Jul 22, 2026 · 36 min · 10 segments
Great leadership experiences do not happen by accident—they are shaped through careful preparation, strong teams, clear values, and a deep desire to serve the people in the room. In this episode…
Laurie HermanGuest
Whitney PutnamHost
Uh, and I think the concept of being a leader I learned when I first started working there.
Uh, I think I really grew up-- We had a real, uh, a leadership culture, a, a, a leadership development culture at Willow Creek.
And, uh, it was just a part of the ethos of working there, was getting better, looking at how you could grow, learning from other people.
So, um, I think, uh, it was actually a talk at the summit that talked about 10 different types of leaders, because like you just said when you opened up, they come in all shapes and sizes, and I wasn't that out-front visionary leader, so I didn't think I was a leader.
But then, uh, through that message, I heard, well, there's all different kinds of leaders, and I could see that, um, I fit into one of those categories even if I wasn't that out-front person.
Uh, when I first started, I was working on copyright and licensing, and actually was-- One of my very first projects, even though I was on the weekend services team, uh, was to work on the licensing of music for a conference in Australia.
So right from the day one-- right from day one, I was a part of, uh, what Willow was doing to share leadership and content all over the world.
People ask, like, "Who was your mentor? Who, who called that out in you?" And I was just so blessed to have a number of different people over the course of my life who said, "Hey, Laurie, I see more in you, and you could do this." So I moved on from that to be a producer, actually, of events, so, uh, and eventually weekend services.
So, uh Seeing the, the discernment that I had maybe, and, uh, the collaboration, um, which takes a lot to put together a service 'cause you're working with artists and technical types and, uh, writers and teachers.
So, uh, I think some of those skills of being able to work with different people, um, again, my leaders saw that in me and gave me the opportunity to do it, to try new things.
Uh, and I think the concept of being a leader I learned when I first started working there.
Uh, I think I really grew up-- We had a real, uh, a leadership culture, a, a, a leadership development culture at Willow Creek.
And, uh, it was just a part of the ethos of working there, was getting better, looking at how you could grow, learning from other people.
So, um, I think, uh, it was actually a talk at the summit that talked about 10 different types of leaders, because like you just said when you opened up, they come in all shapes and sizes, and I wasn't that out-front visionary leader, so I didn't think I was a leader.
But then, uh, through that message, I heard, well, there's all different kinds of leaders, and I could see that, um, I fit into one of those categories even if I wasn't that out-front person.
Uh, when I first started, I was working on copyright and licensing, and actually was-- One of my very first projects, even though I was on the weekend services team, uh, was to work on the licensing of music for a conference in Australia.
So right from the day one-- right from day one, I was a part of, uh, what Willow was doing to share leadership and content all over the world.
People ask, like, "Who was your mentor? Who, who called that out in you?" And I was just so blessed to have a number of different people over the course of my life who said, "Hey, Laurie, I see more in you, and you could do this." So I moved on from that to be a producer, actually, of events, so, uh, and eventually weekend services.
So, uh Seeing the, the discernment that I had maybe, and, uh, the collaboration, um, which takes a lot to put together a service 'cause you're working with artists and technical types and, uh, writers and teachers.
So, uh, I think some of those skills of being able to work with different people, um, again, my leaders saw that in me and gave me the opportunity to do it, to try new things.
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