I have a heart for leaders. Especially church leaders. I’d love to help others learn from my mistakes. In fact, that’s a huge motivation for this article.

With that in mind, here are seven simple leadership tips:

1. Fight fewer battles where the win doesn’t matter as much. Okay, honestly, this is hard, because usually people are bringing the battle to you. The petty complaints. The constant grumbling. But it’s nothing new. Read the Old Testament. The key is to remember the overall vision. What’s the end goal? Go for that, and don’t be distracted by the things that won’t matter in eternity.

2. Don’t try to duplicate as much as you emulate. The definition of duplicate is "to be just like." With emulation, you’re trying to match the level of success in your individual context but not necessarily achieve it in the same way. You’ll stress less about your progress this way. Trust me.

3. Lead with leaders. The more you surround yourself with people capable of leading others, the greater the impact your leadership can have.

4. Your downtime is gold. Don’t neglect it. Discipline yourself to build sufficient rest into your schedule.

5. Think marathon, not sprint. You will have bad days. There will be critics. You will send a dumb email. You will say the wrong thing. You will plan a project that bombs. On those days, remind yourself of the bigger vision. Regroup. Rest. Recharge. Go at it again tomorrow.

6. Stop trying to control. You’ll seldom be able to anyway. When you do, people will either rebel or never live up to their potential. Control the vision, but almost everything else you can release to the people around you.

7. Be authentic. Not partially authentic. Be totally authentic. People will trust you more if you are who you claim to be … always. Don’t try to make yourself bigger than you are. People can easily spot the margin between the portrayed you and the real you. And the greater the margin, the less you’ll build trust in those you hope will follow.

For the original article, visit ronedmondson.com. Ron Edmondson is a pastor at Immanuel Baptist Church in Lexington, Ky. He is also a church leadership consultant who is passionate about planting churches, helping established churches thrive and assisting pastors and those in ministry think through leadership, strategy and life. Prior to ministry, Ron had more than 20 years of business experience, mostly as a self-employed business owner. Follow Ron on Facebook, Twitter, and his blog at ronedmondson.com.

Get Spirit-filled content delivered right to your inbox! Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

Dr. Steve Greene is now sharing stories, teachings, and conversations with guests who lead with love on Love Leads, a new podcast. Listen now.

Dr. Mark Rutland's

National Institute of Christian Leadership (NICL)

The NICL is one of the top leadership training programs in the U.S. taught by Dr. Mark Rutland. If you're the type of leader that likes to have total control over every aspect of your ministry and your future success, the NICL is right for you!

FREE NICL MINI-COURSE - Enroll for 3-hours of training from Dr. Rutland's full leadership course. Experience the NICL and decide if this training is right for you and your team.

The NICL Online is an option for any leader with time or schedule constraints. It's also for leaders who want to expedite their training to receive advanced standing for Master Level credit hours. Work through Dr. Rutland's full training from the comfort of your home or ministry at your pace. Learn more about NICL Online. Learn more about NICL Online.