Insecurity breeds misleadership.

Insecurity erodes confidence within leaders and makes it very difficult for them to lead others. Nevertheless, many Christian leaders are insecure. Insecurity is tied to the paranoia I spoke of earlier and is crippling too many leaders

What causes you to feel insecure? Can you think of the circumstance and setting when you last felt insecure? My experience suggests that there was something about that setting and interaction that triggered the insecurity within you. It may have reminded you of a previous experience. There may have been a personality involved with whom you have had difficulties in the past—or who reminded you of someone you have struggled with.

Insecurity can also rear its ugly head during times of great success. I’ve met many leaders who actually seem more paranoid when things are going well. Quips of “Well, we never know when things are going to take a turn for the worse” are common, and the mind can begin to imagine all the horrible ways they might do so.

Bobb Biehl, president of Master Planning Group, and one who has invested himself in the mentoring of Brenda and me, believes that confidence is the direct by-product of predictability. There is clarity in this truth that helps us understand why new situations can cause us to feel insecure. Our previous experience helps us to picture how our circumstance might play out. Without experience, our imagination takes over and begins to play games in our mind. Left alone, I seem capable of dreaming up a far more devastating outcome than I usually experience. This is where a mentor can have a significant impact in your life as a leader.