Qualities Associated with Contextual Intelligence

I believe every leader has different starting points in life. The challenge is not where a leader starts but where a leader finishes. I have been certified in several assessment tools to help leaders understand where they are starting in order to help them take the next steps toward their goals. My perspective on the tools is that they can provide valuable information to help a leader have greater self awareness and to then act on that information. Some of the tools that I have used are the DISC profile, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, and the Birkman Method. Of these the Birkman Method provides a better framework for leaders who are passionate about accomplishing their mission in a business or organization. (For more information - here is a link to the Birkman website www.birkman.com) Using the Birkman in a systematic way for building leaders in an organization can shorten the time involved in decision-making, problem-solving and strategic planning, as well as improve the performance of working groups or teams.

When the idea of contextual intelligence was introduced to me, because of my experience and training, I instinctively asked the questions: How would I recognize a leader with contextual intelligence? What are some distinquishing characteristics of a leader with contextual intelligence? How would I measure those qualities? How could I help a leader develop his or her contextual intelligence? Has anyone done the research and created a tool to assess a leader's starting point? If I were selecting someone for a leadership position how would I know that the person would have a capacity for contextual intelligence? I am in the process of answering those questions. If anyone is interested in collaborating on this subject please feel free to e-mail me.

Here are some of my initial thoughts about the qualities associated with contextual intelligence. The first quality that comes to mind is the ability to take decisive action in the midst of apparent paradox. In times of rapid change there will be many trends that seem to be moving in two different directions and important decisions need to be made. A leader who can see the path and move forward without having "it all figured out" would demonstrate contextual intelligence. How many executive meetings seem to be a waste of time because someone can not see a clear option to take because of contradictions. Thomas Friedman in his book The World is Flat, writes,"The great challenge for our time will be to absorb these changes in ways that do not overwhelm people but also do not leave them behind." pg46 By the time everyone can "figure it out" the world will have left them behind.

Jesus often presented his followers with a paradox and asked them for decisive action. In Luke 9:23 Jesus says, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it." Can you imagine that some in the crowd who heard these words were thinking, "Now how does that work? How can I save my life by losing it? If I want to live I must first die?" They stayed where they were trying to resolve the tension, but those who understood their times who heard these words took decisive action, they followed Jesus. And they "turned their world upside down."

Understanding the Times

Here are two Biblical examples of Contextual Intelligence

The first example is of leaders who did demonstrate that they understood the context they were living in and took action. I Chronicles chapter 12 is the account of the warriors of Israel gathering together to support David as the new king over Saul. In verse 12 the warriors from the tribe of Issachar are described as those "who understood the times and knew what Israel should do."

The second example is of those who did not have contextual intelligence. In Luke 12:54 Jesus said: "When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, 'It's going to rain,' and it does. And when the south wind blows, you say, 'It's going to be hot,' and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don't know how to interpret this present time?" Unfortunately John describes what happens in his gospel to this generation, chapter 1 verses 10 and 11, "He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to those who were his own, but his own did not receive him."

We are living in a time that requires leaders who will seek together to understand the times, to recognize the presence of Jesus in the world today (perhaps in places and ways that we did not expect), and to take collaborative action. Will we show up at "Hebron to support the king as the warriors of Issachar did in their day?

Leaders for the Mission

Leaders for the Mission in the 21st Century

I attended the Strategic Foresight Conference at Regent University School of Leadership Studies in September. While there I was introduced to the idea of "contextual intelligence." Leonard Sweet who was one of the presenters referred to a research project by Harvard Business School's Leadership Initiative. I found on the HBS site an article about the project, "What Great American Leaders Teach Us." The findings of the research project support the need for Christian leaders in the 21st Century to develop "contextual intelligence."

Tony Mayo defined contextual intelligence as the "ability to understand the macro-level factors that are at play during a given period of time." Sounds a lot like the ability to understand the times and the currents of history that we are living in. Tony said that the most surprising finding of the research project was that the "role of contextual intelligence became an increasingly compelling proposition...A business leader's abilitiy to make sense of his or her contextual framework and harness its power often made the difference between success and failure."

Why is this so important today? In light of the rapid changing environment we are living in, the effects of globilization, the emergence of true followers of Jesus within different religious traditions, and the hugh issues facing us as we seek to further the advance of the love and presence of Christ, we need to have frameworks for decision making and collaborative action that will help us navigate the future.

David Smith, a lecturer in Mission and World Christianity at the International Christian College in Glasgow, writes in his book Mission After Christendom, "Every day the church must wake up and ask itself, 'What kind of day is today?' For no two days are alike in her history."

The Big Horn Ministry

Last week I was visiting Spencer and Annette near Gunnison. I took this picture on the way up to the "Alpine Tunnel."

The Future of Global Missions

“Where do we go from here?”

Just as the industrial revolution introduced the Modern Era the information revolution is the transitional advance to the next era in history. We don’t yet know what will be post “post modern.” We can consider trends that emerged in the last decade of the second millennium. These trends seem to be gaining momentum and are emerging as contributing factors in a “New Third Millennium Era.”

There are social and cultural trends that will affect every future human enterprise whether it is business, government, education or missions. Those leaders who are able to recognize these trends and harness the human energy that will be released by them will more likely succeed in accomplishing their vision of the future.

Certainly as believers we know that God is orchestrating history and He expects us to consider the times in which we live. From a human perspective we should place our mission efforts in the currents of those times. But that is not enough; we must also seek wisdom from above. We must expect and anticipate what and where are the “Streams of God’s Mercy” that are flowing to lost in all the nations of the world. We must continually ask the question, “What are those ‘Streams of Mercy’ that will further the Missionary efforts in boarder ways than we could possibly imagine?” Where is God working and what difference will it make to our planning and allocation of God’s resources.

So as we consider the future of the missionary enterprise we must consider both the cultural and spiritual currents that will affect our prayer and work. Those mission leaders who recognize those currents and harness the human and divine energy that will be released by them will succeed in accomplishing a God given vision of the future. Those leaders who have their heads buried in their present realities and who are relying on past practices or models particularly models that are based on modernity may find themselves outside the streams of God’s redemptive power.