Leadership and time management: Its effectiveness in realisation of the vision of an organisation – Part 1

Leadership: Its Definition And Purpose
Leadership is so-called, because of its attainment of positions, where others can look up to for direction. Meanwhile, the potency and effectiveness of any leadership could be ascertained from the growth or otherwise of the organisations concerned.

Be it in the secular world or in Christian environment, leadership closely means the same: taking the organisation to expected growth, having in mind the vision the organisation set out to achieve from the beginning of its foundation/establishment.
Vision and Mission Of An Organisation

The VISION of any organisation could be said to be the foundation in which the building of its success is built. It is the reason the organisation is set up in the first place, and without which the leadership will have no direction.However, in the plan to focus on the organisation’s vision, there will be steps and process to follow, expressly spelt out in guiding its various levels – this is what is known as the MISSION.

Meanwhile, it is important for us to know that an organisation cannot realise its vision without putting in place the appropriate and trained leadership that will understand its vision, and which will not work at cross-purposes with it. Why people Work At Cross-purposes With An Organisation’s Vision

Irrespective of how trained and disciplined one might be, there are still personal things that one will want to actualise in the leadership position he/she has attained. This, if not carefully managed, could cause one to be working at variance with the organisation’s goals. These include:
• Pursuit of personal and selfish interests.
• Putting personal goals above organisational goals.
• Creating impunity in leadership.
• Wasting too much time on imaginary enemies.
• Giving room for rumour mongering and backbiting.
• Having no agenda and planned focus.
• Setting agenda outside an organisation’s vision.
For Christian organisations, they include:
• Working outside the guidance of the Holy Spirit (John 16:12-15)
• Allowing things of the flesh (earthly things) to determine our actions (Romans 8:9)
• Monetisation of the gift of the spirit (Acts 14:25)
• Friendliness with the world (James 4:4)
• Self-glorification and self-praises, which include not giving honour to God, and many more.

Time Management in Leadership
Let’s take this primarily from Ecclesiastes 3:1 – “To every thing, there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.” Historically, the consideration for time started from the time of creation, in which God spelt out time and its effective management.

This started, when God broke down all the things that He wanted to create in accordance with the days, so as to achieve His vision. God summarised time into days, for without it, we would not even have been able to manage our years on earth. If God did not segregate into days and seasons, the whole world would just have been without direction, and our gathering here would just have been purposeless. In the creation, which was segregated into days, He (God) planned it as follows:
Day 1: Creation of heaven, earth, light (Genesis 1:1-5)
Day 2: Creation of firmament (Firmament, called heaven) – Genesis 1:6-8)
Day 3: Water under the heaven gathered in one place and dry land appeared. Dry land called earth and waters called seas. Grass created and herbs (Genesis 1:9-13).
Day 4: Light in the firmament of heaven to divide the day from the night, signs for seasons, days and years, two lights, greater light for heaven and smaller light for earth (Genesis 1:14-19).
Day 5: Water brought forth moving creatures of different kinds (Genesis 1:20-23).
Day 6: Earth brought forth living creature of its kinds; creation of man (Genesis 1:24-31)
Day 7: God rested and blessed the day.

Being Paper Presented By Baba Aladura, Elder (Dr.) Israel Akinadewo (Omoeri) Prelate, Prophet and Supreme Head, Motailatu Church Cherubim & Seraphim Worldwide/Secretary, Christian Association of Nigeria, Lagos State, at the Seminar organised by the Organisation of African Instituted Churches (OAIC), Alimosho Chapter of Lagos State On Monday, December 17, 2018.