Five Reasons You’re Not Getting Leadership Development Results

by: Mac Lake

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You’re spending time, money and man power trying to develop leaders in your organization but your leadership pipeline remains dry and devoid of any new potential leaders. Why aren’t you getting the results you want? Here are five potential problems you should consider as you evaluate your efforts.

• You’re trying to develop leaders too fast. We want leadership development to be fast, easy and linear. But the truth is it’s slow, messy and customized to the learner. True development takes time. When we rush development we short cut the process and don’t get the results we’re looking for.
• You’re not using a reproducible model. If you survey your staff you’ll likely discover that each are using different processes to develop leaders. Left to their own they had to come up with something, so they did. And now there are varying levels of success across the organization. But no one has every stopped long enough to ask, “What are the best practices for developing leaders in our industry?” I’d recommend you communicate, coordinate, collaborate and develop a reproducible model you can use across all departments.
• You’re building your development on the shoulders of one person. We love it when there’s one person in our organization that’s a leadership development machine. It comes natural to them. They’re passionate about it and there’s a constant outpour of new leaders coming up behind them. This is a huge benefit to an organization until that person leaves. Building a culture of leadership development requires building an army of leadership developers in your organization.
• Your training isn’t adding value to your leaders. I hear this comment all the time, “We tried getting our leaders together for development but they stopped showing up over time.” Listen carefully…People will attend things that add value to their lives. Stop blaming them for not showing up and take a look at what you’re delivering. Was it boring? Was it irrelevant? Was it all lectures? Did it violate adult learning principles? Could they apply the principles in their leadership at home, work and ministry? Make it valuable and they won’t want to miss it.
• Your training is not accessible. Leaders today need options. Offering training at one time in one location is restrictive and inhibits people from participating. Leadership development will have broader impact when it’s delivered anytime, at any place and at any pace. This means less control and will require more leaders willing to invest themselves in reproducing new leaders. But with new tools such as Ministry Grid, a new online leadership development resource by Lifeway, accessibility to leadership development increases exponentially.

If you’re not getting the results you want then take time, evaluate and make adjustments. Allowing your leadership pipeline to remain dry is damaging the future impact of your mission.

Read more from Mac here.

Tags: Mac Lake, Staff, Volunteer leaders

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The Beautiful Mess of a Successful Leader’s Leaving

by: Tim Stevens

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My friend, Rob Wegner, announced to our church in September that he is leaving.

Nineteen years ago when I joined the staff at Granger, a new church meeting in a movie theater and averaging less than 300 each weekend, there were only five people on staff. And Rob was one of them.

For the entire time I’ve been at Granger, Rob has been a rock star. He’s been foundational to our movement and at the core of our vision. He’s lived a life of integrity every step along the way. His beautiful wife, Michelle, has been by his side leading and supporting through every mountaintop and valley experience. I will be forever grateful for being able to live and work in Rob’s shadow for nearly two decades.

I will talk more about Rob on another day. But today, let’s think about how a church should respond when a respected and honorable leader chooses to go somewhere else. And why is it that so many churches get this wrong?

Here is a typical cycle…

1. John, a leader at First Church, has served faithfully for a number of years.
2. He decides he wants to do something else, and might even say, “God is calling me to do something else.”
3. The pastors and leaders get their feelings hurt that he is leaving. It feels like, “John doesn’t want to play on our team any more. He took his ball and his bat, and now he’s going to play on a different team.” It feels very personal.
4. Emotions run very high. Words get said. Insinuations are made. People are reactive. Focus goes toward what John doesn’t like or why John isn’t staying.
5. Others in the church take sides. “Yeah, we agree with John!”
6. All the right words are said publicly, but in the hallways of the church, a cloud has developed over John’s departure. Some of John’s work over the years begins to be discounted. His motives are questioned.
7. John leaves feeling like he got kicked in the gut. He was trying to do the right thing but feels like he’s abandoning the people he loves and damaging relationships he cherishes.
8. The remaining leaders feel like they got kicked in the gut. Their associate for so many years is going off to do something else and is beginning to talk about what why he wants to do something different. It stings.
9. For months, every time John’s name is brought up, there is a tinge of pain and discomfort.
10. John leaves feeling like he not only walked away from a ministry where he gave a part of his life—but he also lost some dear friends.

Ugh. Why does it have to be this way?

The truth is, it doesn’t. But the alternative takes really hard work. I talked about this more at the Innovate Conference last month. Here are a few quick thoughts:

To the church…

• It’s okay to be sad.
• You have to sequence your communication carefully.
• You will be emotional, but rise above it when you are making decisions.
• Err on the side of grace. Even though you are sad they are leaving, do everything you can to bless them.
• Focus on the years they have served at the church—not the days or weeks after they said they are leaving.

To the individual leaving…

• Don’t convince yourself you are more righteous than the people you are leaving.
• Be humble and gracious.
• Say “thank you” in every conversation.
• Don’t try to fix the church in your closing conversations. If you couldn’t fix it as a staff member, you are definitely not going to be able to fix it on your way out.

There is so much more to be talked about, which I will do next month. But for now, just let me say that if you want to see someone who gets this and is leaving well—watch Rob Wegner. He has walked with care and love and a high regard for his family and church every step of the way.

These situations are going to be messy. A “good leave” is not defined by lack of mess. It is defined by how both sides respond to the mess and work through it with love and grace.

Have you watched some bad departures? Seen any good ones? I’d love to hear your story.

Read more from Tim here.

Tags: Staff, Staff Transitions, Tim Stevens

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Which Path Will You Choose When Dealing with the Future?

by: VRcurator

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According to Seth Godin, there are three paths to choose from when dealing with the future…

Accuracy, Resilience, and Denial

> Accuracy is the most rewarding way to deal with what will happen tomorrow–if you predict correctly. Accuracy rewards those that put all their bets on one possible outcome. The thing is, accuracy requires either a significant investment of time and money, or inside information (or luck, but that’s a different game entirely). Without a reason to believe that you’ve got better information than everyone else, it’s hard to see how you can be confident that this is a smart bet.

> Resilience is the best strategy for those realistic enough to admit that they can’t predict the future with more accuracy than others. Resilience isn’t a bet on one outcome, instead, it’s an investment across a range of possible outcomes, a way to ensure that regardless of what actually occurs (within the range), you’ll do fine.

> Denial, of course, is the strategy of assuming that the future will be just like today.

If you enter a winner-take-all competition against many other players, accuracy is generally the only rational play. Consider a cross-country ski race. If 500 people enter and all that matters is first place, then you and your support team have to make a very specific bet on what the weather will be like as you wax your skis. Picking a general purpose wax is the resilient strategy, but you’ll lose out to the team that’s lucky enough or smart enough to pick precisely the right wax for the eventual temperature.

Of course, and this is the huge of course, most competitions aren’t winner take all. Most endeavors we participate in offer long-term, generous entrants plenty of rewards. Playing the game is a form of winning the game. In those competitions, we win by being resilient.

Unfortunately, partly due to our fear of losing as well as our mythologizing of the winner-take-all, we often make two mistakes. The first is to overdo our focus on accuracy, on guessing right, on betting it all on the ‘right’ answer. We underappreciate just how powerful long-term resilience can be.

And the second mistake is to be so overwhelmed by all the choices and all the apparent risk that instead of choosing the powerful path of resilience, we choose not to play at all. Denial rarely pays.

Which path will you choose?

Tags: Decision making, Future, Seth Godin, Staff

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Seven Disciplines that Make Leadership Development Stick

by: Michael McKinney

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Leaders don’t always finish well or finish what they start. Leadership development sustainability isn’t easy. Given the fact that we all know leaders that haven’t finished well, it’s surprising how many of us have no plan in place to consciously and specifically improve our leadership abilities. Most of the time we wing it.

Leadership sustainability is about the commitment to change and growth that is consistent with shifting requirements, not just individually but for the organization as a whole. In Leadership Sustainability, authors Dave Ulrich and Norm Smallwood have defined seven leadership practices that instill sustainability. It begins with “recognition that what matters most is the impact of the leader’s actions on others—not just the actions themselves or the rationale behind them.” Yet that’s not something that we often feel we have time to consider. Our leadership is experienced in our actions and not our intentions.

In brief, the seven disciplines to incorporate into your leadership plan to help make your best intentions stick are:

Simplicity. Focus on what matters most. Tells stories with impact. Leadership sustainability requires that we find simplicity in the face of complexity and replace concept clutter with simple resolve. It entails prioritizing on the behaviors that matter most.

Time. Manage your calendar to reflect your priorities. Put desired behaviors into your calendar. Employees see what leaders do more than listen to what they say. Leadership sustainability shows up in who we spend time with, what issues we spend time on, where we spend our time, and how we spend our time. Recognize routines and modify as necessary.

Accountability. Take personal responsibility for doing what you say you will do and hold others accountable as well. “We see too many leadership points of view that are more rhetorical than resolve, more aspiration than action, and more hopeful than real. Leadership wish lists need to be replaced with leadership vows.” Be consistent with personal values and brand.

Resources. Leaders dedicate resources in order to support their desired changes with coaching and infrastructure. Use a coach. Get coaching and institutional support to become a better leader. “Leaders acting alone, even with great desire and good intentions, are unlikely to sustain their desired changes.”

Tracking. Move from general to specific measures. Measure what’s important and not what’s easy. Tie to consequences. Unless desired leadership behaviors and changes are operationalized, quantified, and tracked, they are nice to do, but not likely to be done.

Melioration. Leadership sustainability requires that leaders master the principles of learning: to experiment frequently, to reflect always, to become resilient, to face failure, to not be calloused to success, and to improvise continually.

Emotion. Know why you lead. Connect change with personal and organizational values. Recognize your impact on others. Celebrate success. “Some leaders work to hide their feelings and avoid becoming too personal with others. These leaders end up distancing and isolating themselves. Leaders who are emotionally vulnerable and transparent will be more likely to sustain change.”

The authors have provided videos, tools and assessments on their web site to help you to achieve leadership sustainability.

Read more from Michael here.

Tags: Leadership Development, Michael McKinney, Staff, Staff Development

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5 Questions to Help You Select Ministry Team Members

by: Thom Rainer

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Watching a leadership team come together can either be highly frustrating or highly energizing. Of course, all leaders prefer the latter. Leaders in companies, churches, and other organizations can witness their organization move to the next level if the right team comes together.

How then do you select those key persons for a leadership team? What questions do you need to direct at them? What questions do you need to ask yourself? Allow me to suggest five key questions.

1. Does the person have a strong character? Any doubt at this point should disqualify a person. His or her character is foundational to everything else. No matter how qualified a person may seem, if he or she has questionable character, problems will develop in short order.
2. Does the person have the competency and skills to do the work? This question is so obvious that it may seem silly to engage this issue. I, though, have admittedly brought people to different leadership teams without doing due diligence on their competency and skills for the job. Typically I like them personally and like their personalities. But hiring friends and fun people to do a job for which they are not qualified is a recipe for disaster.
3. Does the chemistry of the person match the team and the leadership? Many of you have undoubtedly served on teams with highly competent people. But sometimes that person acts like a self-serving jerk. Regardless of how competent and gifted he or she is, that type of toxic behavior can destroy a team.
4. Will the person align with the vision of the leadership? If you are on a leadership team and you disagree with the major direction of the leadership, get off the team. If you are a leader seeking to bring a person on the team, and you sense that he or she does not align with your vision, run from that choice immediately. A team with diverse visions is not a team at all.
5. Can you trust the person? Allow me to clarify the specific meaning of “trust” in this context. Ultimately the trust issue here is whether or not the person is looking after their own interests and preferences or the interests of the team, the leader, and the organization. If you have to wonder what the motivation is of a prospective team member, you really need to move on to the next choice.

What do you think of these five questions? What would you add? What would you change?

Read more from Thom here.

Tags: Leadership Engine, Staff, Staff Development, Thom Rainer

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Top Ten “Old School” Checklists for Church Leaders

by: Dan Reiland

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I still love to hold a book in my hands, mark it up and get it a little dog-eared. I like to hold a pen in my hand and write, that tactile experience helps my creative juices flow. And I’d rather talk to a person than book something online. That makes me a little “Old School” in some ways.

Sometimes the term Old School is used in a positive way, even endearing or desired. Like when something is considered vintage or classic. I own some really nice guitars, none are vintage but several are replicas of the old classics. That’s how strong the market is. Brand new guitars are made to look just like some of the cool guitars that came out in the 50’s and 60’s.

Sometimes the phrase Old School is used in a more derogatory way. As if to imply it is out of date, irrelevant or passé. For example, someone recently told me about a church that still ran a bus ministry commenting that it was “old school.” My reply was that if it’s working, I’m not so sure it’s old school, but maybe it is.

However you use the phrase, whether cool and endearing, or a little derogatory, I’m going to submit that there are a number of “Old School” leadership characteristics that are never out of date, irrelevant or lame. In fact, they are timeless and we’d all be wise to keep them fresh and alive in our lives.

Top Ten “Old School” Check-lists for leaders:

• Courteous

At no time is it appropriate for a leader to be rude. Misused power and authority is at least in poor taste and may at times be an indication of a leader’s character. Kindness is a fruit of the Spirit and a courteous nature is deeply interwoven within kindness. Courteous doesn’t mean lacking in strength or unable to make tough decisions. It reflects more an attitude of consideration for the disposition of other human beings. That is never Old School.

• Industrious 

Most of the leaders I know are hardworking people. They are committed to the mission and take their responsibilities seriously. They treat the meaning of their paycheck with honor rather than entitlement. I will admit, however, that I have met a growing number of pastors and ministry leaders who don’t possess a strong worth ethic. They actually work far less hours and still complain that they are overworked. I think the answer is in calling, passion and being in the right seat. I don’t think Old School means working hard and others don’t. I really believe it’s about finding your sweet spot – the place God calls you to be.

• Determined

I love a leader who is determined. I don’t mean a naïve leader who can’t see or face reality, but one who looks reality square in the eye and says “I won’t give up.” I think it takes that spirit to be successful in the local church. Kevin Myers, founding pastor of 12Stone® Church planted the church in 1987. For the first seven years the church struggled. He never gave up. Yes, he came close, we all do, but he stayed true and determined, and the results of that determination speak for themselves.

• Generous

Don’t you just love being around generous people? I don’t mean just about money, like your friends who will pick up the tab in a restaurant. I mean people who have a generous nature at their core, from their time, to kind words and encouragement, to investing in you and sometimes even financially. Those leaders truly breathe life into the people they lead.

• Courageous 

Risks are part of every leader’s life. If you won’t risk you can’t lead. The art is in knowing how far to risk. How far do you push a conversation? How much debt to you acquire? Do you hire the candidate or not? There is a risk to reward ratio for every decision. When you are pushing forward, it takes courage to make the tough call. The answer is not in a textbook. It’s all about prayer, experience and wise counsel. The lack of courage results in comfort and coasting and both are death to a healthy church.

• Disciplined

I either jog or ride a stationary bike every day. I’m not fast or impressive. My typical jog is three miles and I do about five miles on the bike. It’s slow and not pretty. But, I do it every day. Don’t underestimate the power of every day. Whether it’s prayer, exercise, or saying “I love you” to your spouse, “daily” is a life changer. This same idea is true for your leadership practices. Discipline matters.

• Loving

The foundation of New Testament spiritual leadership is love. Jesus made this abundantly clear. I John 4:8 &16 says God is love. I Corinthians 13:13 says that the greatest of these (faith, hope and love) is love. The Epistles are loaded with admonitions to love. It is interesting that this is the most widely known, and least written about characteristic of our leadership. It’s simple to understand but not easy to live. Personally I think this is the core of Christian leadership and if it’s “Old School” then we’d all be wise to get a little vintage in our leadership.

• Judicious 

There is a verse in the New Testament that has made me uncomfortable as a leader. I can’t deny its presence so I seek to understand it. It’s part of the parable of the shrewd manager. Luke 16:8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light.” We are called to be wise, prudent, thoughtful, and sometimes shrewd. Even when shrewd seems to have an edge to it. When it’s about the Kingdom, God calls us to be judicious.

• Humble

From Genesis chapter three to James chapter four, we know the lessons of pride. God is clear on the subject. Like cardiovascular disease is the number one killer in America today, pride is the number one killer of church leaders. Pride may not rob you of your physical life, but it can essentially rob you of God’s favor in your spiritual life. Humility is the exercise and good diet for the soul of a leader.

• Truthful 

From speaking the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15) to facing the truth of reality, leaders who are trustworthy are truthful. I find that most church leaders are honest people. Really, very few are liars. But many are prone to exaggerate. From stories in sermons to the attendance of the church, let’s all be careful out there to tell it the way it really is.

Perhaps you can think of some others, but for now, which one would you want to strengthen for the next thirty days? Maybe you could make one a month a leadership devotional bible study for yourself. I encourage you to jump in, take advantage of these thoughts, and even get a little Old School if needed.

This article is used by permission from Dr. Dan Reiland’s free monthly e-newsletter, “The Pastor’s Coach,” available at INJOY.com

Tags: Dan Reiland, Leadership Engine, Staff, Staff Development

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Less is More: Dealing with Sideways Energy in Your Ministry

by: Brad Lomenick

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I’ve posted about SIDEWAYS ENERGY before, but I wanted to bring this topic back up.

Are you busy but not intentional? Do you feel like you are just spinning your wheels and not getting any traction? Does there seem to be a lack of any kind of momentum in your organization? Could be you are dealing with way too much “sideways energy.” There is good energy and bad energy- and bad energy usually shows up as sideways… not because it is necessarily bad, but because it is usually a distraction.

We need to avoid sideways energy. It drives me crazy!

So what is Sideways Energy?

– Sideways energy is showing up to work but spending two hours talking about what you should have done an hour and a half ago.

– Sideways energy is gossiping about your boss or co-workers.

– Sideways energy is procrastinating.

– Sideways energy is the same meeting eight times in a row regarding the same idea that still has yet to be implemented.

– Sideways energy is having three sales to close and not calling them back because you are asked to help clean up the office for the Christmas party .

– Sideways energy is a staff handbook that collects dust but took hours to create.

– Sideways energy is an organizational system that takes 4 weeks to move a sale through the process because there is too much bureaucracy.

– Sideways energy is a meeting with no follow up, action plan, next steps or implementation that everyone knew would be a waste of time but no one was willing to say so.

– Sideways energy is cleaning your office or cube instead of finishing the project that was due yesterday.

– Paper shuffling is sideways energy.

– Dealing with the same problem multiple times is sideways energy.

– Too many cc’ed emails is sideways energy.

– Creating new policies for the company that everyone knows will never be implemented is sideways energy.

– Micromanaging is sideways energy. Lack of trust is sideways energy.

– Brown-nosing is sideways energy.

– Office politics is sideways energy.

And many times, the reason sideways energy becomes such a regular happening is because there is pressure coming from all sides within and around an organization- the very top, your boss, and those who you are leading. And the side seems to be the only place to find some relief and maybe focus on something, even if it is not the right thing to be focused on at the time. And growth can cause pressure that facilitates MORE sideways energy. Ultimately, this all leads to a lack of focus, which causes pressure because you choose not to deal with reality and instead want to focus on things that ultimately don’t matter.

How to combat sideways energy? 

• First, realize it exists and will paralyze an organization.
• Second, identity it and deal with it.
• Third, measure your productivity and create a system that will help you determine how much sideways energy you are creating, both for yourself as well as for your team.
• And finally, be clear on your goals and what the right kind of energy looks like for your team- if you model the right kind of energy, your team will follow in the same direction. Ultimately, use common sense.

Most of us can identify sideways energy in others, so being self aware and making sure we don’t allow ourselves to get caught up in sideways energy personally is really important.

Read more from Brad here.

Tags: Brad Lomenick, Leadership Engine, Less is More, Sideways energy, Staff

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Developing Leadership

by: Will Mancini

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Spiritual leaders are the carriers of God ’s DNA in the church, the shapers of a church ’s vision and core values. They are influencers of what the church embodies. The key to radical discipleship is the development of trainer – coaches that carry the DNA to the edges of the movement.

—   Michael Slaughter

The first of the five circles in the Integration Model is leadership. How will you use vision to recruit leaders, develop leaders, structure people, and divide your attention among the right leaders? Take leaders out of the equation and the visionary is a daydreamer.

The implications of these questions are so huge for leadership development, we want the Vision Room content to focus beyond the good leadership books, principles and “Maxwellisms” out there. All too often the topic of leadership development is disconnected from your church’s unique vision.

As a starting point with leadership development, I encourage pastors to consider three basic principles:

First, when it comes to hiring, get people who get the vision.

Are you doing everything you can up front to ensure the chemistry and culture fit with potential staff?

Second, let strategy determine structure.

Once you have the strategy articulated and pictured, you must go back and revise your organizational structure.  If you don’t strategy becomes impotent. Why? Because no leader wakes up with a specific responsibility (and accountability) connected to your church’s strategy component.

Third, lead leaders.

Every church I know has people who do ministry. Some of the better churches I know grow leaders. But the best churches actually lead leaders; that is, they have a leadership pipeline that is continually filling and developing people.  They have a leadership culture.

May God bless your leadership development efforts.

Tags: Integration Model, Leadership Engine, Staff, Structure, Will Mancini

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Why New Pastors Meet Resistance to Change, Part 2

by: Sam Rainer III

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In a previous post, I discussed why people in the church resist change. If you lead well, then resistance to change will eventually shift to an acceptance of the necessity of change. Even when people accept the idea of change, however, the actual implementation of the change effort can be painful. For example, most Americans agree something needs to change at the IRS. I doubt we’ll see any lawmaker defend the current state of the agency on cable news stations. Does this general acceptance mean enduring change will now happen quickly? I have my doubts.

New pastors often encounter a strong contingent within their congregations who accept the need for change, even the enduring cultural change I mentioned in the previous post. The size of this group depends upon the church, but they are inevitably there. As your tenure lengthens, this group should grow as more people begin to trust your discernment. Conversely, if this group is shrinking, then stop reading and start building better relationships. Leading change while your reputation diminishes is a suicide mission. Assuming you have done the legwork to get most people accepting the need for change, why might this change effort still meet resistance?

Most organizations are too complex for one person to lead a change effort. The median church size is approximately 75 people. Any organization of 75—church or not—is a complex system of relationships, opinions, maturity (or immaturity), and attitudes. Is it feasible that one person can lead a change effort at the IRS? No way. And it’s just as feasible that you alone are going to be the cause and effect at your church. Lone rangers are just that—they work alone. And you don’t wear a mask. Your church knows where you live. Enduring cultural change only happens if it is led (not just accepted) by a coalition of those with positional power, expertise, experience, and credibility. In short, if key members are not on board, then it’s unlikely your change effort lasts in the culture of the church.

Change efforts come with a cost. While we often refer to the cliché synergy of change efforts, the reality is many changes are zero-sum: You must sacrifice one area to gain in another area. For example, if you change a church to be more flexible, then it often leads to a decrease in efficiency. Flexibility adds options, and more options mean more decisions, which reduces efficiency. For instance, if you allow for multiple types of small groups in your church (i.e. open and closed), then you are more flexible. However, managing multiple types of small groups takes more time and is less efficient. Enduring cultural change occurs when a coalition of leaders agree on what is to be sacrificed in order to enact the change.

The pace of change is just as important as the change itself. Do you create a crisis to ramrod sudden change? If so, then you must be willing to intimidate and act forcibly. Do you allow for gradualism? Some changes can happen over time, but these changes may also slowly evolve in a way unintended. Let me give you a few examples to help answer these questions.

• Move quickly through change with doctrine and discipline issues. These issues have little middle ground. A person either believes in a specific doctrine or not. A person is either repentant or he is not. For example, you should not slowly remove a group leader if she outright denies a primary tenet of the church. Such change must happen quickly.
• Move through change in stages with structural, staff, and non-biblical issues. It’s unwise (if not sheer stupidity) to restructure the staff in your first month before you even have a grasp everyone’s job descriptions and callings. Learn the current system—and more importantly the people within the system—before radicalizing it.
• Move slowly through change if it’s your first church. You may be right about many things that need to change, but you are likely wrong about how to change them. If you don’t think you need leadership experience to change a church, then you need more experience. Don’t learn the hard way.

Lastly, change is not the most important role for church leaders. Don’t attempt change if you haven’t learned to love the people of the church and the community. If you haven’t had supper with a dozen members, you’re not ready to lead change. If you don’t know the name of the deacon chairman’s spouse, you’re not ready to lead change. If you can’t succinctly describe your group structure, you’re not ready to lead change. Pastors, you cannot lead a church forward unless you love your church where it is now, not where you hope it will be in the future. Change is important. But true change does not happen without love.

Read Part 1 here.

Read more from Sam here.

Tags: Change, Leadership Engine, Sam Rainer, Staff

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Why New Pastors Meet Resistance to Change, Part 1

by: Sam Rainer III

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“It’s my first week, what should I change here?” Perhaps new pastors don’t vocalize the question, but I know they think it. At least, I don’t believe I’m the only one. The default setting to change something is only natural for a good leader. Having a vision means being dissatisfied with the status quo.

“The search committee said they were bringing me on to make needed changes. Why is the church resisting the obvious?!” Why have so many pastors’ honeymoons ended after the first month? Resistance to change is one of the largest hurdles in leadership. I once had a handful of pencils launched my way when my tweaks to a potluck dinner were discovered. I learned not to mess with potlucks. Luckily the pencils weren’t that sharp, and they no longer contain lead. No blood, no foul.

Every church leader has been there. We’ve all met the resistance. Here are a few reasons why people resist change.

You are the change. New pastors often miss this fact. Even if you change nothing—and I mean absolutely nothing—in your first year as a pastor, then people will still experience a huge change: you. You are not new to yourself, but you certainly are new to the people of the church. Any change efforts you introduce in your first few months are only magnified by the fact that people are still trying to get to know who you are.

Technical change and cultural change. When people say they want change, they often mean technical changes. Technical problems require a specific expertise. For many, pastors are seen as the hired expert on hand to work through technical problems. People desiring technical changes ask these types of questions: Can you make sure my curriculum is in my room? Can you see that church is not so hot in the summer? Why haven’t I received the newsletter? These questions involve small technical changes, but often people desire large technical changes too, like a new building.

Technical changes are important. If you pastor a church of any size, then you must manage the organization of people. Few people, however, understand that lasting change is cultural, not technical. Cultural problems are not solved by just a technical expert, but rather these changes involve a general acceptance of everyone. If you are a leader, then you’re most likely gravitating towards the cultural changes you believe need to be made. That’s what leaders do. They challenge the status quo. But you must realize that very few people in your church default to cultural changes. There’s a reason why some things get imbedded in the culture of a church. Most people find them acceptable. Early in your leadership, win people over with easy technical changes before launching into major cultural changes.

Lack of trust with those who propose the change. Just because people like you and send nice cards in your first month doesn’t necessarily mean they fully trust you. Even when people respect the office of pastor, not knowing the person who fills that spot often leads to a cautious acceptance from the congregation. Respect and trust are two different mindsets. People may respect you while not fully trusting you. Earn their trust by honoring their respect before making big moves.

Beliefs that change is not necessary. It’s a key question: Do the people I’m leading even recognize the need for change? If the current way appears successful, then the evidence of a problem is hidden from the plain sight of the people. As the leader, you may have the advantage of inside organizational knowledge. A knowledge to which the average churchgoer may have zero exposure. Before you implement a change effort, you have to show people the hidden problem.

Beliefs that change is not feasible. Even if everyone agrees that change would be good, not everyone may agree that change is feasible. It’s easier to show people the problem than it is the feasibility of fixing the problem. Getting people to agree on a common problem is not enough. To enact lasting change, you must also show them how the solution is feasible.

Loss of position, status, and power. People will resist a change effort if it reshuffles the power alignment. Rare is the breed of person who willingly gives up position, status, or power without some resistance. This resistance makes sense. If someone challenged your position, then you would likely resist that effort as well. Though people are rightly repulsed by the idea of the church being a political organization, forming political allies is a necessity in every organization. Before you challenge the current power structure of a church, serve and befriend the power brokers. If you can win them over, then you will have their help in enacting long-term cultural changes.

Threats to values and ideals. People react emotionally when you challenge their values and ideals. When change is viewed as an assault on a current set of ideals and values, you can expect widespread resistance. These values may not be what’s formally published in the constitution and bylaws. The only way to uncover these values and ideals is to spend time with different people. Detached pastors will never know the unspoken—yet well understood—values of their congregants.

Change is likely to occur when the people within an organization believe the benefits of making the change outweigh the costs of making the change. This attitudinal shift doesn’t come easily or quickly!

Coming in Part 2: Why change in churches is difficult even after people stop resisting the change effort

Tags: Change, Leadership Engine, Sam Rainer, Staff

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