Greetings, everyone!
One of the greatest abuses of power that I have seen is when people who are given the privilege to be in an authority or leadership position, they tend to misuse it by mistreating others and shutting them down whenever they want to express themselves or air their opinions. This can happen in schools, at home, in church, in politics, and in other organizations where people are.
As a teacher, I am always open to receiving correction from my students, especially when I am writing on the board, and if I mistakenly omit a word, they will call my attention to it, and I will correct it and appreciate them for being good and observant. And at times when teaching, some of them will express themselves through contributing to what I have taught, sharing their own ideas, and more. I can't shut them down because I am a teacher, who knows it all. I don't do that. As a teacher, I am a leader. This is a platform given to me to lead these children and to impart knowledge to them to become great leaders tomorrow and to help them become better versions of themselves, that they see and admire.
At home, as parents, don't shut your children down; give them the floor to express themselves or air their opinions. This will give them the boldness to stand their ground outside the home and express themselves in public. Some parents are not open with their own children, always wanting to be authoritative all the time, beating, scolding. Children are children; they will always misbehave, so you give them space, and bring yourself down to the level your children can relate to and communicate with. This will give them ground to share their burden, whether good or bad, with you.
In the church, some pastors fail to understand their place, function, and office. They want to be on top always, they want to be seen and heard, and they want to go everywhere. Another pastor would want to oppress another because of the office he occupies. The office of Apostle, Pastor, Teacher, Prophet, Evangelist is to work together to edify the members, or teach them the work of ministry, not to gossip, plot evil against another, but to use the authority and the office given to transform their lives for the better.
Leadership or authority is not influencing people in the wrong way but helping people see the future and carry. If you are in a leadership position allow your fellows to express themselves and contribute to the growth of any organisation.
This is my response to the Hivelearners featured contest week 239 episode 1