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The Leadership Funk
Brian Kreeger • Mar 02, 2022
You don’t have to be a leader to fall into a funk. We all find ourselves there from time to time. And there really doesn’t have to be a reason someone falls into one. Many times it is just how a person wakes up in the morning. That happens to me sometimes. But it doesn’t take long until my human mind finds something to be in a funk about.
At that point a funk can become self-perpetuating as we continue throughout the day stumbling into items of distress that build the pile of self-doubt that continues the funk. The circle goes round and round as we solve one emotional stressor and find another one.
Look, I don’t claim to be a psychologist, a psychiatrist or anything of the like. But I am a guy who has been in thousands of funks and I’ve guided hundreds out of funks in their own lives. I’ve also experienced funks that lead to major downward spirals for me and those around me.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that funks can sometimes be legitimate indicators that we might be moving in the wrong direction in some area of our life. There may be an area that needs some proper attention and the involvement of others. What I am writing about here is the seemingly random occurrence of a funk.
(This blog focuses on starting a conversation centered on preventing the fall of nonprofit leaders. I write it from a Christian perspective, but all leaders will benefit. Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at
briankreeger.com as well as taking a look at previous blog articles. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the article "5 Early Indicators of a Christian Nonprofit Leadership Fall" along with the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My story) of my book,
The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders.)
A leadership funk is easier to fall into and can be harder to escape from. The hardest part of a leadership funk is recognizing it is only human to fall into them. And, you know, it is ok to be human.
Leadership funks may affect the entire team and throw the organization into a funk, if only temporarily.
Hey, leadership is hard. It takes a special kind of person to be a leader. Leaders must be willing to walk around every day with a target on their backs and live under the scrutiny that leadership brings.
The buck stops with you. All the pressure points of an organization find their solution, and maybe even their genesis, in your office. And you feel it.
Leaders question the genuineness of their relationships and question how deep and true their friendships really are. It’s very difficult for leaders to maintain their true identity and hold on to their unique voice. Many leaders fight the perfection bug. They find themselves to be their own worst enemy as they pick apart every decision they make, from every angle they can imagine. This can lead to burnout and jumbled up priorities.
Sometimes a leadership funk can come from lack of sleep, which can lead to the smallest challenge causing the leader to feel overwhelmed and driven into a funk.
Funks can last a couple hours, an entire day, or can go much longer. If a funk goes much more than a few days, well, it may be time to bring someone else into your situation to help you figure it out.
There have been times in my life that I have found the limit of my emotional capacity to be watching Seinfeld episodes for an afternoon. That was all I could handle. Was it something I walked around bragging about? No way! Then everyone would know that I have the capacity to be human, and not ultra-productive at times….which was not what I wanted to project.
Leadership funks can lead to leadership falls. So what can you do about them?
First of all, learn the indicators in your own life that you are in a funk. You know what they are for you. Most common are: a general gloominess, difficulty in finding solutions and only seeing problems, a lack of sharpness, a the-sky-is-falling attitude. A person in a funk may be uncharacteristically sharp tongued to those closest to them.
The recognition that you are in a funk may be the exact thing that will keep the funk from spreading.
Second of all, recognize it is ok to be human and that we all experience funks from time to time. One goal is to not let the funk self-perpetuate. This can happen if we think we are alone in the battle and our battle is unique. This is one reason I am writing this particular blog article. You are not alone.
This is even addressed in scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:13-No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it. (NRSV)
Third, make a choice that you are going to do what you need to do to pull out of the funk. Many times our hearts and emotions are led by our heads and the things we choose to do. This choice may be counter to what you are feeling at the time and can be the hardest step.
Fourth, go with what you know, not with what you assume. This is important, as applied to yourself and also to relationships. Too many times our perception of self is driven by those things we assume. This is so tempting, but must be overcome.
For me, as a Christian leader, I need to focus on what God says about me and how scripture reveals it (this forms what I know). As part of my Get-Out-Of-A-Funk plan I have identified scriptures that will help pull me out of a funk. Here’s an example:
Philippians 4:8-9—“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”
Sometimes it takes some real focus on these verses of scripture. But my heart, and attitude, changes little by little as I meditate on the passage as I read through it a couple times.
Being in a funk is ok, it’s human. You are not alone.
Too many times, feeling alone and isolated is what drives a leader to a fall. Being in a funk and not having a strategy to pull yourself out with the help of God can be the beginning of the downward spiral to a fall.
It’s time to consciously make a plan and write it down before the funk comes.
Be Courageous!
Be Proactive!
Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at
briankreeger.com. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the article "5 Early Indicators of a Christian Nonprofit Leadership Fall" along with the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My Story) of my book,
The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders.
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Executives -pastors or nonprofit executives in our context- are put on a pedestal. It’s not that the typical person necessarily believes they belong there or desires to put them there. But it is human nature that this happens. The general public often places much higher expectations on leaders than they do on themselves. Sometimes it is appropriate, and the leader has put themselves in that position. In some cases, it is simply scriptural. For instance, James 3 points out that those who teach will be judged more strictly, thereby heightening the expectations of those who lead and teach. But what about when we accept, and enact, those elevated expectations and forget the humanity of our leaders? Often a community heaps on a leader the expectation that they are to perform with the perfection of Jesus and not simply be a Jesus follower and disciple just like them, but with a unique calling and heightened responsibility. Too many times when a leader shows human imperfection, the respect we have for them is damaged. Leaders fall under strict judgment, and we forget they are no less fallible than us. The imperfection they have colors any positive experience we would have had with them otherwise. While most of us acknowledge this strict, hypocritical judgment and recognize it as not being how we want to treat our leaders, it is a difficult battle to fight in our own attitudes and minds. No matter who the leader is, they are not Jesus. But please allow me to reverently make some comparisons. (This blog focuses on starting a conversation centered on preventing the fall of nonprofit leaders. I write it from a Christian perspective, but all leaders will benefit. Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at briankreeger.com as well as taking a look at previous blog articles. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the article "5 Early Indicators of a Christian Nonprofit Leadership Fall" along with the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My story) of my book, The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders. )
You are the community, no matter what formal role you play in a particular organization, or if you play any role at all. My blog articles typically focus on the roles the leader and the board have in preventing the fall of Christian nonprofit leaders. But I contend that the community that exists around organizational leaders and boards has a role as well. In fact, a community’s role can many times be much bigger. My next few blog articles will focus on the role of the community in preventing the fall of Christian nonprofit leaders. (This blog focuses on starting a conversation centered on preventing the fall of nonprofit leaders. I write it from a Christian perspective, but all leaders will benefit. Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at briankreeger.com as well as taking a look at previous blog articles. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the article "5 Early Indicators of a Christian Nonprofit Leadership Fall" along with the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My story) of my book, The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders. )
