5 Ways to Excel In Your Ministry and Leadership
God is more concerned with your progress than your perfect performance. The very nature of discipleship is progressive. God’s purpose is that you become more and more like His Son, Jesus, and He will use your entire life to work that process out. As ministry leaders, we are not exceptions. We are examples. If we aren’t growing and challenging ourselves to move to the next level, personally and professionally, we can’t lead a congregation or a team to do so.
Excellence, in and of itself, isn’t a core value at our church. We’d rather launch things imperfectly than wait for perfect conditions, which never really arrive. Having said that, excelling or growing and improving is another matter. While we don’t have to have reached perfection to serve God, we must be willing to grow. Some Pastors and leaders excel and grow, while others don’t. What makes the difference? The Bible mentions at least five factors that cause us to excel.... Read more
When Leaders Are Too Individualistic
One of the most helpful books that I’ve read on leading in an organization is Scott Eblin’s The Next Level: What Insiders Know About Executive Success. Eblin points out that “40 percent of new executives fail within eighteen months of being named to their positions.”
That’s an incredible statistic. Read more
7 Critical Questions to Assess Your Team's Energy
Maybe because I am getting older, I am more aware of my own energy level. In recent years, I have become more guarded in what I give my energy to. It has been easier for me to say “no” to certain things because the energy required is more than I am willing to give.
Are you aware of your own energy level? Of the energy level of your team? Are you wasting energy that isn’t moving your organization forward? Energy is one of the great resources of the team you lead. Do you regularly check the energy level of your team?
It might be time for you to pause, look, and take an energy check-up.... Read more
Does Your Team Respect, Trust,and Like Each Other (and You)?
The healthiest teams share mutual trust and respect and like each other. They trust each other, have respect for one another’s contribution to the whole, and enjoy each other. Because such a team is so healthy, those that the team is designed to serve benefit. If one or more of the three (trust, respect, like) is missing, the team and those the team is designed to serve suffer.
One of the reasons that healthy teams are so rare is that it is common for one or more of the three to be missing. We know this from personal experience, outside of the teams we serve on. There are likely some people you trust and respect but don’t really like that much (I know you love them; I am talking about liking them). In the same way, there are people you really like but don’t necessarily trust or respect fully. The people you are closest to, those you long to serve alongside, are likely those you trust, respect, and like.
While there is overlap, trust often relates to character, respect to competence, and like to chemistry. Read more
5 Reasons Why Ministry Leaders Should Pay Attention to Their Budgets
I actually like budgets. And I recognize that this makes me weird and in the minority of ministry leaders. For most, budgets are boring and painful. The number-filled documents sap life from the leader. It is something to be avoided.
But a budget is much more than numbers on paper. Budgets reveal a story. They provide unbiased, unfiltered insights into the ministry, and discloses the state of ministry leaders’ major concern areas. Budgets can help ministry leaders lead more effectively. Allow me to provide 5 reasons why ministry leaders should pay attention to their budgets.... Read more
3 Battles Every Leader Loses…Every Time
Most days you try to win battles as a leader, don’t you?
Sometimes you win. Sometimes you lose.
But there are several battles leaders lose…every time. Even if you desperately try to convince yourself you’re winning.
Fighting any of those?
Your might be. How would you know? Read more
How To Get Things Done: Organization & Systems
I am now deep into this series on getting things done, but before I go any farther, I would like to pause for a quick review. I began this series by explaining what productivity is and why it matters [Part 1]. Then I had you look at your life from a high-level perspective so you could divide it into areas of responsibility [Part 2]. Once you defined those areas of responsibility, you listed specific roles and projects within each of them, and then you worked on some brief mission statements that define what you mean to accomplish in each of them [Part 3]. In the most recent article I explained the four categories of tools required for top productivity, and told you the ones I use [Part 4].
Today I want to explain and demonstrate what your areas of responsibility have to do with your tools (and why you will be missing out if you skip the hard work of defining those areas). As it happens, they have everything to do with one another. Your tools will only be as helpful as your understanding of your areas of responsibility and the duties and roles that fall within each of them. In other words, your tools function best when you combine them with a thorough understanding of your responsibilities.
Over this article and the ones that follow, I will help you use your tools to develop a system that will help ensure you give appropriate attention to each of your areas of responsibility. That word system may sound intimidating, so let me begin by distilling that fear factor. Read more
8 Ways to Make your Communication Stick
Whether you are a seasoned leader, college student, author, professor, CEO, politician, or pastor, we all have to learn to communicate well. Whether we are speaking to thousands, speaking to our staff, giving a report, making a speech, teaching your kids soccer team, or addressing your company, it’s imperative as leaders we know how to communicate. To make our point. To deliver a message.
And communicating is much easier said than done. Actually it’s the saying part and the doing part that make it difficult.
So here are some tips that might make communicating a bit easier for you and a bit more enjoyable for those listening. To make it stick. Read more
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