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Making Room for Leadership: Power, Space and Influence
You don't just lead with your voice and your decisions. You lead with your body. The way you take up space in a room, the way you use or don't use your body in group settings, influences others. And all of us hold power to lead in our bodies. Yet, pastor and spiritual director MaryKate Morse contends, most of us are unaware of the ways we do or can use our bodies to influence others. Some of us cower in the corner, trying to hide. Others try to speak but are never heard. Still others are the focal point as soon as they walk in a room. What makes the difference? And how can we learn to lead in our own individual way with confidence? In Making Room for Leadership Morse Throughout, Christ's use of power serves as the guide for how to lead in ways that are life-giving and empowering to others. We all can lead. We all have some kind of power in us. Once we become aware of our influence, we can direct it toward good, toward building others up. Doing just that in these pages, Morse helps you learn to do the same in the places you live, move and have your being.
215 pages, Paperback
First published December 30, 2008
24 people are currently reading
116 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
November 2, 2019
Really thoughtful & inspiring take on incarnational influence. Loved this book and wish I’d read it earlier in my ministry.
April 7, 2018
A very helpful book for individuals and teams in developing competency in the exercise of presence and power. The author describes how we use our bodies to make space and create hospitality or oppress others in the exercise of our leadership. She demonstrates Jesus' use of 4 types of social power, gives advice for growing in team settings and challenges many abused notions of leadership styles.
April 14, 2014
Notes to self:
-- if sitting in a circle, sit across form the leader
-- theater style, sit in 2nd row
-- sit next to someone with a different opinion than your own
-- the more the leader needs to direct the meeting, take a prominent seat
-- use "I" language, not "we"
-- if sitting in a circle, sit across form the leader
-- theater style, sit in 2nd row
-- sit next to someone with a different opinion than your own
-- the more the leader needs to direct the meeting, take a prominent seat
-- use "I" language, not "we"
September 25, 2014
Minor things I disagreed with, but overall, I thought it was extremely helpful and well written.
August 3, 2025
The formatting of the book frustrated me a little. At first, she told me what she was going to say instead of actually saying it, then she continued to dance around the topic from many angles without the practical, tangible element that would have grounded me to fully understand what she was trying to say. For chapters and chapters all I really got out of the book was, "the use of power/body language is important," which I already knew.
There were some details about commonly seen patterns of interaction that were interesting, but I would have marked them in my head more meaningfully if they'd been interspersed with thoughts on how to respond. Instead, there were too many isolated ideas to learn all at once and by the time I finally got to the last three chapters when the author starts to give real action steps, I'd mostly forgotten anything interesting from earlier in the book. Likewise, the action steps were packed in like a whirlwind, one after another with little context for how to apply them, so I didn't learn them very meaningfully either.
The very last chapter was the most clear chapter in the entire book, because it was a story that included both what went wrong and what needed to change in the same story, and it brought in ideas and language from all over the book, making them concrete. I wish the whole book had been that clear!
I'm not saying don't read the book. There are nice group reflection questions after each chapter. Maybe if you're discussing each chapter with a group, you can help each other make sense of what she's saying; she's clearly an expert.
There's a lot here to learn, and I don't regret reading it even if I only learned <5% of what I could have. Maybe the fuzzy ideas in my back of my head will prove useful even if all that happens is that I know what to re-research when something goes wrong.
There were some details about commonly seen patterns of interaction that were interesting, but I would have marked them in my head more meaningfully if they'd been interspersed with thoughts on how to respond. Instead, there were too many isolated ideas to learn all at once and by the time I finally got to the last three chapters when the author starts to give real action steps, I'd mostly forgotten anything interesting from earlier in the book. Likewise, the action steps were packed in like a whirlwind, one after another with little context for how to apply them, so I didn't learn them very meaningfully either.
The very last chapter was the most clear chapter in the entire book, because it was a story that included both what went wrong and what needed to change in the same story, and it brought in ideas and language from all over the book, making them concrete. I wish the whole book had been that clear!
I'm not saying don't read the book. There are nice group reflection questions after each chapter. Maybe if you're discussing each chapter with a group, you can help each other make sense of what she's saying; she's clearly an expert.
There's a lot here to learn, and I don't regret reading it even if I only learned <5% of what I could have. Maybe the fuzzy ideas in my back of my head will prove useful even if all that happens is that I know what to re-research when something goes wrong.
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April 26, 2020A Must Read for Leaders
Morse provides new insight into how everyone should consider their space while working in God's kingdom. We can sometimes view power as something that has no positive place in the church, but Morse shows us that this isn't true by walking us through how Jesus used his power. Her discussion on the "it factor" is so thought provoking. If you want to make a difference in your service to God this is simply A MUST READ!
Morse provides new insight into how everyone should consider their space while working in God's kingdom. We can sometimes view power as something that has no positive place in the church, but Morse shows us that this isn't true by walking us through how Jesus used his power. Her discussion on the "it factor" is so thought provoking. If you want to make a difference in your service to God this is simply A MUST READ!
December 9, 2017
A great book on how Jesus used his power in leadership to influence and empower others towards the Kingdom, and how we can work together to do the same. A thoughtful and practical book that I believe is just as applicable for strong leaders as well as those in the church who feel abandoned and ignored.
September 23, 2024
Morse’s work is simple, insightful, and practical. A story is shared with each point, making it easy to place it into context. I enjoyed this book and felt like it helped me not only reflect on good leadership, but on areas where I can grow as a leader.
January 2, 2026
Morse presents an intriguing approach to leadership -- your body, your space, your presence, your voice. How you exercise your position or power influences others. Use it knowingly and wisely.
November 27, 2012
An incredibly thought-provoking book for Christian and especially Christian leaders to think about how the use of one's body affects one's leadership abilities. The overwhelming majority of the book focuses on Jesus' use of his physical body to empower the people around him as opposed to the religious leaders of his day. The book tells stories of people who abused influence as well as people who had no influence.
Toward the end of the book Morse addresses practical steps that a person can take to become more aware of their use of their body to influence people. I found her insights very helpful.
The two most important insights in this book (in my opinion) were:
1. Addressing one's ability to influence (i.e. power) as a matter of stewardship. Too often Christians have a negative view of power either because they have seen it abused or because they themselves want to grasp more of it. Yet power is a matter of stewardship, and, as Christians, we are ALL called to steward the influence that we have, use it well for kingdom purposes, and help others use it well.
2. Western Christians often treat influence / power with a consumeristic mentality in which we believe that influence in limitless. She writes, " If we view power as limitless, then we don't think too much about its stewardship. We have a consumer attitude toward power: We can use it when we need it. It belongs to us individually. We can cultivate it and manage it and distribute it for the outcomes we believe are necessary. However, the problem with this perspective is that a social setting does not afford limitless amounts of power to everyone present. In a bounded social space, if one person takes up lots of room with his or her presence, others cannot have the same measure of influence. Power as a resource has limits. The stewardship of power, then, is not consumption but hospitality toward the rest of the "family." The purpose of having power is not to enhance or secure one's personal influence but to enhance the influence and well-being of the group. If power is used to create a healthy, harmonious space, the group has more emotional and mental resources to fulfill the call of Christ."
I would certainly recommend this book for Christian leaders--especially (1) those in senior authority positions in a church or ministry; (2) those who want to influence others but feel powerless to do so; (3) those who are Christian leaders but not working for a church or ministry. The last group might be the most crucial because your leadership of others in the marketplace can have tremendous influence for Christ--depending on how you use the power that God has given you to steward.
Toward the end of the book Morse addresses practical steps that a person can take to become more aware of their use of their body to influence people. I found her insights very helpful.
The two most important insights in this book (in my opinion) were:
1. Addressing one's ability to influence (i.e. power) as a matter of stewardship. Too often Christians have a negative view of power either because they have seen it abused or because they themselves want to grasp more of it. Yet power is a matter of stewardship, and, as Christians, we are ALL called to steward the influence that we have, use it well for kingdom purposes, and help others use it well.
2. Western Christians often treat influence / power with a consumeristic mentality in which we believe that influence in limitless. She writes, " If we view power as limitless, then we don't think too much about its stewardship. We have a consumer attitude toward power: We can use it when we need it. It belongs to us individually. We can cultivate it and manage it and distribute it for the outcomes we believe are necessary. However, the problem with this perspective is that a social setting does not afford limitless amounts of power to everyone present. In a bounded social space, if one person takes up lots of room with his or her presence, others cannot have the same measure of influence. Power as a resource has limits. The stewardship of power, then, is not consumption but hospitality toward the rest of the "family." The purpose of having power is not to enhance or secure one's personal influence but to enhance the influence and well-being of the group. If power is used to create a healthy, harmonious space, the group has more emotional and mental resources to fulfill the call of Christ."
I would certainly recommend this book for Christian leaders--especially (1) those in senior authority positions in a church or ministry; (2) those who want to influence others but feel powerless to do so; (3) those who are Christian leaders but not working for a church or ministry. The last group might be the most crucial because your leadership of others in the marketplace can have tremendous influence for Christ--depending on how you use the power that God has given you to steward.
March 2, 2020
Fantastic read on the dynamics of leadership, power and physical bodies/space. A lot of these ideas aren't often discussed in churches, and now more than ever do we need to understand the power (or lack of power) we have, and make sure we are giving/receiving power to those who will steward it well, and to make sure that we ourselves are good stewards of power when it comes our way.
The biggest takeaway I got is that no matter who you are, you have some amount of power, and you are doing things to influence what power (no matter how big/small) you will continue to be given. I also see a huge importance in having multiple mentors, which is something I'm actively working on.
I come from a background where power was abused and am currently in a scenario where people aren't crazy about talking about power, which is completely understandable. Power can be icky! I am hoping (since a lot of the leadership at least knows about this book, if they haven't read it) to find some happy medium. ;)
Though Morse has written this book for a Christian audience, she's done a lot of work with power dynamics in businesses, and I think it'd be accessible to anyone interested in leadership and power dynamics.
The biggest takeaway I got is that no matter who you are, you have some amount of power, and you are doing things to influence what power (no matter how big/small) you will continue to be given. I also see a huge importance in having multiple mentors, which is something I'm actively working on.
I come from a background where power was abused and am currently in a scenario where people aren't crazy about talking about power, which is completely understandable. Power can be icky! I am hoping (since a lot of the leadership at least knows about this book, if they haven't read it) to find some happy medium. ;)
Though Morse has written this book for a Christian audience, she's done a lot of work with power dynamics in businesses, and I think it'd be accessible to anyone interested in leadership and power dynamics.
August 4, 2015
An excellent primer about the psychological/sociological elements that go into interactions among leaders and leadership groups. Morse's theology is reasoned and well-supported, and she applies it practically as well as passionately. It was a little dry at times, but usually I was interested in the topic and learning more about human interactions, especially in the context of my own roles in leadership. I am continually learning that leaders do not have to be bold, extroverted, demanding people; everyone has influence and could benefit from learning how to use it in the most effective, healthy ways possible. This book is a helpful starting point.
Disclaimer: I didn't read chapters 7 or 12 because they were never assigned and I simply didn't have time to read more than was required.
Disclaimer: I didn't read chapters 7 or 12 because they were never assigned and I simply didn't have time to read more than was required.
January 16, 2009
Excellent book on power and the forms that it takes in society... and in the church. She takes examples from Jesus' life and translates them into how we should practice using our power. She is also very practical: what does power look like? how do you use space -- both social and physical? It's so good.
August 12, 2015
I love this book. Getting ready to discuss it with a group of friends and interested in seeing if it blessed them as much as me. I was definitely convicted regarding how much "space" I take up in conversations and in life in general. Must. Learn. to. Share.
August 23, 2010
Solid primer on leadership from a bit of a different angle (that's refreshing). Good reminder of many core principles.
October 19, 2014
A helpful introduction/primer on the concept of power in interpersonal dynamics.
October 27, 2015
Some review for those who've studied speech/communication, but also some new, and named several of my own experiences with bad power dynamics.
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December 6, 2015An interesting view on things. Last chapter has the most helpful practical suggestions.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews