For all our progress, data, and discovery…
we are still leading into the unknown.

There is a clip making the rounds right now where Bill Maher asks a medical expert a simple but piercing question: “How much do we really know?”

The implication is unsettling. With new discoveries arriving daily, perhaps we are operating with partial understanding…maybe half?

His guest did not hesitate. He suggested it is far less than that.

Closer to ten percent.

This past Sunday I opened my message by reflecting on two of the wisest men I have ever known.

Both were well into the later seasons of their lives. Both carried a depth of perspective that could only come from decades of walking with God, leading people, making hard decisions, and learning from both success and failure.

When they spoke, people leaned in. Not because they were loud. Not because they were flashy. But because they were wise.

Wisdom. It’s different than knowledge or insight.

Knowledge can be acquired quickly. Insight may arrive in a moment. But wisdom develops…over decades.

The higher you climb in leadership, the harder it becomes to keep learning – unless one critical posture remains firmly in place.

I deal in the world of development: personal, professional, spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical.

After years in this field as both a practitioner and facilitator, I have come to believe there is one critical element that sits at the foundation of every kind of forward progress.

It is absolutely necessary. In every case. (And as a general rule, I don’t speak in absolutes.)

Without it, growth eventually stalls, no matter how intelligent, experienced, or successful the leader may be.

That ingredient is… Humility.

Many executives work tirelessly to protect what exists, when they were designed to cultivate that which is not yet.

Muscles are the primary energy source for the movement of our bodies.

Yes, they work in tandem with other systems that are also quite necessary. But without a healthy and developed muscular system, outside forces (e.g. gravity) take over.

This is why regular training is so important. It is why “Every Day Is Training Day” remains the primary mantra of The H3 Leader.

Because “muscles,” the drivers of positive, intentional movement, exist across the spectrum of our lives. They are not only physical. They are present in our mental, emotional, and spiritual realms.

Healthy, purpose-driven leaders work to develop and engage these drivers across that entire spectrum.

Today I want to focus on one of the lesser discussed leadership muscles: Creativity.

There is a form of capital in your organization that never shows up on a balance sheet, a currency that influences your culture beyond measure.

Recently, a CEO I deeply respect said something that stuck with me. He said,

“If I am honest, I did not enjoy this exercise. I did this for you – because you asked me to.”

There was something in the way he said it. It was clear: He trusts me more than he trusts the process I am leading him through.

Are you leading as if disruption is behind you…or as if it’s part of the job description?

It has been more than five years since the world shut down.

I was in full-time ministry when donuts and coffee were “the thing.”

And not just any donuts and coffee. We had some of the best in the region.

Occasionally there was excess that lasted into the week. Other times it was holidays, celebrations, or staff gatherings. Cakes. Cookies. Pastries. All manner of baked goods were often on the counter for the taking.

As someone who genuinely loves processed sugar, those were good times.

But somewhere along the way, my mindset – and my waistline – began to shift.

Not overnight. Not dramatically. Just slowly enough to notice that what once felt like a treat had become routine, and what once energized me now left me sluggish.

It was after that shift that I began to dream of a day when I would be responsible for the office menu.

A day when the food provided to my staff would be a bowl of beautiful, ripe, in-season, delicious, whole fruit.

You’ve heard the phrase, “I’m worth more dead than alive!” Maybe you’ve even uttered it.

It is a common quip after the initial payment on a significant life insurance policy. Understandable. The immediate windfall of the execution of that contract would be significant.

But let’s get real for a second and remove our proverbial tongue from said cheek.

It’s just not true, no matter the size of the estate transfer.

Christian leaders tend to speak comfortably about generosity. We encourage it. We celebrate it. We build language, culture, and reputation around it.

And rightly so.

But when commerce enters the conversation, especially profit, pricing, ownership, or control, the tone often shifts.

Tension creeps in. Motives get questioned. Assumptions are many.

The decision took less than two seconds. The preparation behind that decision has taken years.

Three seventeen-year-old young men were aggressively pursuing a loose ball. My eyes were darting across about fifteen degrees of viewing angle scanning for a tie-up, illegal contact, or unnecessary roughness.

At the same time, a coach was directly behind me yelling for a time out. In order to grant that time out, however, I needed visual proof of player control of the ball.

The entire sequence lasted maybe three seconds. Tops.