The people talked about in this video are famous. You probably know every one of them. They were also failures at one time or another. Like you and I, they failed, but their failures didn’t define them, they just refined them. I hope I can one day be added to this list of famous failures! How about you?
Every once in a while a book will come along that ends up becoming a major game-changer for the local church. I think Larry Osborne’s book, Sticky Teams, is one such book. It is full of very practical advice that every ministry leader, and especially pastor, can and will find valuable. I’ve already read through the book twice and reference principles from it regularly in my church consultations.
I hope you already have your copy of Sticky Teams. If you don’t, get one. You won’t regret it. If you own it, but haven’t read it. Suggestion . . . read it this month.
I already referenced this book in the Thursday Quote: Sticky Teams and Young Eagles. Today, I’d like to point out another important principle from the book for you to mull over.
Guarding the Gate No Guts, No Unity
It’s hard to have a winning team with losing players, which is why guarding the gate is one of the most important tasks of leadership.
Think what happens when just one contentious or negative person joins the team. People start to walk on eggshells. Meetings become an exercise in conflict avoidance, and important initiatives are sidetracked or tabled in the hope that later discussion will somehow miraculously forge an agreement. Laughter and joy all but disappear. Off-the-record discussions and after-the-meeting meetings conspire to sabotage or change everything you thought you’d decided the night before. In short, it’s a real drag.
The same thing happens when an unproductive or toxic staff member comes aboard. Those who can’t cut it doom their area of ministry (and eventually the entire ministry) to mediocrity, while those who don’t fit in or refuse to play well with others (even if their area of ministry is a smashing success) quickly kill morale.
But worst of all, once a toxic board member or a troublesome staff member has a seat on the bus, it can take an act of God to get them off. Removal can be an incredibly difficult process.
Every week I send a bunch of ‘Great Links’ to some awesome pastors & leaders credentialed with Elim Fellowship. As an avid blog-reader, I’m always finding something new, interesting and helpful to share with them. I’d like you to have access to them too, so enjoy!
Blessings for South Sudan by Rick Tunis
God’s assignments are sometimes more exciting than a thrill ride at Disney! Last year money was raised through churches in eastern Pennsylvania allowing me to work with Helimission to bring food relief to the Borono Tribe in Southern Ethiopia. We flew 400 pounds of food to one small village that was inaccessible by roads. I discovered, through an interpreter, that they had never heard the name of Jesus before. About 15 made a decision to give their lives to Christ. Read More.
The Power of Incremental Change Over Time by Michael Hyatt
I have always been fascinated by the power of incremental change over time. Most people underestimate this. They think they have to take massive action to achieve anything significant. I am not opposed to massive action. I have used it myself to achieve certain results. But it causes most people give up before they ever start. They just don’t think they can make the investment. Read More.
Leave Room for People in Your Schedule by Tim Stevens
This 5 minute video was recorded for The NINES conference last year. It’s Tim’s thoughts on Time Management.
Heart-Shattered Lives Don’t For A Moment Escape God’s Notice by Barry Pearman
Jacob was a cheater, Peter had a temper, David had an affair, Noah got drunk, Jonah ran from God, Paul was a murderer, Gideon was insecure, Miriam was a gossiper, Martha was a worrier, Thomas was a doubter, Sara was impatient, Elijah was moody, Moses stuttered, Zaccheus was short, Abraham was old, and Lazarus was dead…. God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the CALLED! Read More.
The Manager’s Cheat Sheet: 101 Common-Sense Rules for Leaders by Inside CRM Editors
Management is all about connecting with the people on your team. So how do you effectively manage a team? With common knowledge, of course. These are a few back-to-basics rules that will help you develop management skills that really matter. Read More.
Michael Jordan & Craig Groeschel on Failure by Wayne Hedlund
Isn’t it interesting that so many of us have an intense fear of failure, and shy away from situations where we might fail, while others embrace failure, learn, and end up doing something great! Watch these two great clips on failure and be inspired to try, fail, learn, adjust and try again! Read More.
I definitely don’t have the stomach to be a boxing champion. I’m not talking about my amazing abs of steel (stop laughing and keep reading). I’m talking about the diet some athletes insist on for breakfast. RAW EGGS. Evidently, eggs lose a lot of their nutritional value when cooked. Setting aside the obvious health risks, I just don’t think I could do it. Putting a cold, slimy, egg down my throat would probably make me gag, perhaps throw up.
Unfortunately, many church leaders feel the same about a critical ingredient for a thriving church and growing leaders. Ken Blanchard once said, “Feedback is the breakfast of champions.” And like raw eggs, feedback can be tough to swallow. I would like to suggest that getting great feedback can be a big key.
Why Feedback is Tough to Swallow
This isn’t an exhaustive list, but here are a few reasons why we prefer our eggs cooked rather than raw.
Why We Need Feedback
After reading the above list, no wonder we don’t pursue feedback very often! Again, referring to Jim Collin’s book, gaining and properly responding to good feedback will pave the road for us to (chapter 4) “Confront the Brutal Facts – Yet Never Lose Faith”.
As church leaders, you understand more than most how important it is for Christians to understand the Truth of the Gospel. Paul talks quite a bit about making sure people aren’t hearing lies and distortions of the Truth. You are passionate about communicating the Truth to your congregations! You know that long-lasting change is very difficult to find without Truth being revealed first. When you equip them with what they need to know, you empower them to become who God has called them to be.
The same holds true for your church. Until you are ‘in the know’ about every aspect of your ministry, you can’t effectively plan to improve and become all God intends for you. Example: If I were your tennis coach and I noticed that you swing the tennis racket wrong, you will probably never play in the big leagues until I share that feedback (truth) – which then empowers you to make a change.
So why do we need feedback? Answer – to EMPOWER us to pursue meaningful, long lasting change.
In an upcoming post I will summarize my ideas on how to ask for, receive, and utilize feedback. Stay tuned!
Image from jsmith on istockphoto.com
Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
My sister shared this 2 minute video with me this morning, and I just had to spread the wealth. It’s from the Thrive Conference in 2011. Wow. Cool. Powerful!
I love to hear stories of people who know how to engage in creative thinking. Creative thinking is a very important ingredient in a thriving, growing and culturally relevant organization. One of the important questions creative thinkers will eventually ask is, “Why?”. (Note: check out my eBook, ‘Thinking for a Change‘ to learn more about the critical thinking process.)
This 2 minute clip by Pixar Studio’s vividly captures what the creative process can look like, and how it can lead to simple solutions and great ideas (even if the finding the solutions weren’t that simple).
“Ironically, most churches are started by young eagles. But soon after getting their nest built, nicely appointed, and fully furnished, they start to marginalize the next batch of young eagles, asking them to sit at the kids’ table and wait for their turn at middle-aged leadership.”
I don’t think Larry Osborne could have presented a major problem in the local church better . . . and it’s becoming a major roadblock in the ongoing growth and development of the church at large. Leaders just have a real hard time releasing young leaders into meaningful and influential leadership. In his book, Sticky Teams, Larry Osborne talks about this difficulty in the chapter entitled, “Making Room at the Top”. Here’s a little more from that chapter.
When a church grows old, gray, and culturally out of touch – far more interested in protecting the past than in creating the future – it starts to wonder, ‘What happened to all the young people that used to hang around here?’ That’s a sure sign that the young eagles have been shut out for a long time.
I’d be a liar if I said that protecting and promoting young eagles is a pain-free venture. It’s far easier in theory than in practice. I don’t like giving up my personal power, prestige, or preferences any more than the next guy does. It’s kind of a drag.
But young eagles are born to fly. It’s their nature. It’s how God made them. If they can’t fly high in our church, they’ll bolt and fly elsewhere. And sadly, if and when they do, they’ll take most of the life, vitality, and the future of the church with them.
So, honestly now, how are you and your church responding to young eagles? Are they written off, tolerated, or celebrated? Are they encourage to fly or asked to clip their wings?
I guarantee you, your answer will determine your church’s future.
When working with leadership teams to determine their ability and openness to fully utilize and keep young eagles, I ask three questions.
- Are young eagles empowered and platformed?
- Are young eagles in the loop or in the meeting?
- Who gets to ride shotgun?
The top ten posts for the month of June, 2012 include the following:
Pastoral ministry should be considered a High Risk occupation. Check out some of these startling statistics about pastors from H. B. London Jr.’s work, Pastors at Greater Risk (also quoted in the book mentioned below.)
“There will always be a tension between what I do and who I am because they run so closely together. A minister isn’t like a salesman who stops talking business after five o’clock or a dockworker who refuses to pick up a fallen box because he’s off the clock. He doesn’t live in the world of retiring politician, who contents himself with leaving unfinished items for his successor.
A shepherd-leader is more like a country doctor. Regardless of the time of day, when people are experiencing symptoms of appendicitis or when a baby needs birthing, he can’t say, “I’m off duty. I punched out at five.” In a sense, a pastor never punches out. Of course some may, but for those who see their profession as a calling, they simply cannot.
What I do is who I am, and who I am is inextricably connected to what I do. I am a shepherd. It wasn’t something I chose as a business profession. It was something I couldn’t escape!” Page 96
Watch these two great clips on failure and be inspired to try, fail, learn, adjust and try again!