If Bishop T.D. Jakes stopped by your office and asked “How’s Life?” what would you say? Would the answer be you’re in a rut, depressed, or too complacent regarding leadership? Regardless of the type of storm, you need to be surrounded by visionaries, energy, and people who will be your 12 apostles. Jesus poured more of Himself into the apostles than the 5,000 people He ministered to. Your inner circle is very important to success and so are your instincts, boldness, and living life on the edge. With tips from the Executive Leadership Conference hosted by Regent University, let’s see what the charismatic visionary recommends for success.

Instincts vs. Intelligence: Who are your 12? What people have you surrounded with that possess your drive, your dream, and your passion? People can have all the spreadsheets, statistics, and intelligence, but have no instinct. Instinct is that gut feeling that can point you in the right direction.

Resumes: A resume doesn’t really tell if a team really works. A person coming into a new environment will be predicated on their instincts and being able to read the unreadable to understand how things really work. Who really moves things along? Who makes things happen? To be able to determine the smoke from the mirrors, it’s not written in anybody’s book.

Reach higher: Don’t stop dreaming and believe the impossible. Touch the intangible, keep going for the amazing. Have you reached your best? If so, maybe you’ve become complacent over the years and stopped dreaming by losing your passion? “[If] you have that kind of vision that gets you up out of the bed every morning and gets you motivated and fired up, you see things the CFO hates. You envision things that are out of the box that are amazing because if you don’t envision things that are amazing then your staff may be worthy of better leadership than you.” You need a leader that challenges Jakes said. And motivate the team to leap over buildings, put on a cape and put an “S” on your shirt. “I call the top people on my staff ninjas.”

Keeping things quiet: Some people’s success is to keep everything quiet, not “rocking the boat” and stabilizing the environment. Some people will protect that environment at all costs. If you want to be a game changer, be a giant killer. “Throw that “S” on the desk and ask ‘What else?’”

Dream killers: Who are the gang leaders in your organization? If you’re stuck in the office, these casualties are not found in reports you receive. This can be gossipers, trouble makers, and a staff that feels undervalued. “..you can feel something slowing you down. It’s feeling you get when you’re driving a stick shift and you got it stuck in the wrong gear. You know instinctively that you should be further than you are right now. You can’t change the game if you’re not willing to critique the team.”