By Carey Nieuwhof: So many leaders have lost confidence in themselves over the last year or two.

Sound familiar?

It’s deeply understandable.

Things are changing so quickly and remain so unpredictable that almost everything that used to be effective isn’t, and just when you think you might get it figured out, things change again.

Add to that the fact that the next decade isn’t looking very predictable either.

So how bad is it?

According to data David Kinnaman shared on the Church Pulse Weekly podcast, not only are leaders discouraged, but 29% of pastors have given serious consideration to quitting full-time ministry in the last year.

Not just changing churches, but packing it in and doing something entirely different.

That’s a lot of pastors thinking about throwing in the towel.

There were a few times in my ministry where I was ready to give up, and looking back, I’m so glad I didn’t.

Eventually, I did transition out of full-time vocational ministry, not because I quit, but because we put together a well-thought-through succession plan.

Quitting when you feel defeated sets you and your church up for defeat.

So how do you keep going when you’ve lost confidence in yourself? Here are three things that have helped me.

29% of pastors have given serious consideration to quitting full-time ministry in the last year. @davidkinnaman @barnagroup

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1. Look To the Confidence of Others When You’ve Lost Confidence in Yourself

I’ve thought about quitting more than once.

I remember one particular board meeting over a decade ago where I started the meeting by offering my resignation. I didn’t think I could do it anymore and felt like I had come to the end of my ability to lead.

Our church was stuck underneath a big growth barrier. We’d had a significant staff member leave. I was tired. I was frustrated, mostly with myself.

So I went into the board meeting and told the elders I thought I was done…they needed a better leader.

I’ll never forget what they said.

“We have confidence in you. We believe you have it in you. You’re going to get through this. You have our full confidence.”

At that moment, I had to look to their confidence in me to make up for my own lack of confidence in myself.

The point? Somebody still believes in you. Find them, and let them tell you what you’re good at instead of dwelling all day on your failings.

Since that moment, I’ve kept a handful of people close to me who get to speak truthful feedback into my life. Not just cheerleaders who say what they think I want to hear. But people who see things accurately who can call me out when I need calling out, but who can also build me up when I need building up.

Find those people and hang on to them.

Every leader needs someone who believes in them when they’ve stopped believing in themselves. That’s what community is for.

Every leader needs someone who believes in them when they’ve stopped believing in themselves.

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2. Know that the Greener Grass You Imagine is Spray Painted

You know that green grass you see when you think about what you’ll do next? It’s spray painted.

The moment you get into that perfect job/career you’ll discover that it’s got a whole host of problems you didn’t anticipate.

And you’ll soon realize you brought another problem with you—you brought yourself into the new situation.

I did switch assignments a few years ago to build into leaders full-time (see point 3 as to good conditions for that). But guess what? I soon realized all the lids I was facing at the church came with me into my new venture.

If you’re the leader, you’re the lid.

If you’re the leader, you’re the lid.

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You bring you with you everywhere you go. And when you don’t resolve the issues that made this difficult, you just import them into the next season of your life.

You bring you everywhere you go and into everything you lead. And the biggest leadership challenge I have in my life is, well, me.

Solving your problems where you are rather than in the future does one or two things.

First, solving your problems now might be the very thing you need to be able to lead well through the next season where you are.

Second, even if your season is coming to a close, you’ll be in a much better position to in the future if you deal with your issues today.

Just know this: Leaders who run from their problems always find themselves with bigger problems.

Leaders who run from their problems always find themselves with bigger problems.

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3. Leave on a Good Day In a Better Season

It’s not that you can never leave…it’s just if you step back, do it after you’ve prayed, consulted with the wisest people you know, considered all the options carefully, prayerfully considered it some more, and developed a well-thought-through plan for yourself and your church.

That’s what I did a few years ago when I chose to step out of the lead pastor role of the church I founded to hand things off to the next generation.

The result? I left the church when it was the largest and healthiest it had ever been. My successor built on that to make it even stronger.

Obviously, we’re not in normal conditions right now. But even when things aren’t at their peak, never quit on a bad day.

Leave on a good day, or better yet, in a good season when you’ve had plenty of time to set the church up for a stronger future.

Finally, don’t make the decision in isolation, or, if you’re married, only with your spouse.

Find some wise people who love you, love the church, and want the best for both. Pray with them. Submit to their wisdom and make the decision when you’ve got a clear enough sense that you’re not doing anything rash, impulsive, foolish, or damaging to the people involved.

I’ve had to tell myself over and over again, never quit on a bad day.

And lately, leaders, there have been a lot of bad days.

The sun will rise again…hang in there.

Never quit on a bad day. And lately, there have been a lot of bad days.

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What Keeps You Going? 

I hope this helps keep you encouraged or at least avoid any decisions you might regret later. I’m praying and cheering for you.

Before we jump to the comments, let me also say that I realize there was a widely circulated stat in the fall of 2020 that said 70% of pastors were thinking of quitting.

After some meaningful research and checking with original research sources, it seems that was an urban legend. There’s no actual data to back that up and the quote sources have denied ever issuing that number. Such is the internet.

But still, 29% (a verified number) is a seriously high number.

What keeps you encouraged when you feel like giving up? Scroll down and leave a comment!

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DO YOU EVER FEEL LIKE YOUR TIME, ENERGY AND PRIORITIES ARE WORKING AGAINST YOU?

So many leaders find themselves in a dangerous place: their ambition is bigger than the time they have to achieve it. Where it feels like there just aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done. Sound familiar?

Download the free High Impact Leader Fixed Calendar Template

I’ve been there before too. And for me it ended in burn out. Today, I’ve still got big ambitions for the future, but I’ve found a much better way of investing my time and energy.

A big part of that was structuring my calendar in a way that worked for me. The High Impact Leader Fixed Calendar Template will give you a structure that works for you.

You can download the calendar template and customize it to fit your exact needs and tasks.

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DO YOU EVER FEEL LIKE YOUR TIME, ENERGY AND PRIORITIES ARE WORKING AGAINST YOU?

So many leaders find themselves in a dangerous place: their ambition is bigger than the time they have to achieve it. Where it feels like there just aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done. Sound familiar?

Download the free High Impact Leader Fixed Calendar Template

I’ve been there before too. And for me it ended in burn out. Today, I’ve still got big ambitions for the future, but I’ve found a much better way of investing my time and energy.

A big part of that was structuring my calendar in a way that worked for me. The High Impact Leader Fixed Calendar Template will give you a structure that works for you.

You can download the calendar template and customize it to fit your exact needs and tasks.

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The post 29% of Pastors Want to Quit: How to Keep Going When You’ve Lost Confidence In Yourself. appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: 29% of Pastors Want to Quit: How to Keep Going When You’ve Lost Confidence In Yourself.

The post 29% of Pastors Want to Quit: How to Keep Going When You’ve Lost Confidence In Yourself. appeared first on Passion for Planting.

By Shawn Lovejoy: Focus is powerful.

Leaders who are thriving during this current season of uncertainty keep the best of their energy and attention leveraged in the same direction.

There are few limits to what relentlessly focused leaders and teams can accomplish.

The opposite is also true…

Distracted leaders and teams, cause problems by taking their eyes away from where they should be focused, moving in a multitude of directions and accomplishing little.

During a season where it’s easy to lose focus,  this podcast episode can…

Help you to win.

Help you to emerge from this season stronger.

Help you lead with higher levels of focus than you may have practiced in the past.

In this episode Shawn Lovejoy exposes the warning signs of a distracted leader and provides you the tools to live and lead with “relentless focus!”

Enjoy episode #043 of the CourageToLead Podcast.

Interested in learning more? After listening to this episode, schedule a Discovery Call: 

Schedule a Discovery Call

Source: Signs of a Distracted Leader

The post Signs of a Distracted Leader appeared first on Passion for Planting.

Source: When You’re Completely Spent and Have Nothing to Show For it All

The post When You’re Completely Spent and Have Nothing to Show For it All appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Shawn Lovejoy: Everyone is busy.

The temptation is to think that just because we’re very busy, that we’re being effective, or productive.

Let me be clear: Busy or not, if you are not being productive…you are wasting your time!

I am more convinced than ever before, that we can be VERY busy and yet be VERY ineffective.

How can we be BOTH effective, and busy? The answer is incredible simple to understand and incredibly difficult to do.

Being both busy and effective requires:

Doing the right things: WHAT is important.

At the right times: WHEN it is important.

For the right reasons: WHY it is important.

Example: Returning phone calls is important to me. However, spending time with God and nurturing my own vitality are the MOST IMPORTANT things for me. So…I don’t take or return many calls early in the morning, because that is when my mind is the freshest and I want to give my best mental energy to God. I rob from the urgent to focus on the most important.

If I answered every phone call at everyone else’s whim in the mornings, it would be impossible to devote large chunks of uninterrupted time when my mind is the freshest to this task.

So I have scheduled time slots each day when I return most phone calls. If I can’t connect with that person then, I try at the end of the day.

This approach to managing my day allows me to be both busy and effective. What about you? What are ways you think you could better be both busy and effective?

What are YOUR right things? Right times? Right reasons?

Source: How To Stop Wasting Your Time

The post How To Stop Wasting Your Time appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Healthy Growing Churches: Imagine for a moment it is a few days after Labor Day later this year. Your laptop is fired up while some really good music plays in the background. You are sipping a warm cup of great coffee in the middle of a very busy week. You are filled with excitement as you review the plans for the fall ministry season at your church. The energy level of you and your team is peaking. You are full of anticipation for all that God can do as the 2019 ministry year races to a close.

Getting to a place like this a few months from now will not happen by accident. You will need to prepare if you want a similar story to unfold for you and your team this fall.

What can you do this summer to be prepared for a great fall ministry season?

One of the most significant ways we get there is to ensure this summer has a healthy rhythm of work and rest.

My son is a drummer. His ability to keep rhythm has always been amazing to me. Listening to him use his hands and feet to make noises that blend so well with a band on a Sunday morning at church never gets old. He also played snare drum for his high school marching band. Listening to five elite snare drummers play in unison is remarkable!

I am not a drummer. Actually, I have a tough time clapping on rhythm during a worship gathering. Worse yet, put a snare drum in front of me or set me in a drum kit and all you would get is noise. There would be absolutely no rhythm to the noise I would make.

Life is meant to have a rhythm.

We find this rhythm in the creation story. God worked six days and rested one. He made the seventh day holy to be set aside to rest. And with that dynamic, He created the rhythm of life. Work six, rest one. When we follow His rhythm, our life will have rhythm. If that isn’t our pattern, our life and work will sound and feel like me on the drum set trying to make music. When our lives do have a rhythm like the one God created, it would be like my son helping a dynamic band stay on time as they make wonderful music.

What could a healthy rhythm of work and rest look like for you this summer?

Consider a few ideas below as you process what that could look like for you and your team. Commit right now to develop a plan for June, July, and August to work hard and rest well. Put that plan on paper. Calendar the necessary items and log important task somewhere with timestamped reminders.

Think about these ideas:

How are you going to rest?

Hopefully, you have already made vacation plans. If you haven’t stop and do that right now! Block at least a week plus to be completely unplugged from the daily ministry grind. If you can get two weeks in a row away from it all, even better! If you cannot afford to get away to a destination then plan a staycation. Do not let money deter you from unplugging at least one full week this summer.

How are you going to grow?

What is your Bible reading plan for this summer? If you do not have one, stop right now and figure out a plan. Maybe it is a fresh reading of the Gospels or a couple of Paul’s letters. Are there a couple of books you have been meaning to read or know you should? Choose at least one for each month this summer. Pick something that will challenge you in an area where you know you need some wisdom and insight.

Who is in your life that you could connect with a couple of times this summer to help you process your leadership lids, blindspots, and biggest challenges right now? Write them an email this week and get them in your summer calendar. The suggestions are endless, but unless we have summer growth mapped out, we will fall well short of what could have been.

When do you plan to dream?

Hopefully, the pace of ministry this summer will be a little slower than normal. The slower pace often opens up bandwidth to dream. Block a few hours per week and a few full days this summer to invite God to give you fresh eyes for the fall ministry season and the 2020 ministry year. Make sure you calendar those dates and keep those appointments!

How are you going to connect?

The importance of healthy and meaningful relationships for church leaders cannot be overstated. How can you use summer to deepen some of your most meaningful relationships? What kind of rhythm could you put into place to help your relationships deepen? Determine a plan, reach out to those people, and get those dates in your calendar.

Summer can be a powerful time to reload our energy and emotional tanks. For that to be the case, we have to have a plan. Do you have a plan? If so, great! Work that plan. If not, please use this blog as inspiration to develop a plan. We will be glad we did when our calendars change to September.

The post Rhythm and Rest appeared first on Healthy Growing Churches.

Source: Rhythm and Rest

The post Rhythm and Rest appeared first on Passion for Planting.