The word ‘perspective’ generally describes the way you see something. Because of individuals’ backgrounds and different upbringings, peoples’ perspectives most of the times usually differs. There is a popular saying that I love to quote when it comes to the issue that has to do with perspective. It says: “an amorphous mass of men cannot agree on the same issue.” The reason for this actually, is not far-fetched, it is simply as a result of differences in the way we see and perceive things.

 

For a leader, the place of keeping the right perspective always cannot be overemphasized. The reason for this is because the leader (in most cases, if not all cases) sees the bigger picture even though the followers may not see anything. If there are a group of people in the world who cannot afford not to maintain the right perspective at all times, that group would be made of leaders. There is a story in the Bible which I am going to be using in this podcast to talk about the place of maintaining the right perspective in leadership.

 

Numbers chapter 13, I am going to be reading a few verses there however, you can read the entire chapter again at your free time in order to fully understand what the story was all about. The Bible says:

 

“And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ² “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers, you shall send a man, every one a leader among them.”³ So Moses sent them from the Wilderness of Paran according to the command of the Lord, all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel.”

 

From this place we have read, we discover that Moses sent out LEADERS of the people. He didn’t just select some random uninformed folks from among the people, but those he believed were capable enough to be able to carry out the assignment. The reason why you are a leader today is because those who gave you the mandate of leadership believed that you are capable enough to lead them into their destination or their promised land. This you must never forget.

 

Let us jump to verse 17-20. The Bible says:

 

¹⁷ Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the South, and go up to the mountains, ¹⁸ and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; ¹⁹ whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds; ²⁰ whether the land is rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.

 

What we could see in those verses we just read were a set of INSTRUCTIONS that would guide them on their journey of leadership. One of the things you must never forget as a leader is that instructions help you to keep the right perspective in leadership. If you see a leader who is always about the wrong perspective all the time, then you have seen a leader who is not living his or her life by a set of instructions. One of the things that must guide your leadership as a leader are a set of instructions that you live by, that you lead by and that guides every of your decisions and actions. This also, you must never forget.

 

Let us jump to verse 26-29 now!

 

²⁶ Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. ²⁷ Then they told him, and said: “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. ²⁸ Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover, we saw the descendants of Anak there. ²⁹ The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”

 

The leaders are back from the assignment and here, they were given account of all that they saw in the land. The whole assignment took them forty days and so, I believe there was so much to talk about as feedback. Part of the report they came back with was this: “the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover, we saw the descendants of Anak there…” meaning that “even though the land was good, flowing with milk and honey, it is however a fortified stronghold that we may never be able to take over just like that.” Now, this is a perspective of a group of the leaders sent out to spy the land. Even though twelve of them went on the assignment, however, it is not all the twelve that believed in this particular report.

 

Let us jump to verse 30. The Bible says:

 

“Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”

 

Now, Caleb was one of the twelve who went on the expedition to spy the land. Even though ten believed that the land was impossible to possess based on what they saw, Caleb and Joshua believed that the land could be taken over. If you jump to chapter 14:6-9, see what they said:

 

“But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes; ⁷ and they spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying: “The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. ⁸ If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, ‘a land which flows with milk and honey.’ ⁹ Only do not rebel against the Lord, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the Lord is with us. Do not fear them.”

 

Joshua and Caleb had a completely different perspective from what the other ten leaders had said. See the perspective of the other ten leaders and let us compare it what Joshua and Caleb believed. Numbers 13:31-33, It says:

 

³¹ But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” ³² And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. ³³ There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”

 

So, from here, you would discover that what separates good leadership from bad leadership is simply the power of perspective. The whole world may see a particular problem as difficult and insurmountable, but having the right perspective as a leader can bring about solution to the same problem that the world thinks is impossible. Even if it appears that the situation is truly difficult as it has been described, by keeping the right perspective again can help you to overcome it. This is what maintaining the right perspective would do for you in leadership.

 

The Merits of Maintaining the Right Perspective in Leadership

 

There are many advantages of maintaining the right perspective in leadership but time would not permit me to share as many of them with us as possible. But I will just give us two that I believe are very cogent and important.

 

#1. Having the right perspective helps a leader to have a positive approach to leadership. Everyone benefits when the leader has the right perspective always concerning any situation or circumstance. An example of this is seen in verse 30 about what Caleb said. It says: “Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”

 

#2. It takes the right perspective to know that you have more support than you have enemies. But when you don’t have the right perspective, what you would see all the time are the problems that are confronting your leadership and not the possible way out. See what Joshua and Caleb said in Numbers 14:9: Only do not rebel against the Lord, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the Lord is with us. Do not fear them.”

 

So, what should you hold onto from this podcast today? Always remember that as a leader that you are, it is your prerogative to maintain the right perspective at all times. It does not matter if the situation and circumstance of your current reality in leadership does not require you to. Always remember that it is in the palace of maintaining the right perspective that you are able to see the solution and the way out. I believe you have learnt something on this week’s edition of Leaderview about maintaining the right perspective in leadership.

 

Please don’t forget to share this podcast with your friends, drop your comments in the comments section and let me know your thoughts on what we have shared with ourselves today. Till next time on Leaderview, I remain Abiola Obayomi; stay blessed and God bless you.

Thanks for the gift of your time, I am Obayomi Abiola Benjamin!

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