About this episode

Carey Nieuwhof interviews Gordon MacDonald about the 15 leadership and life lessons he learned by his 80th birthday.

In this inaugural episode of Required Listening, Carey talks to Gordon MacDonald. For his 80th birthday, Gordon MacDonald wrote down the 15 leadership and life lessons he's learned so far. He unpacks all of them here: how to stop cheating the people closest to you, how to survive doubt and obscurity, why you reinvent your interior life every decade, and how to ask the questions that open a heart. 🔗 Show Notes 🤖 AI and the Future Church - NEW BOOK! 🗣️ Preaching Cheat Sheet 🧠 The Art of Leadership Academy 🎥 Watch on YouTube Follow @careynieuwhof ❗️Connect with other podcast listeners about each episode of my podcast, including me. You'll get exclusive insights by asking questions, sharing insights, and learning how others are applying the content in real life. Join for free: https://careynieuwhof.com/shownotes AI AND THE FUTURE CHURCH I'm releasing a new book this September called AI and the Future Church, a pastoral playbook for leading your church through the biggest disruption of our lifetime. Pre-order it now at aifuture.church, on Amazon, or wherever you buy books. BRUSHFIRE Brushfire has been helping churches manage registrations, check-in, communication, and reporting…

People in this episode

Host: Carey Nieuwhof

Guest: Gordon MacDonald

Topics covered

• leadership lessons
• life lessons
• personal growth
• faith
• self-reflection

Keywords

• leadership
• life lessons
• Gordon MacDonald
• self-improvement
• faith

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Brushfire, Alpha

Books & works: AI and the Future Church

More episodes of The Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast: Lead Like Never Before

• CNLP 817 | Grieving Your Ministry Wounds: Father Ronald Rolheiser and John Mark Comer on Getting Past Bitterness and Giving Your Life and Death Away · July 14, 2026 · 1h 40m
• CNLP 816 | The Brutal Reality of Pastoring: John Ortberg on Leadership Pain, the Introvert's Ministry Dilemma, and Dealing With the Job You Didn't Sign Up For · July 9, 2026 · 1h 18m
• CNLP 815 | The Death of Secularism: Matt Chandler on Why Pastors Shouldn't Wear Capes and When the Church Is All Wood and No Fire · July 7, 2026 · 1h 1m
• CNLP 814 | Networking Without the Awkward: Michael Bungay Stanier on Better 1:1s and Building a Path No One Else Is Walking · June 30, 2026 · 1h 23m
• CNLP 813 | Church Trends Update: Your Congregation Is Being Discipled 49 Hours a Week (And Not By You), The Wrong Convo About AI, Women Leaving, and the Anti-Celebrity Pastor · June 25, 2026 · 35 min
• CNLP 812 | Creativity Is the Church's Lost Superpower: Al Gordon on How Stress and Algorithms Are Killing Your Imagination and How to Unlock Creativity in Your Team · June 23, 2026 · 1h 16m

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast: Lead Like Never Before podcast page.