The other day while leading a collaboration meeting with our ministry leads, I mentioned that we needed to create a sandbox where people could experiment with new ideas without a fear of failing. The idea of a sandbox is familiar to those with a technology background -- it's when users are allowed to go in and put new software (or systems) through the paces. Users become comfortable with features, bugs are found, and the product gets better (hopefully!). The beauty of a sandbox is that you can test and experiment without the pressure of producing results. Users are typically forgiving of beta releases; not so much with final versions. What if your church had a sandbox budget that allowed ministry folks to test and experiment ideas -- gaining input, confidence, and creativity along the way. From my experience, the usual way a new ministry gets rolled out is in "final"…
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In his book about motivation, Dan Pink describes three conditions that are needed to create an intrinsic motivational environment: 1. Autonomy: Give people autonomy over what they’re doing and how they do it, including choosing their time, tasks, team and techniques. 2. Mastery: Give them an opportunity to master their work and make progress through deliberate practice. 3. Purpose: Make sure people have a sense of purpose in their work — preferably to something higher and beyond their job, salary and company. Daniel H. Pink: Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us
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As leaders, we often are very passionate about our vision for the future. Good leaders bleed vision. They leak vision -- leaving trails of vision wherever they go. This is both good and necessary. It also means we have to be intentional about hearing other perspectives. One of the best questions we can ask is this: "How does this look to you?"
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If you lead other people, one of your best tools for developing their leadership skills is a directed conversation. These are conversations that are designed to deal with an issue or teach a skill or principle. Here are two tips for making these effective conversations: Clarify your intent. Let them know what you're trying to accomplish. We often assume people know our intentions (because we know our intentions), but that's not always the case. Just ask anyone who does marriage counseling! Clarify what's at stake. Once you've shared with them your intentions, tell them why it's important. Why do they need to have this conversation with you? What difference will it make? Could it make? I've found that people respond much better when they have a sense of where you're coming from and why.
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The Top 10 Leadership Principles of Jesus: 1. Leadership is servanthood 2. Let your purpose prioritize your life. 3. You must live the life before you can lead others. 4. Walk slowly through the crowd. 5. Replenish yourself. 6. Great leaders call for great commitment. 7. Show security and strength when handling tough times. 8. Lead on a higher level. 9. Choose your key people. 10. There is no success without a successor. Source: John Maxwell
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