My grandmother, Gertrude Cooke, used to say, “God chooses young people because they’re strong, but God chooses old people because they know the way.”
I always took that to mean we need each other. Young people may have the energy to run. Older people may know where the potholes are, which roads dead-end, and why everybody keeps getting lost at the same intersection. That sounds like a pretty good partnership.
The problem is, somewhere along the way, some of us forgot the partnership part.
Grandma is no longer here, but if she can hear me, I need her to tell Jesus that some folks are holding onto the baton like it came with their name engraved on it.
Before somebody gets offended, I’m not just talking about chronological age. You can be 35 with a 97-year-old mindset. This is about anybody who gets into leadership and starts acting like the church, business, school, family, organization, or community cannot survive without them.
Family, if the whole operation collapses because you took a vacation, you did not build a strong organization. You built a hostage situation.
Leadership should look more like a relay race. In a relay, there is a moment before the handoff when both runners are running together. They have to be in sync. They have to match speed. They have to communicate. The person receiving the baton has to be ready, and the person giving it up has to actually let it go. That exchange zone is where generations should be doing some of their best work together.
The older generation says, “Here’s what we learned. Here’s what worked. Here’s what almost killed us. Here’s who you need to call. This part ain’t in the handbook.”
The younger generation says, “Alright. Now let us add what we know. New technology. New ideas. New relationships. New ways to solve old problems.”
That is how you keep moving.
Instead, too many institutions wait until somebody is tired, sick, overwhelmed, disconnected from the people they serve, or practically being rolled into the meeting being told what items to vote on and before anybody asks, “So… who’s next?”
That is too late.
Succession planning should not begin when the leader can no longer lead. Mentorship should not be a retirement ceremony.
Churches should be developing the next pastor before the pulpit is empty. Businesses should be building leaders before the founder is burned out. Schools should be preparing young educators and administrators before the experience walks out the door. Families should be passing down wisdom before the only place to find it is in an obituary.
At some point, good leadership becomes less about being the person in charge and more about making sure the work can continue without you.
If you are Moses, where is Joshua? Where are you Joshua and Jolisa? If you are the coach, who are you developing?
If you have been carrying the ball for 30 years, brother, I appreciate the points, LeBron, truly…but pass me the rock.
You can still coach from the sideline. Encourage. Advise. Correct us when we are wrong. Help us avoid mistakes you already made.
We are not asking older generations to disappear. We are asking them to prepare us, run with us for a little while, and then trust us enough to let go. Because eventually every runner reaches the exchange zone.
And if we keep refusing to pass the baton, we should not be surprised when everybody else is running laps around us.
Kenny Robertson, an educator and comedian, is a native of Ridgeway.