires people to follow the vision. They are able to navigate through change and are constantly on the lookout for new opportunities. A good leader understands the organization can’t stay where it is. It constantly has to change in order to reach new people. Your ability to communicate an inspiring vision to your followers will determine your success or failure.

3. Consistency

Consistency is the glue that holds it all together. People won’t follow an unreliable leader. It doesn’t matter how talented or charismatic you are. They want a leader who is disciplined because there’s something about discipline that inspires people. It makes them want to be a better person.

If you have these three qualities in your life, you’ll be a leader people want to follow. If you don’t have them, work on getting them, otherwise you might not be leading for long.

What do you think about this list? What would you add? Let me know by leaving a comment, and don’t forget to subscribe to the blog in order to get tips on church growth, leadership, and more delivered to your inbox each week.