Blog by the Unhurried Living Team

Leadership drift is not a sudden fall — it is a slow departure, quiet and compounding, that most leaders never see coming. In this conversation, Alan Fadling speaks with Peter Greer, president and CEO of Hope International and co-author of How Leaders Lose Their Way, about why even sincere, gifted leaders gradually lose their footing, and what it actually looks like to finish well. The answer is less dramatic than most of us hope, and far more daily than most of us practice.

Peter Greer opens with a statistic that is difficult to set aside: only one in three leaders in Scripture finished well. Not one in ten — one in three. And the research suggests the numbers are similar today. That means, statistically speaking, it is easier to drift than to stay the course. Not because of dramatic failure, but because of attitudes that form quietly upstream from any visible action.

What Are the Early Warning Signs of Leadership Drift?

Peter Greer identifies three warning signs that appeared again and again in his research, and their commonality is what makes them so sobering. The first is the belief that it could never happen to me. Leaders who have watched others fall sometimes carry a quiet exceptionalism — a sense that their track record or intentions protect them. Peter is clear: that belief is itself a danger signal.

The second warning sign is inattentiveness to small compromises. Not grand moral failures, but the slow accumulation of tiny justifications. Alan Fadling describes it as being one degree off course — barely noticeable at twenty yards, disorienting at twenty miles. Peter adds the image of a weed tree that was ignored for years until it took a neighborhood two full days to remove. What would have taken ten minutes three years earlier had become a crisis through simple inattention.

The third warning sign is isolation: no one in your life who really knows what is going on. Peter frames the question plainly — who in your life has full access, no topic off limits, and would respond with both love and a straight word when you need it? For many leaders, that person does not exist. And where accountability is absent, drift accelerates.

Peter Greer draws on the ancient words of Psalm 139, the prayer David prayed — "Search me, Lord, know me, show me where I am going off track" — as the posture that changes everything. The difference between drifting and returning is not talent or intention; it is whether you are willing to pray that prayer today and mean it.

Today, try this: write down the name of one person in your life who has full permission to tell you the truth. If you cannot think of one, let that be the first thing you address.

If you want to explore what it looks like to build that kind of grounded accountability into your life, Unhurried Living's community of spiritual directors is a place to begin — find it here.

Why Is Success More Spiritually Dangerous Than Failure?

One of the most disorienting observations in Peter Greer's research is this: some of the most destructive decisions leaders made came not in seasons of difficulty, but immediately after moments of great breakthrough. A ministry milestone. A church celebration. A mountaintop moment. And then, that same day, an unwise choice that quietly began to unravel something important.

The reason, Peter suggests, is entitlement. Success whispers "I deserve this" and "I don't need to be on guard." It lowers defenses at precisely the moment they are most needed. Alan reflects that some of his own most dangerous moments have come when everything seemed to be going well — when he had unconsciously begun to believe that visible fruitfulness meant inner health.

Peter pairs this with the story of King Solomon, a figure whose life Peter Greer returns to throughout How Leaders Lose Their Way. Solomon began with stunning humility. When God invited him to ask for anything, he asked for wisdom, acknowledging that he could not govern God's people by his own strength. The Book of Proverbs is full of Solomon's wisdom on protecting the heart, staying on course, trusting God rather than one's own understanding. And yet the scholar Tim Mackie of the Bible Project has observed that by the time Solomon dies, he more closely resembles Pharaoh than his father David. Solomon knew what to do. He simply did not do it.

The gap between what we know and what we live is, Peter argues, the most honest measure of spiritual danger. A growing gap is a warning. A shrinking one is grace.

One practice to begin today: when something goes well — a conversation, a project, a season — pause before celebrating and ask, "What do I have that was not given to me?" Let gratitude interrupt the drift toward entitlement.

Do you feel like the pace of your life has been crowding out the deeper work? The Unhurried Daily Email offers forty days of guided reflection designed to slow you down — get started here.

What Helps Leaders Stay Rooted and Finish Well?

The antidote to drift, Peter Greer says, is not a breakthrough moment or a new strategy. It is the mundane, hidden, daily practice of returning to Jesus. He points to John 15 — "Abide in me, and apart from me you can do nothing" — as the frame for everything else. Abiding is not a feeling; it is a direction. It is the repeated choice to remain connected to the source rather than working increasingly far from it.

Peter names three practices that consistently mark leaders who finish well, and he is the first to admit they are not new. The first is silence and stillness. He asks a pointed question: when was the last time you were physically absent from your phone or screen? Scripture holds to a rhythm of one in seven days for rest and quiet, and Peter believes the pace of modern life means we need it more, not less.

The second is fasting and confession. These are practices many leaders have quietly abandoned, and yet Peter found them to be quietly transformative. Confession in particular — naming something honestly before God and another person — brings a freedom that accumulated silence never does.

The third is real friendship. Not the task-oriented relationships that fill most leaders' calendars, and not the digital approximations of connection that pass for community. Peter means old-fashioned, unhurried presence with people who have nothing to do with your organization — people who walk with you simply because they love you.

He also points to servant leadership as a kind of daily soul check, drawing on the example of leaders he interviewed who quietly shined shoes or took out the trash in ways no one would ever see. The primary beneficiary of servant leadership, Peter observes, is not your organization. It is your own heart.

Begin today by doing one small act of service that no one will know about. Take out the trash. Refill the coffee. Help with something beneath your title. Let it be between you and God.

Leading from Hurry vs. Leading from Abiding

A Word for Leaders Who Feel the Weight of This

The Unhurried Living podcast exists for leaders who are doing good work and quietly wondering how long they can sustain it. If you find yourself drawn to these conversations, you are likely someone who cares deeply about the inner life of leadership, not just its output. There are others like you — pastors, nonprofit directors, coaches, and ministry leaders who are learning to move at a different pace and lead from a different center. Wherever you are in that process, there is a place for you in this ongoing conversation.

The Drift Is Real — and So Is the Return

Leadership drift is easier than finishing well; the research is honest about that. But the invitation of Jesus in John 15 is not complicated, even when it is hard — stay connected, abide, return when you have wandered. Peter Greer closes this conversation with the kind of word a trusted friend would offer: if you know you are drifting, praise God. That awareness is itself a gift. The grace of God is never exhausted, and the invitation to course-correct is always available today.

The Unhurried Living weekly email brings this kind of reflection to your inbox each week — sign up here to stay grounded in the rhythms that help leaders finish well.

If you sense it is time to go deeper, the PACE certificate program offers twenty-one months of formation in spiritual leadership and soul care — explore it here when you are ready.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What are the early warning signs of leadership drift? A: Peter Greer identifies three recurring patterns: the belief that spiritual failure could never happen to you, a growing inattentiveness to small compromises, and increasing isolation from people who know the full truth about your life. These warning signs are subtle by design; they form in attitudes long before they appear in actions.

Q: How do small compromises lead to big leadership failures? A: Small compromises do not fail you today — they compound over time. Alan Fadling uses the image of being one degree off course: imperceptible at twenty yards, disorienting at twenty miles. The leaders who drifted furthest rarely made one catastrophic decision; they made many small ones that went unaddressed.

Q: Why is success spiritually dangerous for leaders? A: Success can lower a leader's guard at precisely the moment vigilance is most needed. Peter Greer found that some of the most destructive decisions in his research were made immediately after significant ministry breakthroughs, when an attitude of entitlement had quietly replaced dependence on God.

Q: What spiritual practices help prevent leadership drift? A: Peter Greer points to silence and stillness, fasting and confession, and genuine friendship as the practices that consistently mark leaders who finish well. These are not new disciplines; they are ancient ones that the pace of modern ministry often crowds out.

Q: How do I know if I am drifting away from God as a leader? A: One honest measure is the gap between what you know to be true and how you are actually living. A widening gap between the wisdom you hold in your head and the choices you make each day is a reliable signal that course correction is needed. The prayer of Psalm 139 — asking God to search and know you — is a place to begin.