A friend of mine, a CEO for a large group of companies, was recounting to me last week a situation regarding the largest and most profitable of his companies. The president of this company was being given significant credit for the turnaround of the business and, naturally enough, was taking the credit. All in all, it looked like a brilliant turnaround story. But my friend, with clarity of insight, popped the bubble as he pointed out,

“Frank’s done some great things. Don’t get me wrong. He’s rallied the troops and have them believing that they’re winners. But most of the conditions for their current success were in place before he came. Not only that, a huge portion of the credit needs to go the guy who is his second in command.”

My own experience in leadership and my observations of many, many organizations intuitively confirmed his insight. And three sets of scriptures came to mind in the process that shed more light on this phenomenon.

Let Another Praise You

Let another praise you, and not your own mouth;
someone else, and not your own lips.
— Proverbs 27:2, New International Version

Don’t be hasty to take credit, but be hasty to give credit

Don’t be hasty to take credit, but be hasty to give credit. Most things that we accomplished are built on the work of others and with the help of others. I keep realizing in my own life that the success I have is in great measure a result of the help of friends, and largely the result of God’s goodness to me. This humbles me greatly and makes me constantly grateful.

Give Yourself Due Credit, But Not Too Early

Pride goes before destruction,
a haughty spirit before a fall.
— Proverbs 16:18, New International Version

Make your mark on the things for which you are responsible, but don’t pat yourself on the back too early. Earlier in my career I left a successful organization after 7 years of service. My replacement desperately wanted to show his abilities and to confirm to those who hired him that they’d made the right choice.

He immediately instituted sweeping changes and even called me to let me know they were finally getting things done “the right way”. (As if to say, “You couldn’t do it, but I did it! Don’t you feel great?”) He was praised by his leadership with much fanfare.

However, within 18 months, the company was seriously in the red, customers were fleeing, and morale was plummeting. After three years he was fired.

God Makes It Grow

What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building. By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.
— I Corinthians 3:5-11, New International Version

Here, Paul reminded a group of people caught up in the celebrity leadership game that leaders are servants, that each plays a part, that none can claim all the success, and that ultimately it is God who makes it all succeed.

Most success in business, ministry or parenting takes time and a sequence of seasons before the crop is ready to harvest. Years ago when I was in the ministry, this passage was constantly on my mind. If I saw immediate spiritual responsiveness, I was probably at the end of a chain of work that others had done before me. I was reaping the unseen work of others who had prayed for years for these people, loved them, served them, and had been an example to them. All of this work was the hard work of preparing the soil, planting the seeds, watering, fertilizing, and protecting the plant until it was ready to bear fruit.

This is true in business as well and so whenever I’ve come into an organization as a new leader, I’ve been quick to build relationships, understand what has gone on before me, and why the organization works as it does. Then, unless, the organization is in such trouble that it requires drastic measures, I patiently work to adjust the culture and operations. And all the while, I acknowledge and honor the contributions of those who’ve come before me and are still working with me. It’s hard, hard work and not without risk and resistance.

Be Slow To Take Credit

Be slow to take credit for success. When you are assessing performance, think carefully about what really caused the success. There are usual multiple reasons for the success and because there is usually a time gap between cause and effect, we can be misled as to what really caused success. Stay humble and remember that you most likely play only a small role in the overall success of any enterprise.