This past February I was at Tommy Barnett’s Pastor School where I heard a life changing message by Joyce Meyer. She mainly talked about balance and her message affected me so much I started to eat healthy and exercise.

She told a story about personal growth in her life that is a great marketing example. She has always liked curtain colors and disliked others. The people in her ministry’s art department knew not to use the colors she did not like.

She gave control of the organization to her son who is now the CEO. In a meeting they spread out all the artwork for her magazine and it had some of the colors she did not like. When she objected her son said “mom, I didn’t know you were called to minister to yourself”. She went on to say that even though her son did not do things her way the ministry not only changed but experienced rapid growth.  In addition, by letting go and delegating authority, she was able to focus more on her ministry which is writting books and teaching.

My marketing career started over 30 years ago in the entertainment industry. I believe right from the start I was given a foundation to look at the world through the perspective of someone else. It really does not matter at all what you like, in entertainment, if people don’t like you, it becomes evident real fast.

As a marketer I need to have several points of view and the one that counts the least is my own. First, it must represent the organization. Second, it must be something leadership will like. It is important to find out what they like or dislike. Because your leader might be growing and changing you need to continually update this information. Last but far from least (in fact it should be the most important yet rarely is) it MUST be something that will move people. If it is not going to move people, especially your target audience – you failed.

The next time you have to make a decision on a marketing piece such as art or copy remember we are called to reach others. What you personally like or dislike may not be the best decision.

The other story here is that when you delegate authority to someone they may not do what you would do – they might even do it better!

Who are you called to reach?

We are all leaders. Are you delegating authority or just responsibility?

This entry was posted on Saturday, September 29th, 2007 at 6:52 pm and is filed under Just Me, Leadership, Life's Lessons, Marketing, Ministry, My Big Mouth, Personal Growth, Remarkable. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.