Leadership Resources
Leadership Resources
Must Reads
Whether you are a seasoned leader, or just beginning to leverage your skills, these books are excellent foundational reads. They are consistently recommended by leaders of all types.
- Blanchard, K., & Johnson, S. (1982). The One Minute Manager. New York, NY: William Morrow & Co, Inc.
- Carnegie, D. (1981). How to win friends and influence people. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
- Collins, J. (2001). Good to great: Why some companies make the leap and others don’t. New York, NY: Harper Collins. ISBN: 9780066620992
- Maxwell, J.C. (2007). The 21 irrefutable laws of leadership: Follow them and people will follow you. New York, NY: Harper Collins: ISBN: 9780785288374.
Leadership Styles
Do you know your leadership style? These books can support you in both identifying and developing your style over time.
- Blanchard, K., Hodges, P. (2008). Lead like Jesus: Lessons from the greatest leadership role model of all time. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.
- Gordon, J. (2007). The Energy bus: 10 Rules to fuel your life, work, and team with positive energy. New York, NY: Wiley. ISBN: 9780470100288.
- Sinek, S. (2017). Leaders eat last: Why some teams pull together and others don’t. New York, NY: Penguin Random House. ISBN: 9781591848011.
- Stabile, S. (2016). The road back to you: An enneagram journey to self discovery. Chicago, IL: IVP Books. ISBN: 9780830846191.
Influence
Everyone has a sphere of influence, regardless of position or title. As women, we have influence on our friends, families, colleagues, communities, and more.
- Duckworth, A. (2018). Grit: The Power of passion and perseverance. Scribner. ISBN: 978-1501111112.
- Horsager, D. (2012). The trust edge: How top leaders gain faster results, deeper relationships, and a stronger bottom line. New York, NY: Free Press.
- Scroggins, C. (2018). How to lead when you’re not in charge: Leveraging influence when you lack authority. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Faith Based Leadership
Leadership grounded in faith and centered on the Word of God has its roots in Biblical wisdom.
- All Things Prayer – “Holli’s online prayer study will take you on a journey to reimagine prayer, encounter God’s love in deeper ways, and learn to hear his voice with surprising clarity.”
- Brown, B. (2018). Dare to lead: Brave work. Tough conversations. Whole hearts. New York, NY: Random House. ISBN: 9780399592522.
- Hagan, S. (2016). The language of influence. CreateSpace Independent Publishing. ISBN: 9781523863143.
- Malcolm, K.T. (1982). Women at the crossroads: A path beyond feminism and traditionalism. Chicago, IL: Intervarsity Press. ISBN: 9780877843795.
- Morris, R. (2014). The blessed church: The simple secret to growing the church you love. Colorado Springs, CO: WaterBrook. ISBN 9780307729750
- Wilson, S. (2013). Ready, set, grow!: 3 Conversations that will bring lasting growth to your church. Springfield, MO: My Healthy Church. ISBN: 978-1624230769.
Developing Your Leadership Skills
As you find yourself moving into leadership positions, or, just want to develop yourself as a professional in whatever your calling is, these books can be a good resource to guide conversations and change.
- Patterson, K., Grenny, J., McMillan, R., & Switzler, A. (2002). Crucial conversations: Tools for talking when stakes are high. New York, NY: McGraw Hill. ISBN: 9780071401946.
- Hiatt, J.M. (2006). ADKAR: A model for change in business, government, and our community. Fort Collin, CO: Prosci Research. ISBN: 9781930885509.
- Gallup. (2021). CliftonStrengths. Gallup has rebranded its StrengthsFinder 2.0 as CliftonStrengths. The Strengths Assessment
- Warren, R. (2013). The purpose driven life: What on Earth am I here for? Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Past Speaker Resource Highlight!
Our Leadership Speaker at Thrive 2022 was Carey Nieuwhof. He is a best-selling leadership author, speaker, podcaster, former attorney, and church planter. Check out these resources:
Podcasts
- Craig Groeschel: Leadership Podcast. The Senior Pastor of Life.Church, Groeschel has been a speaker at the Sisterhood Leadership sessions for the annual Thrive Conference. Groeschel brings his experience plus a who’s who of leaders together to talk leadership.
- Catalyst. Catalyst Leader Podcast. Catalyst’s mission is to “connect & empower an emerging generation of leaders to be changemakers in the Church, marketplace, and culture.”
- John Maxwell’s Leadership Podcast. Maxwell targets fundamental leadership topics such as communication, leadership styles, and developing a growth mindset.
- Young Adults.Today Podcast. Focused on reaching young adults, this podcast is hosted by Josiah and Micah Kennealy. They lead the MN Young Adults as a part of the Minnesota District Council of the Assemblies of God.
Websites, Online Courses and Applications
- AG Coaching: A division of the Assemblies of God National Leadership & Resource Center, AG Coaching provides coaching and coach training for leaders with entry level training and specialized focus areas.
- Becky Meyerson – Flourishing Life: Sisterhood Leadership’s own Becky Meyerson offers coaching and Bible studies. Her website includes e-courses in mission development, working through transition, and intentional living.
- FranklinCovey: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is only one of many leadership resources available. One of our Sisterhood Leadership friends shared that “every human on the planet should take their Unconscious Bias course.”
- John Maxwell: This is a one stop shop for Maxwell’s entire catalog of books, audio resources, and more. Access the John Maxwell Academy – filled with his selection of online courses for leadership development. These course are an investment in yourself.
- MessengerX: Messenger X is an App available for both iPhone and Android presented by Messenger International, a ministry that is led by one of Bridging the Gap’s favorite guest speakers, Lisa Bevere. This app puts leadership and ministry resources at your fingertips, making it portable and easy to access wherever you are.
- Darla Makela Coaching: Darla is a MN-based life coach with a focus on teaching women how to be equipped for His purpose.
Past Session Resources
2025 BTG Leadership Conference Main Session ONE: Charlotte Gambill: “Ribology”
2025 BTG Leadership Conference Main Session TWO: Charlotte Gambill
2025 BTG Leadership Conference Workshops ONE: Lindsay Willis – “Having Healthy Friendships While Leading in Ministry”
2024 BTG Leadership Conference Main Session 1 Audio: Portia Allen – “Leading from Where You Didn’t Want to Be”
2024 BTG Leadership Conference Main Session 3 Audio: Portia Allen – “Leading from a Place of Humility”
2022 Main Session 1 Audio: Peggy Vagle – “Intentional Abiding”
2022 Workshops 1 Audio: Faith Fitzgerald – “Reinventing Your Career in 2022 – Being Proactive in Finding Your ‘Next'”
2022 Workshops 2 Audio: Becca Mades – “The Worrisome World: The Gut, The Brain, and Everything in Between”
2022 Main Session 2 Audio: Portia Allen – “Submitted Strength”
2022 Main Session 3 Audio: Peggy Vagle – “Being Intentional in Your Middle”
Faith Fitzgerald Workshop Handout: Reinventing your Career
Heidi Stehr Workshop Handout: Compassionate Conversations
Nikki Karnowski Workshop Handout: Leading Well Begins with ME!
Liz Martin Workshop Handout: Space, Pace, & Grace
Dolores Smith Workshop Handout: Influential Conflict Management
Coaching vs. Mentoring
Leaders are often in a position to provide both coaching and mentorship. Both are important – just in different ways. Check out this blog at Startup Talky. This website is primarily geared towards business start-ups, but is relevant across both the marketplace and ministry spaces.