60 Ideas in 60 Minutes: Carol Taylor, Former President, Evangel University

Lead with a Third-Class Ticket
On the wall of my office hangs a photograph and an authentic third-class stagecoach ticket. There’s a story behind the ticket, and every day it reminds me that Evangel University does not exist to serve me. Rather, I exist to serve Evangel. When I, and the executive team, remember that and do it well, our university flourishes.

Hire for Grit and Those Who Will Be “All In”
Intelligence and competence are not enough. Passion and perseverance matter more. Competence combined with a demonstrated record of grit, humility, and an “all-in” commitment is unstoppable.

Discover What Inspires You and Let It Inspire Others
Without inspiration and vision, I can lose my way and give up when tough times come. In his book, “Start With Why,” Simon Sinek reminds me that when Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his 17-minute “I Have a Dream” speech, he inspired a nation. The refrain of “I have a dream” – not “I have a plan” – invited others to embrace the dream as their own.

Find the Vision. Focus on What’s Important Now to Get There
While it all starts with a compelling vision, Thomas Edison tells me that “vision without execution is hallucination.” The bigger and more complex the vision, the more important it is for me to focus on the WIN – “what’s important now” – and then the next “what’s important now” and so on to keep moving toward the vision.

Confront Reality with Hope
Warren Bennis says that “organizations need candor the way the heart needs oxygen,” and Jim Collins tells me leaders of great organizations are “relentlessly disciplined at confronting the most brutal facts of their current reality.” I must have the courage to face reality but do so while sustaining hope. My challenge is to be unflinchingly honest and transparent while providing a vision for a way forward with a well-founded hope.

Honor the Past, but Don’t Live There
It’s vitally important to understand our organization’s history and how we got to where we are today. There are lots of quotes about not leading by staring in the rearview mirror. One of my favorites is by Warren Wiersbe: “You do not move ahead by constantly looking in the rearview mirror. The past is a rudder to guide you, not an anchor to drag you.” I have to risk and embrace change.

Pray, but Move Your Feet
My favorite African proverb is “when you pray, move your feet.” It’s not enough to wish or hope things will improve. To move forward toward aspirational goals requires meaningful action and persistent steps in the right direction. Additionally, an entire community has to be willing to move forward. My job is to try and inspire that movement in the right direction.

Keep Perspective
One of the challenges of a third-class ticket is the limited view, which can make it difficult to gain perspective or see the bigger picture. R.A. Heifetz and M. Linsky use the metaphor of a dance floor and refer to the iterative process of being on the dance floor, getting on the balcony to observe the dance, and then returning to the floor. I’ve found it helpful to schedule periodic retreat days for solitude and reflection or what the Jesuits call “contemplation in action.” Oftentimes, perspective, insights, and clarity follow.

Love the Community
Ultimately, leadership is an affair of the heart; love is the soul of leadership. It is a daily choice. It is costly. It motivates and inspires hard work, perseverance, sacrifice, and making the hard decisions necessary to sustain the daily efforts to build a thriving organization. When I open my heart to loving the Evangel community deeply, the journey forward takes on a more profound significance, motivation, and joy.

Enjoy the Journey
I choose to enjoy the adventure of leading Evangel through all the twists and turns and challenges. Every grand adventure has what J.R.R. Tolkien of “Lord of the Rings” calls eucatastrophe moments. He affixes the Greek “eu” meaning “good” to the word catastrophe and reminds me that the best stories experience that grand moment when the plot turns and shows hope in calamity. May we all find many such “eu” moments.