Comparison can destroy joy and leave even the most successful leaders feeling like failures. In a culture that promotes comparison everywhere you look, it can be hard for leaders to avoid this common trap. In this episode of the CMN Leadership Podcast, Chris Railey discusses three ways we compare ourselves to others negatively – and three positive comparisons we should make instead.

Reading consistently ranks as one of the top key disciplines of influential people. You may not feel you have the time for it, but reading even a few books a year can take your leadership to the next level. In this week's episode of the CMN Leadership Podcast, Chris Railey talks about three books he has read recently and recommends for teams and leaders.

Scott Hagan, CMN Lead Team member and president of North Central University, outlines the five things every new leader needs to know – the most basic elements of building a leader from scratch.

We all want our kids to grow up to love Jesus and be connected to a church community, but the reality is this doesn't always happen. The truth is, you can't make every decision for your kids, but you can set them up to know how to make good choices. In this week's episode of the CMN Leadership Podcast, Chris Railey talks about three things you can be doing now that will help make you a better parent and set up your kids to love Jesus in the future.

Serving in ministry can place a significant demand on your time and attention, and, left unchecked, it can lead to significant strain on your marriage. The good news is that you don't have to choose between a healthy marriage and a healthy ministry – you can have both! In this week's episode of the CMN Leadership Podcast, Chris Railey offers four key principles that will help your marriage flourish in ministry.

When you are at your busiest, taking time off can seem counterproductive. However, a recent article from Forbes Magazine identified five ways highly successful people spend their time off. In this week's episode of the CMN Leadership Podcast, Chris Railey discusses how these five things can benefit your time off and strengthen your ministry.

Customer service is a leading factor in successful organizations. In this week's episode of the CMN Leadership Podcast, Chris Railey discusses key customer service principles from the book, Excellence Wins, by Horst Schulze. Schulze helped co-found the Ritz Carlton hotel chain and leads with a lifetime of experience in the service industry.

One of the greatest barriers to effectiveness is poor communication – and one of the biggest contributors to poor communication is a failure to speak truthfully. In this episode of the CMN Leadership Podcast, Chris Railey discusses four ways to speak the truth in love.

One of the biggest issues for church planters and established leaders is scaling to the demands of growth. The bigger things get, the more likely you are to be stretched beyond your capacity – but that's not a bad thing. In this episode, Chris Railey looks at how to get more done as a leader by choosing to do less.

In a difficult leadership season, it can become easy to guard our circumstances and get a calloused heart. In this week's episode of the CMN Leadership Podcast, Chris Railey talks about the responsibility of guarding your heart as a leader.