Exodus 18:24
“So Moses hearkened to the voice of his father in law, and did all that he had said.”
One of the great attributes of great leaders is that they don't think they know everything. In fact, great leaders realize they don't know everything and will surround themselves with people who know more than they do in certain areas. What makes them great is that they are not intimidated by someone following them who knows more about a subject than they do.
Most leaders of nations realize that they don't have all the answers to leading their nation. Every CEO will realize that they don't have the answers to every problem within their corporation. Every pastor will realize that they don't have all the answers to help every person and run every program in their church. No matter what area of leadership a person may lead, listening to those who know more than they do in a certain area is one of the keys to being able to lead people.
In my estimation, Moses is easily one of the best leaders in history. Very few people could do what Moses did by leading millions of people through the wilderness. Yet, when you look at the verse above, you will see that one of the attributes of Moses was that he was willing to listen to people who knew more than he did and follow what they said. Did this make him a weaker leader? No, in fact, this made him a greater and stronger leader. It was his ability to realize others had knowledge that would help him lead people in a better way and his willingness to follow their advice that made him a stronger leader.
Let me make this very clear, if you are a leader, you don't know everything. Yes, you may be the leader, but you are still human. Because you are human, that means you still have areas of weakness in which you would be wise to listen to those who are strong.
If you're a leader, learn to listen to people who know something that will help you lead better. This will make you a stronger as a leader. Just because someone knows something that you don't know and wants to help you with that knowledge does not mean they are trying to take your position. Listen; stop carrying a chip on your shoulder thinking that everyone is out to take your place. If you are that insecure as a leader, then you don't need to be a leader. Great leaders will listen to those underneath them realizing they have something to contribute.
I beg every leader who reads this to learn to start listening to those who have ideas that can help you. Don't let your position cause you to become deaf to the ideas of followers. Most of your followers want you to succeed. Your success means that they are successful as well. As leaders, let's learn to give every idea given to us by followers a chance to be used. Great leaders will always learn from others. Realize some of those you can learn from are the very ones you lead. Learn to truly listen to the ideas and suggestions of those whom you lead.
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