health Archives - Passion for Planting

CNLP 411: Ian Morgan Cron Explains How Your Enneagram Type Responds to Chronic Stress and the Difference Between Fake Authenticity and True Vulnerability

Sean Cronin — Wed, 28 Apr 2021 09:15:00 +0000

By Carey Nieuwhof: After a year of leading through constant crisis, how are leaders supposed to cope?

Ian Morgan Cron and Carey catch up on how each Enneagram type reacts under stress and the difference between fake or strategic authenticity and true vulnerability.

Welcome to Episode 411 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.

Plus, in this episode’s What I’m Thinking About segment, Carey talks about why he finds personality assessments so helpful as a leader.

Guest Links

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Website

Episode Links

Pro Media Fire

Imagine waking up WOWED by the beautiful content you see on your social media platforms all week long.

Instagram and Facebook Stories filled with excitement. Custom graphics and animation to stop the scroll. And the best part is it is all done for you by the Pro Media Fire team.

You have two choices in 2021 when it comes to social media:

You or a team member can work day and night to keep up with social media strategy that constantly changes.
OR, you can hire Pro Media Fire, and get an entire team of experts that keep up with the trends to help you grow online.

The choice is yours—bury yourself in social media work, or hire an entire team to help you thrive online.

Book your social media management consultation today at promediafire.com/growth.

XPS 2021 By CDF Capital

If you’re a 2nd chair leader (Executive Pastor, Administrative Pastor, Operations Pastors) at a local church, you’re in an incredible spot of influence.

I’m privileged to have been a part of the Executive Pastor Summit (XPS), and I’d love to point you to this gathering of Exec Pastors that is led by CDF Capital, Exponential, and Leadership Network.

XPS is an annual innovative gathering of XP leaders looking to move their ministry forward.

Key voices shaping XPS this year include:

Ed Stetzer
Dan Reiland
Beth Ganem

The event is May 25-26 in Denver, Colorado. Sign up today, and connect with the sharpest men and women XP leaders in the country.

Learn more about XPS 2021 at welcome.cdfcapital.org/xps2021/.

Conversation Links

Typology Podcast

Typology Podcast: How Hidden Beliefs Impact Toni and Carey Nieuwhof’s Marriage

Typology Podcast: Seven Core Challenges of Leadership, feat. Carey Nieuwhof (Enneagram 8)

Typology Podcast: Carey Nieuwhof on the Enneagram and Self-Leadership, part 2 (Enneagram 8)

The Road Back to You by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile

CNLP 241: Ian Morgan Cron on Using Your Enneagram Number to Boost Self-Awareness, Spiritual Growth and Reduce Conflict at Work and at Home

CNLP 342: Ian Morgan Cron on How Your Enneagram Type Handles Stress, How to Stay Healthy in a Crisis, and the Best Approach to Dealing with Uncertainty

CNLP 278: Ian Morgan Cron on How Your Enneagram Profile Positions You for Burnout, Pride, Cynicism and Other Hidden Traps in Life and Leadership

RightPath Resources

Leading From Your Strengths Assessment

StrengthsFinder

The 6 Types of Working Genius

Intimacy with God by Thomas Keating

Carey’s Daily Email

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Insights From Ian

1. Take care of your basic needs if you want to fight anxiety

As a corporate consultant and therapist, Ian often gets calls from leaders who are dealing with some pretty intense anxiety in the moment, and they want him to help them stop being so anxious.

His first question to them is often, “What did you eat for breakfast?” Usually, the answer is, “Nothing.” Then, he asks, “How much water have you drank today?” Followed by, “When was the last time you exercised?” And, “How much sleep have you gotten the last three nights?” Usually, they’re struggling with three or four of those things, so he tells them to fix those issues and call him back. Seven times out of 10, this fixes their issue.

2. When you’re stressed, avoid the trap of managing rather than leading

When many leaders get stressed, they fall into the trap of managing rather than leading. You probably have great managers working under you as a leader. Ian recommends you let them do their job, and that you focus on leading them with vision and direction rather than micromanaging.

3. Loneliness is killing leaders

During the interview, Ian makes a point to recommend every single leader ask themselves, “Am I lonely?” With today’s technology, people are becoming more isolated, and loneliness has become an epidemic. Odds are, you or someone you know are being seriously impacted by loneliness.

To fight loneliness, Ian recommends having more spontaneous visits with old friends, more FaceTime calls with relatives and putting yourself into more social situations than you might be comfortable with. It might be uncomfortable in the short-term, but will pay off in the long.

Quotes from Episode 411

Don’t you know that when you try to be authentic, you’re automatically being inauthentic? @ianmorgancronClick To Tweet

Vulnerability is arguably the most important ingredient in forging great relationships. @ianmorgancronClick To Tweet

Embrace your powerlessness, and when you do that, you find power. @ianmorgancronClick To Tweet

Leaders can confuse vulnerability with weakness. @ianmorgancronClick To Tweet

When people panic, they stop leading. @ianmorgancronClick To Tweet

You want to have relationships? Start practicing vulnerability. @ianmorgancronClick To Tweet

Technology is set up to create addicts. @ianmorgancronClick To Tweet

We’re facing loneliness. And loneliness has reached epidemic proportions. @ianmorgancronClick To Tweet

A lot of leaders live with the myth of invincibility. @ianmorgancronClick To Tweet

You’ve got to lead people the way they want to be led.Click To Tweet

Self-awareness is spiritual awareness.Click To Tweet

Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 411

Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?

Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

GET YOUR LIFE BACK

Do you want to unlock more of your potential in life and leadership without sacrificing time with your family and your health?

Sounds crazy, but it’s not. I know because I’ve lived it. A few years back, I seriously crashed and burned because the demands on my time and life were bigger than the time I had to accomplish them. I promised myself that wouldn’t happen again.

Today, I still have bigger goals than ever before, but I’ve made fundamental changes that have led to a healthier, happier lifestyle without sacrificing my family and vastly increasing my productivity at work. I’ve taken what I’ve learned during this journey and put it into The High Impact Leader course.

You can complete the three-hour course at your own pace. It’s the most comprehensive content I’ve ever created for leaders to help you reclaim HOURS every day so you can become more effective at work and more present at home. When your time, energy, and priorities are all working together for you, it’ll impact everything you do.

You become a better leader, because you’re doing what you do best when you’re at your best
You become a better spouse, because you’re focused at home
You become a better parent, neighbor, and friend, because you actually have time off to relax and engage

These principles will free you to thrive in every area of your life.

You can learn more and gain instant access today.

Watch Back Episodes of The Podcast on YouTube

Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen.

SUBSCRIBED YET?

Subscribe for free and never miss out on wisdom from world-class leaders like Brian Houston, Andy Stanley, Craig Groeschel, Nancy Duarte, Henry Cloud, Patrick Lencioni, Francis Chan, Ann Voskamp, Erwin McManus and many others.

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Spread the Word. Leave a Rating and Review

Hopefully, this episode has helped you lead like never before. That’s my goal. If you appreciated it, could you share the love?

The best way to do that is to rate the podcast on Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn as well.

Your ratings and reviews help us place the podcast in front of new leaders and listeners. Your feedback also lets me know how I can better serve you.

Thank you for being so awesome.

Next Episode: Annie F. Downs

Annie F. Downs returns to the podcast to talk about how she got her audience fully engaged in her book launch, which led to hitting the New York Times Bestsellers List. She unpacks how she gets her audience engaged in all her platforms, what she’s learned about podcasting and why hobbies and fun are lifelines for leaders.

Subscribe for free now so you won’t miss Episode 412.

The post CNLP 411: Ian Morgan Cron Explains How Your Enneagram Type Responds to Chronic Stress and the Difference Between Fake Authenticity and True Vulnerability appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 411: Ian Morgan Cron Explains How Your Enneagram Type Responds to Chronic Stress and the Difference Between Fake Authenticity and True Vulnerability

The post CNLP 411: Ian Morgan Cron Explains How Your Enneagram Type Responds to Chronic Stress and the Difference Between Fake Authenticity and True Vulnerability appeared first on Passion for Planting.

CNLP 409: Rick Warren Opens Up About the Coming Tsunami of Grief, Handling Personal Tragedy, and How Saddleback Grew During the Pandemic

Sean Cronin — Fri, 23 Apr 2021 09:00:00 +0000

By Carey Nieuwhof: Rick Warren opens up about the personal tragedy he’s experienced with the loss of his son, Matthew, the loss our culture has experienced and what he predicts will be a coming tsunami of grief as a result of everything people have been through.

Rick also explains how and why 2020 and 2021 have been the biggest and best years Saddleback has ever had and the opportunity the current moment presents to the church.

Note: Some of the details in this episode surrounding the death of Rick Warren’s son are deeply personal and listener discretion is advised with young audiences.

Welcome to Episode 409 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.

Plus, in this episode’s What I’m Thinking About segment, Carey talks about how you know when it’s time to leave.

Guest Links

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Website

Episode Links

Pro Media Fire

Are you looking to grow your online campus?

You have two choices in 2021 when it comes to digital:

You or a team member can work day and night to keep up with social media strategy that constantly changes.
You can hire Pro Media Fire, and get an entire team of experts that keep up with the trends to help you grow online.

The choice is yours—bury yourself in social media work, or hire an entire team to help your online campus thrive.

With Pro Media Fire, you save time and grow online, while your digital team does all the work.

Complete social media management and digital growth is just a few clicks away.

As a listener of our podcast, you receive 10% off at promediafire.com/carey.

Barna Cities – with Barna Group and Gloo

I know many church leaders, like you, are navigating massive shifts in culture and technology. It’s exhausting, but there’s hope.

Our friends at Barna and Gloo have been working hard to support pastors and church leaders like you.

Last year, Barna and Gloo launched an effort to equip the Church through the “State of the Church” research and toolkits. Over 25,000 churches benefited.

This year, Barna and Gloo are launching Barna Cities. It’s a year-long journey, and it’s uniquely local. With Barna Cities, you will have access to new local research from Barna, monthly forums and the City Toolkit which includes a full membership to Barna Access Plus with on-demand reports, insights and tools.

And, you’ll get GlooConnect—cooperative, always on ads that run across your city and make it easier for more people to discover your church and programs.

Barna and Gloo want you to know and move every person you serve—to connect people with your church and program that provides help and transformation.

Learn more at BarnaCities.com.

Conversation Links

Books by Rick Warren

The ChurchPulse Weekly Podcast

A Grief Observed by C. S. Lewis

Choose Joy by Kay Warren

Pastors.com

7 Signs It’s Time to Leave by Carey Nieuwhof

Carey’s Daily Email

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Insights From Rick

1. In America, Christians no longer get their primary identity from either Jesus or the church but, rather, through politics

The politicization of American Christians is a terrible problem. Rick points out, “If you know anything about church history, you know that every time the church has gotten in bed with government, it got pregnant. And it was a bad situation.”

Rick cautions pastors and churches against taking a partisan stance as a church. Just don’t do it.

2. If you’re afraid to talk about race in your church, start building trust with your congregation first

So many pastors have avoided the conversation about racism in America out of fear of the backlash that they will receive from the members of their church. It’s understandable, but Rick recommends you start by building trust with your people. Everything in leadership is built on trust, and if you have enough trust with those people, they will follow you into difficult spaces, even where they might initially disagree.

Once you build that trust, Rick recommends you start asking minorities to regularly share their stories of racism with your people.

3. Grief will be a huge door to evangelism over the next few years

Rick is convinced that we’re going to go through a tsunami of grief over the next couple of years.

Many people have lost many things—loved ones, the prom, their graduation, the birth of their first grandchild and many even missed important funerals. There’s so many things that people have lost that, when it finally catches up and they realize what they’ve lost, there will be a lot of grief.

This grief is going to be a front door for evangelism in the next few years, because so many people are dealing with this. As a pastor, you need to find a way to prepare your church to reach the grieving people around them.

Quotes from Episode 409

There is no success without growth. There is no growth without change. There is no change without loss. And there is no loss without pain. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

Every time the church has gotten in bed with government, it got pregnant. And it was a bad situation. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

Racism is a discipleship issue. Financial overspending is a discipleship issue. Political stereotyping bias is a discipleship issue. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

In God’s garden of grace, even broken trees bear fruit. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

Sometimes getting up and putting one foot in front of the other is a successful day for a pastor. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

Ministry is received not achieved. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

Before you can give people the truth, you’ve got to show them that you love them. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

All leadership is built on trust. If people don’t trust you, they’re not going to follow you. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

You don’t change people by laws. There’s no law that’s going to turn a bigot, a racist into a lover. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

Many Christians started putting their faith in government to change society rather than the church. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

You refill your cup by connecting with people you love. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

You need to start treating yourself the way God does. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

Routine develops resilience, and predictability creates stability. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

The church has survived every dictator, every war, every pandemic. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

We have to really remember that God has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that we are to be peacemakers. @RickWarrenClick To Tweet

A passionless leader is an ineffective leader.Click To Tweet

Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 409

Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?

Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

Watch Back Episodes of The Podcast on YouTube

Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen.

DIDN’T SEE IT COMING WILL HELP YOU SOLVE THE PROBLEMS MOST LEADERS MISS

If you want practical help overcoming some of the biggest challenges leaders face, my book Didn’t See It Coming: Overcoming the 7 Greatest Challenges That Nobody Expects and Everyone Experiences tackles the seven core issues that take people out: cynicism, compromise, disconnectedness, irrelevance, pride, burnout, and the emptiness of success and provides strategies on how to combat each.

I wrote the book because no 18 year old sets out to be cynical, jaded and disconnected by age 35. Yet it happens all the time.

The good news is, it doesn’t have to be that way.

Here’s what top leaders are saying about Didn’t See It Coming:

“Seriously, this may be the most important book you read this year.” Jud Wilhite, Lead Pastor, Central Church

“Powerful, personal, and highly readable. ” Brian Houston, Global Senior Pastor, Hillsong

“Whatever challenge you’re facing, whatever obstacle you’re hoping to overcome, whatever future you dream or imagine, there is something powerful for you here.” Andy Stanley, Founder, North Point Ministries

“Uncommonly perceptive and generous…You have to read this book.” Ann Voskamp, NYT bestselling author

“Masterful.” Reggie Joiner, CEO Orange

“Deep biblical insight, straightforward truth, and practical wisdom to help you grow.” Craig Groeschel, Pastor and NYT bestselling author

“This book is sure to help you.” Daniel H. Pink, NYT bestselling author

Over the years, one of the things I’ve enjoyed most about being a public speaker is having opportunities to hang out with Carey…It’s not a matter of if you’ll run into these challenges; it’s a matter of when. Be prepared by spending a little time with a leader who has already been there.” Jon Acuff, NYT best-selling author

“Nieuwhof’s book provides expert guidance…with an accuracy that pierces the heart.” Nancy Duarte, CEO Duarte Inc.

“A refreshingly transparent guide for all leaders in a wide variety of industries.” Bryan Miles, Co-Founder and CEO, BELAY

You can learn more and get your copy of Didn’t See It Coming here.

SUBSCRIBED YET?

Subscribe using your favorite podcast app via

Spread the Word. Leave a Rating and Review

Hopefully, this episode has helped you lead like never before. That’s my goal. If you appreciated it, could you share the love?

The best way to do that is to rate the podcast on Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn as well.

Your ratings and reviews help us place the podcast in front of new leaders and listeners. Your feedback also lets me know how I can better serve you.

Thank you for being so awesome.

Next Episode: John Ramstead

John Ramstead shares leadership skills drawn from flight school and from the cockpit of F-14A Tomcat fighter jet and shares principles that apply to all crisis leadership. After suffering three life-altering injuries, John also talks about how to be resilient in the face of suffering and setbacks.

Subscribe for free now so you won’t miss Episode 410.

The post CNLP 409: Rick Warren Opens Up About the Coming Tsunami of Grief, Handling Personal Tragedy, and How Saddleback Grew During the Pandemic appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 409: Rick Warren Opens Up About the Coming Tsunami of Grief, Handling Personal Tragedy, and How Saddleback Grew During the Pandemic

The post CNLP 409: Rick Warren Opens Up About the Coming Tsunami of Grief, Handling Personal Tragedy, and How Saddleback Grew During the Pandemic appeared first on Passion for Planting.

CNLP 397: Craig Groeschel on the Future of Church Attendance, How to Lead Well When Everyone Has Different Opinions, and on Winning the War in Your Mind

Sean Cronin — Wed, 17 Feb 2021 10:00:00 +0000

By Carey Nieuwhof: Craig Groeschel returns to talk about what he’s learned in the last year about church attendance, how to lead your team well when everyone has strong (and divergent) opinions, why he’s gone 100% in on digital church and 100% in on physical church, and how he’s winning the war in his mind.

Welcome to Episode 397 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.

Plus, in this episode’s What I’m Thinking About segment, Carey talks about disruptive church trends that will rule 2021 (part 1).

Guest Links

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Website

Episode Links

Pro Media Fire

Are you getting ready to hire a creative or digital staff member at your church?

There are two options:

Hire an internal staff member that is an expert in one or two main areas.
Hire Pro Media Fire and get an entire team of experts for less than the cost of a professional staff hire.

With Pro Media Fire, you save on employee taxes and health insurance with internal staff. And turnover becomes a thing of the past with a team that handles all your creative and digital needs.

The choice is yours, hire one person or get an entire team of professionals providing digital strategy and a creative framework to help your church grow online.

Teams win championships!

Book a free strategy session today at promediafire.com/churchgrowth.

Convoy of Hope

Convoy of Hope is a Christian humanitarian organization that exists to bring hope to the hungry through feeding initiatives, disaster response, women’s empowerment and agricultural training, empowering others to live with greater independence and freedom from poverty, disease and hunger.

In 2020, Convoy of Hope delivered 150 million meals to those affected by COVID-19, all in partnership with the local church.

Thousands of churches around the U.S. partner with Convoy of Hope to help those in need in their local community. You and your church can, too.

Convoy is one of the most trusted non-profit Christian humanitarian organizations in the world. They take your dollars and stretch it into 6 dollars because of their partnerships with companies like Wal-Mart, The Home Depot, Culligan, Nestle Water, Bass Pro Shops and more.

You can bring hope to the hurting and hungry by texting COH to 68828, or visit convoyofhope.org to donate.

Conversation Links

Winning the War in Your Mind by Craig Groeschel

The Craig Groeschel Leadership Podcast

Life.Church

Dangerous Prayers by Craig Groeschel

Divine Direction by Craig Groeschel

Hope in the Dark by Craig Groeschel

Liking Jesus by Craig Groeschel

CNLP 173: Craig Groeschel Deconstructs His Approach to Preaching, Leadership, Success, the Future and More

CNLP 319: Craig Groeschel on What He’s Learning From His Performance Coach, How to Handle High Demand Leadership, and How to Avoid Entitlement in Leadership

CNLP 052: How Craig Groeschel Stays Healthy, Relevant and Passionate in Ministry

CNLP 228: Craig Groeschel on Handling the Pain That Comes with Life and Leadership, How God Can Redeem Self-Inflicted Pain and Bring Hope in the Dark of Personal Suffering

CNLP 207: Bobby Gruenewald on Leveraging First Mover Advantage, Innovation, AI, Technology and the Future Church

8 Disruptive Church Trends That Will Rule 2021 (The Rise of the Post-Pandemic Church) by Carey Nieuwhof

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Insights From Craig

1. As a leader, you can have extreme views but you need extreme empathy for those who disagree

The COVID-19 pandemic has likely revealed how far apart the views of some of your staff are. Mask or no mask, gather or not, all of these issues are highly-polarized, and as a leader, you need to be able to speak to and empathize with people on both extremes. If you can’t respect other people’s views, you’ll never be able to lead them.

2. Truly engaging people online takes a lot more work

There’s a lot to question when it comes to online attendance and results. Do online views count? Yes. But how you count them and how you engage with those viewers on a deeper level is difficult to know. Both Carey and Craig tend to be conservative in how they count online numbers and think you need to go beyond just views.

3. Go in 100% on online and 100% on in-person

As you build out the future of your church, there is opportunity both online and in-person. To capitalize on both places, Craig and his team are going 100% in on online and 100% in on in-person church services. He recommends that you be honest about the strengths and weaknesses of both ways to gather.

4. When it comes to models, be FOR what you are but not against what you aren’t

So many pastors cast stones at churches that don’t share the same model as them. Craig points out that there are strengths to large gatherings and strengths to micro-gatherings. Moving forward, be positive about the model that’s working for you, but don’t be against the model that you isn’t.

5. To have a great organization, get over your preferences

Over the years, Craig has learned that if he wants their organization to grow, he needs to be willing to give up more of his preferences for the sake of empowering others to make those decisions. He’s learned this through a lot of pain and anonymous 360 reviews. The longer he’s led, the less confident in his own preferences he’s become.

Quotes from Episode 397

Your life and leadership are always moving in the direction of your strongest thoughts. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

Be what you are without being against what you’re not. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

If you’re small minded, you’re always going to have a limited impact. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

Online is a higher priority, and it should be for everyone doing any form of ministry and leadership moving forward. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

If you don’t like what you have, change the way you think. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

Whatever you lead is a reflection of the thoughts you think. People may not ever hear you say it or think your inner dialogue, but they’re going to feel it. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

To have a great organization, you have to get over your preferences. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

We have to fight as leaders not to be overly optimistic or overly discouraged, but just tell the truth. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

You have to lead with grace, understanding and an explanation. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

Crisis leadership is not as hard as you think. There are some basics: You have to communicate over and over again. You have to bring the why behind everything that you’re doing. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

If we value the church gathering, then we may still stream our content but our strategy of how we engage people needs to be different. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

The number of people participating in the mission who are not in the building on a Sunday will surpass the number of people participating in the mission.Click To Tweet

In the post-pandemic church, your most engaged people may not be in the room.Click To Tweet

In the post-pandemic church, growing churches will shift their focus from gathering to connecting.Click To Tweet

Some pastors will try to fill auditoriums while others focus on fulfilling the mission.Click To Tweet

Full auditoriums do not guarantee a fulfilled mission.Click To Tweet

Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 397

Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?

Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

Watch Back Episodes of The Podcast on YouTube

Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen.

Help Your Team Crush Their Goals As You Move Into The Future

It’s never been more important for your organization to hit your goals. It’s also never been more difficult.

Lead a Better Team is the step-by-step approach to:

Get far better results with the same team
Create a system of accountability so you can actually achieve the goals you set; and
Boost the performance of your staff so you can stop micromanaging

All while freeing up time for you to do what you do best.

The best part? You’ll learn how you can do this even if you’re leading a virtual team.

Get instant access to Lead a Better Team here, and take your team to the next level.

SUBSCRIBED YET?

Subscribe using your favorite podcast app via

Spread the Word. Leave a Rating and Review

Hopefully, this episode has helped you lead like never before. That’s my goal. If you appreciated it, could you share the love?

The best way to do that is to rate the podcast on Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn as well.

Your ratings and reviews help us place the podcast in front of new leaders and listeners. Your feedback also lets me know how I can better serve you.

Thank you for being so awesome.

Next Episode: Christy Nockels

Christy Nockels has been singing in front of tens of thousands of people since she was 19. She shares the best and hardest parts of life on the road, how she dealt with a life-altering bout of burnout, how to work with your spouse and what she thinks the future of live events and the music industry might look like.

Subscribe for free now so you won’t miss Episode 398.

The post CNLP 397: Craig Groeschel on the Future of Church Attendance, How to Lead Well When Everyone Has Different Opinions, and on Winning the War in Your Mind appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 397: Craig Groeschel on the Future of Church Attendance, How to Lead Well When Everyone Has Different Opinions, and on Winning the War in Your Mind

The post CNLP 397: Craig Groeschel on the Future of Church Attendance, How to Lead Well When Everyone Has Different Opinions, and on Winning the War in Your Mind appeared first on Passion for Planting.

4 Types Of Thinking That Will Sabatage Your Leadership

Sean Cronin — Sat, 13 Feb 2021 10:00:00 +0000

By Carey Nieuwhof: Chances are a big chunk of what you’re going to do today in leadership is think.

Really, thinking is a big slice of what any leader is paid to do.

You try to solve problems, analyze opportunities, listen, facilitate and chart paths.

And this last year has likely required more thinking from you as a leader than the entire decade before it.

As a result, you’ve probably noticed that how you think will determine how well you lead.

Not surprisingly, there are four kinds of ways leaders commonly think that can actually damage your leadership.

You See It All The Time

Sometimes all we need to do is put language to things we see.

I’ve just been keeping notes on the kinds of thinking to which various leaders default. So this post isn’t scientifically about anyone, but if you’re like me, as you read through this list, specific people will come to mind.

I’d encourage you to focus on your own thinking, rather than theirs.

Nobody Intends to Sabotage Themselves

Few people intend to sabotage their leadership. They don’t plant landmines throughout their day and wait for them to go off. But let’s be honest. Many leaders end up sabotaging themselves every day despite their best intentions.

Intent has little to do with effectiveness.

When you and I can see how certain patterns of thinking trip us (and others) up, progress becomes easier.

Here are 4 kinds of thinking that can sabotage your leadership and have often tripped up mine:

Intent has little to do with effectiveness.Click To Tweet

1. Undigested Thinking

As a leader, I hate to admit I see this all the time in the church. You’ve seen it too.

Someone goes to a conference and comes away with two good ideas. Then they go to another conference and come away with three more. Add a dozen podcasts, blog posts, webinars and books into the mix, and they end up with a 9 raw ideas they’re intrigued with.

And then they make their critical mistake.

They implement the ideas without thinking much further about it.

And here’s the problem.

None of the ideas are compatible with each other.

Some of them directly compete with each other.

No idea is fully integrated into their existing model of ministry (which might actually be scrambled eggs to start with).

They didn’t digest any of it, synthesize any of it or even critically process it.

They leave their followers confused. And their systems dis-integrated (literally).

2. Overthinking

This is a leadership epidemic, especially in the church. I’m guilty of this sometimes.

Leaders often overthink issues.

They think about:

Everything that could go wrong

Who might feel left out

Why it might not work

How much it could cost

And they often wrongly believe they:

Need a bullet-proof plan before they start

Have to have every potential problem worked through before they begin

Should plan for every contingency ‘just in case’

Hey, in a perfect world that would be awesome. But last time I checked, this wasn’t much of a perfect world.

Great leaders often have a bias for action (I wrote about that here). Overthinking kills action.

If you want to be challenged to stop overthinking issues, read this account of how Sir Richard Branson started Virgin Airlines. It might freak you out, but it will show you why he has been so successful.

When it comes to church leadership, I believe we overthink. The pendulum has swung too far. It’s time to start acting.

Great leaders often have a bias for action. Overthinking kills action.Click To Tweet

3. Indecisive Thinking

The indecisive thinker may have some well-digested thoughts, and might even be ready to act.

But they come to a fatal point in the road.

They have usually narrowed the options to two, but they just can’t pull the trigger. And they really have no idea why.

I’ll tell you why I think leaders end up being indecisive.

One word: FEAR.

If you’re an indecisive thinker, drill down on your fear and you’ll find your future.

Don’t rest until you ask yourself “What am I afraid of?” Seriously, answer that. If you can’t, ask others. Go sit with a counsellor. Pray. Fast. Do what you need to do.

Keep asking. Don’t stop until you get a real, honest answer.

Then when you get an answer, take your fear to God in prayer until it no longer owns you.

Great leadership isn’t the absence of fear, it’s the courage to push through it.

Figuring out your fear and pushing through it will kill your indecision for good.

Great leadership isn’t the absence of fear, it’s the courage to push through it.Click To Tweet

4. Underthinking

I put this last because I think it’s a problem in the church, but because the church is dominated by overthinkers, most would criticize anyone who underthinks.

Sure, sometimes leadership is poor because leaders have underthought an issue – or underprayed it. But like I said, that doesn’t often happen.

Do you think Paul pre-thought the explosion of the early church through to its conclusion before he started out on his first mission trip? Nope. He just went, and was blown away by what God did.

If you really sit down and talk to successful (and faithful) leaders, they will tell you they are the most surprised at what happened. All they did was start. They knew they didn’t quite know what they were doing, but they acted while everyone else sat in a boat and watched someone else walk on water.

Entrepreneurial business leaders are often more likely to underthink things, but I still applaud their efforts. And a surprising number of times, they go on to succeed anyway.

In the church world, few have underthought their future. Far too many have underacted on it.

If you really sit down and talk to successful (and faithful) leaders, they will tell you they are the most surprised at what happened. All they did was start.Click To Tweet

What’s Your Next Step?

Normally this is where the blogger-type-person says “what about you, what do you think?” and “leave a comment” (which you can certainly do).

But today I want to challenge you to work through this.

Seriously. Which kind of thinker are you?

And then consider taking this to your team or board. Because the truth is as much as you have a bias toward kind of thinking that sabotage your leadership, so does your organization.

There is a ‘group think’ that has developed among your organization that shapes your culture.

Do you generally overthink or underthink?

Are you indecisive?

Does fear rule you?

Are you trigger happy with undigested thoughts?

Work this through, and we’ll all be better off. So will our organization and the people we lead.

That’s what I’m going to do.

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HOW TO BOOST YOUR TEAM’S PRODUCTIVITY AND PERFORMANCEnnn

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Source: 4 Types Of Thinking That Will Sabatage Your Leadership

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3 Things to Consider Before Giving Up on Your Spouse

Esther Ritchey — Thu, 16 Jul 2020 09:00:00 +0000

By: Carey Nieuwhof

You’ve heard people say that marriage can be hard, but you didn’t know it could be this hard.

You married with the hope of sharing your life with someone who’s as pumped to make the most of it as you are, so how did the two of you end up here? Maybe the turbulence of the recent months – with lifestyle disruption, threat of COVID and economic uncertainty – is taking its toll on how you both feel.

Your daily activities are no longer what they used to be, and while there some changes you enjoy, your marriage feels worse than before.

Lockdown has amplified all the annoying habits of your spouse. He chews his food too loud. She never gets out of yoga pants. You wonder to yourself, if you ever need to be quarantined again in the future, is this the person you want to be quarantined with?

As a divorce attorney and mediator, I’ve walked with hundreds of people who’ve left unhappy marriages. If you’re like many of us, you’re not dealing with a harmful or toxic marriage, but an unhappy one.

The line between harmful and unhappy is not black and white, and you may need to reach out to someone wise you trust to help you discern the difference.

If you’re like most unhappily married people, when your disappointment feels strong, you wonder whether you’ve signed up for a lifetime of misery.

If you’re like most unhappily married people, when your disappointment feels strong, you wonder whether you’ve signed up for a lifetime of misery. – @ToniNieuwhof

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I get it. There are times every marriage feels hard, even impossible. In today’s blog, I’m asking you to set aside your cynicism, your disappointment and your disillusionment for a few moments to ponder a few thoughts about separating .

Why am I writing? Because I’m so grateful there were people, including friends, speakers, authors and counsellors who I listened to and learned from while our marriage felt like it was breaking down.

Carey and I now enjoy a thriving marriage we wouldn’t dream of leaving. Who knows? Maybe one of these 3 things will help you start to move out of your distress, too:

1. Your Victim Story Will Blind You

Let me guess – so you think it’s all your spouse’s fault your marriage is so hard?

For many years when Carey and I had heated arguments, I would withdraw.

I would slip off into my own little world and go silent and become basically unreachable. But going silent wasn’t Carey’s wiring and it drove him crazy. I would insist he leave me alone while he persistently tried to draw me back into some kind of engagement. I labeled Carey’s behaviour as aggressive and this dynamic carried on over time only led us into bitterness and resentment.

Years in without realizing it, I was telling myself a victim story that threatened to derail us. It was a tangled version of I can’t do this anymore and if only he would also fight for peace and leave me alone… Turns out, my victim story distorted the truth.

When I slipped into silence during an argument, I wasn’t simply ‘fighting for peace’ – I was also stonewalling. There were times when I withdrew into my self-made fortress and treated every advance by Carey as an attack.

It was only after I absorbed the wisdom of counselors, engaged in some serious self-reflection, and developed the maturity to face my own blind spots that I could see my role more accurately.

My victim story was clouding my vision.

When it comes to relationships, if there’s a victim, there’s a perpetrator. When you adopt a victim mindset especially in marriage, the psychology of ‘we’re a team’ breaks down. Then you feel divided and disconnected from each other.

The vast majority of my family law clients saw themselves as having been victimized by their spouse in some way. Most people who were leaving said their spouse was emotionally abusive.

That label has really caught on. A victim narrative is problematic because it takes relational dynamics with inherent complexity and oversimplifies them.

You, like me, will have a human tendency to oversimplify the story in your favour, to help you avoid pain and cause you the least personal discomfort.

A victim narrative is problematic because it takes relational dynamics with inherent complexity and oversimplifies them. – @ToniNieuwhof

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Is there a subject you and your spouse avoid because one or both of you gets triggered when you broach it?

How to get the other to stop being so negative? How to fight clean instead of ‘dirty’? How to solve that nagging parenting problem? How to handle your growing money problem? How to fix your failing relationship? How much sex?

Chances are, you both believe the other person’s to blame for the unsolved problem(s) in your relationship.

You too, may have a victim story running in the background, blinding you to your own part in whatever your problem may be. But if you walk away without trying to spot your own role or offense, you’ll leave believing your part truth, part fiction victim story.

If I’d walked away when my victim story spoke to me the loudest, I would have carried the same stonewalling-under-the-guise-of-peace tendency into my next relationship.

Maybe after two or three partners, the part of my story that was fictional would become more visible. I’m grateful it didn’t happen that way.

And you don’t need to wait for the passage of time and experiences of life to open your eyes to the whole truth, either. As long as your marriage is unhappy and not toxic, you are not a victim. While the ‘blame’ for the struggles between you may not even out at 50:50, and perhaps your spouse is 90% responsible – you still have your 10% to own.

Make yourself a promise to look for your part. Avoid passively allowing time to teach you.

Search for the fictional part of your victim story, with humility. When you find it, own it, apologize for it, and start taking steps to make it right.

Chances are, you both believe the other person’s to blame for the unsolved problem(s) in your relationship. – @ToniNieuwhof

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2. You May Be Listening to the Wrong Messages

Your friends will influence you either to lean into or away from your marriage. Research shows how much your marriage decisions are influenced by the people around you. In recent years, neuroscientific research has uncovered fascinating insight into how our brains respond to the influence of the brains of the people we surround ourselves with. Moran Cerf, a neuroscientist and professor at Northwestern University, has done research into the social aspect of decision-making. As one reporter says of Cerf’s research:

So long as we make the right choices, the thinking goes, we’ll put ourselves on a path toward life satisfaction.

Cerf rejects that idea. The truth is, decision-making is fraught with biases that cloud our judgment. People misremember bad experiences as good and vice versa; they let their emotions turn a rational choice into an irrational one; and they use social cues, even subconsciously, to make choices they’d otherwise avoid…”

His neuroscience research has found that when two people are in each other’s company, their brain waves will begin to look nearly identical.

Says Cerf, “This means the people you hang out with actually have an impact on your engagement with reality beyond what you can explain. And one of the effects is you become alike.”

Cerf’s research findings don’t strike us as counterintuitive; in fact, our life experiences have already taught us that people tend to rub off on each other. We become more like the people we keep company with.

If the norm among your friends or social circle is to get a divorce when the marriage feels over, then according to the research, divorce becomes a more likely outcome for you too. But it doesn’t have to be.

You already know that you choose the company you keep and the voices you listen to. Look around you. Are the people you’re closest to cheering for your marriage? Or are they cheering for you to walk away?

Look around you. Are the people you’re closest to cheering for your marriage? Or are they cheering for you to walk away? – @ToniNieuwhof

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While you need friends who will be with you through the ups and downs, you may need to be selective about who you receive advice from. Do the messages of your friends bring you comfort, or wisdom?

If you were choosing between two job offers or two cities to relocate to, I’m guessing you would weigh the pros and the cons. You would try to see both the risks and the benefits as objectively as possible. You might also visualize what life would look like down the road for each option.

But for me, during our rough season of marriage, that kind of objectivity was hard to grasp through desperate emotions. Your pain will push you to give up, and may even cause you to visualize what a new chapter of love might look like.

But add your pain to the voices or influence of people around you who have left marriages, and you may do what you never would never do with any other major life decision.

You may be drawn by your emotions and the social influence of your friends to only see the pros and not the cons of walking away.

What to do? If you’re feeling stuck and unhappy in your marriage, you need to seek out some other voices to give you informed perspectives about your options.

Commit to spending more time with people who value their marriage and yours. Invest in a relationship with a couple who have gone through unhappy seasons but are now deeply satisfied.

Combat your internal resistance toward finding a qualified marriage counselor who comes with great reviews from couples who were distressed but aren’t anymore. Sign up for a marriage course, retreat or marriage support group.

There are people who have invaluable messages for you while you’re struggling with your marriage, but chances are they won’t just show up. You need to make the effort to seek them out.

Choose to listen for wisdom over comfort.

There are people who have invaluable messages for you while you’re struggling with your marriage, but chances are they won’t just show up. You need to make the effort to seek them out. – @ToniNieuwhof

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3. You Won’t Feel the Costs of Leaving Until You’ve Left

Ever witnessed a divorce that seemed hasty and premature? After dotting the I’s and crossing the t’s on the divorce settlement, I had a few clients who said, “If I’d only known then what I know now, I would’ve tried harder to save my marriage.”

There’s no way around it: splitting isn’t going to look or feel the way you imagine.

I walked through divorce with many clients who were shocked by the gap between what they expected after separating and what they experienced.

They had a hard time coming to terms with it. If you’ve been married any length of time, and especially if you have kids, even an out-of-court divorce will be harder and more complicated than you imagine.

Many of the parents I advised told me the primary reason they were walking away was to stop the negative impact of their fighting or their indifference toward each other on their kids.

The sad reality is that the fighting didn’t stop and their indifference proved to be problematic after they walked away in most cases.

Your divorce leaves its mark on your kids, and despite your best intentions, the emotional impact of your broken relationship will escalate as you’re forced to make critical decisions after splitting.

Who pays the price for escalating conflict? You all do, but your kids may pay more than you think.

Who pays the price for escalating conflict? You all do, but your kids may pay more than you think. – @ToniNieuwhof

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Either through your own experience or that of others, you’ve seen the other consequences of divorce. Maybe you’ve helped a friend through the grief of their marriage breakdown. Maybe you’ve seen how the demands of making divorce arrangements pushed other priorities such as work or personal health further down the list.

I’m sure you’ve heard about the financial loss people suffer when they divide the family income between two separate households. The costs of separating only become stark reality when you take the real steps.

Please don’t hear me say that divorce is never an option. In some cases, the divorce is hard but spares the family from further harm. However, don’t make a hasty decision to split. Listen to wisdom first.

Choose the hard work of facing the fictions in your own victim story. Chances are, your courage combined with action will keep you from the regret of wishing you’d tried harder.

You may believe it’s your spouse who needs to do the hard work, not you. But this decision is high stakes, and you have more influence than you think. So, where do you start? While there are many useful steps you can take, I have a couple of ideas that I believe can help.

Don’t make a hasty decision to split. Listen to wisdom first. – @ToniNieuwhof

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Some Help:

I’m offering a guide designed to help you move past your unhappiness: Six Things Unhappy Couples Say and What To Do About Them.

To access your free copy, click here.

To hear more about what to do when marriage feels hard, tune into our podcast interview with acclaimed marriage expert Dr. Gary Chapman here.

If I could sum up all these words in just a few, I would say listen up before giving up.

When Carey and I were in the middle of our dark days, I didn’t know it at the time, but I had more to learn than I ever dreamed. Our relationship now is hardly recognizable in comparison. We’re close together, facing life in the same direction.

We’re sharing intimacy and facing our challenges with locked-arm strength instead of division.

Listen up before giving up.

And don’t forget to get your copy of 6 Things Unhealthy Couples Say here!

This is a guest post written by Toni Nieuwhof. Toni is Carey Nieuwhof’s wife. She’s also the host of The Smart Family Podcast, and a member of our speaking team, and is available for podcast and media interviews on family and relationship issues (inquire here).

What about you?

What personal change do you need to make to tear down some walls and move closer?

CNLP 349: Bob Goff on Breaking Out of Safe, Dreaming Bigger Than You Think You Can and How to Make a Difference Across the Street

Esther Ritchey — Sat, 04 Jul 2020 09:00:49 +0000

By: Carey Nieuwhof

NYT bestselling author and recovering lawyer, Bob Goff, talks about rebuilding when your life breaks down, how to dream bigger than you ever have, and what never losing a case at law taught him about life.

This wide-ranging interview is a tour de force of what’s possible when you realize you can dream.

Welcome to Episode 349 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.

Plus, in this episode’s What I’m Thinking About segment, Carey talks about 5 characteristics of great leaders.

Guest Links

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Website

Episode Links

Lead to Win

Are you a leader who wants proven, practical advice to guide you through the complexities of leadership today? If so, you’ve got to listen to my friends, Michael Hyatt and Megan Hyatt Miller’s podcast, Lead to Win. It’s one of the best podcasts for getting practical leadership wisdom.

On it, Michael and Megan share from their experience of more than 40 years of professional experience leading teams and driving results. They’ve been where you are. And they have the insights and strategies to help you where you are today. One of my favorite things about their podcast is that it’s not just strategies to grow your business, though they have plenty of that. They’re about helping you prioritize The Double Win, where you win at work and succeed at life.

Search for Lead to Win wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe, and you’ll get weekly leadership lessons to help you build the Double Win!

Serve HQ

We recently partnered with ServeHQ. If you’ve never heard of them, they offer two online subscription software tools for churches—TrainedUp and HuddleUp.

These tools are used to equip and engage your church no matter where they are. With the ability to send highly engaging mass video text messages and video emails, your church will always be in the loop and know what’s going on. Their safe chat feature lets you stay in direct contact with your people without worrying about inappropriate private communications. It’s like a smart private social platform for your church members and volunteers.

And, ServeHQ’s training features let you offer engaging online video courses for volunteer training, Bible training, member onboarding, or leadership training. You can use their library of over 800 videos or create your own training using their simple training builder.

Get a free, no obligation 14-day trial account at
ServeHQ.church

CONVERSATION LINKS

Dream Big by Bob Goff

Love Does by Bob Goff

Love Does organization

CNLP 278: Ian Morgan Cron on How Your Enneagram Profile Positions You for Burnout, Pride, Cynicism and Other Hidden Traps in Life and Leadership

CNLP 138: Bob and Maria Goff Behind the Scenes: Being Happily Married to Your Opposite, Overcoming Setbacks and Thriving in Life and Ministry

CNLP 241: Ian Morgan Cron on Using Your Enneagram Number to Boost Self-Awareness, Spiritual Growth and Reduce Conflict at Work and at Home

5 Surprising Characteristics that Separate Great Leaders from Other Leaders by Carey Nieuwhof

3 INSIGHTS FROM BOB

1. Choose your battles

In 25 years of law, Bob never lost a case. That’s crazy good. You would think that means he is a really great lawyer (which he is), but Bob gives more credit to his ability as a picker rather than his ability as a lawyer. He won’t take cases he doesn’t think he can win. He applies this principle to the rest of his life, as well.

Bob has noticed that most people are quick to engage in arguments that they probably won’t win. You probably do as well. Those arguments just aren’t worth your time. Wouldn’t it be so much better if you focused on the conversations and efforts in your life that will actually go somewhere? If you want to win, choose your arguments.

2. Minor setbacks can be a sign of deeper issues

While at his cabin, Bob does this thing called “water logging” where he looks out over the water for a valuable log that has been left by a tug-boat, sitting vertically in the water. Usually only a few inches of the log is above the water, so Bob finds these massive logs by looking first for the seagulls that perch on them.

He points out that many major issues and opportunities for growth in our lives are like those logs. They go deep into our subconscious but are barely visible from the surface. Maybe you have a bit of frustration or anxiety that bubbles up, but there might be a deep wound causing it. If you want to get better, you need to unearth those problems.

3. Dreams come in all sizes, so dream big

If you want to chase your dreams, you need to look deeper than just asking, “What do I want?” Ask yourself, “Why do I want it?” And, if the reason you want something is healthy, go after it! Bob recommends that you take action on your courageous dreams now. Write the letter, make the ask, do what you can today to start it.

Your dream won’t always be a career dream. Sometimes a dream is a meeting, an event, or a relationship in your life. One of Bob’s dreams is to be an amazing grandpa, and he will be chasing that dream forever. Another of his dreams was tea with the Queen of England, so he sent her a letter! Your ambitions come in small, medium, and large sizes. Bob would love for you to pursue all of them.

Quotes from Episode 349

God isn’t dazzled when you go across the ocean, he’s wowed when you go across the street. @bobgoffClick To Tweet

God never compares what he creates. @bobgoffClick To Tweet

Instead of giving the world more information, I want to give the world more examples. @bobgoffClick To Tweet

Know what you want, why you want it, and then importantly, decide what you’re going to do about it. @bobgoffClick To Tweet

You want to do awesome advocacy, take a genuine interest in your neighbor across the street. @bobgoffClick To Tweet

Not every argument is one that you need to win. @bobgoffClick To Tweet

You get so much further with kindness and respect. @bobgoffClick To Tweet

If you want to become a great leader, talk less, listen more. @cnieuwhofClick To Tweet

When you listen longer than most people listen, you hear things most people never hear. @cnieuwhofClick To Tweet

Great leaders rush to a question far more often than they rush to an answer. @cnieuwhofClick To Tweet

Great leaders often stay quiet about themselves. @cnieuwhofClick To Tweet

Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 349

Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?

Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

Watch Back Episodes of The Podcast on YouTube

Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our new YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen. We’ll add select episodes to YouTube as time goes on.

GET YOUR LIFE BACK

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These principles will free you to thrive in every area of your life.

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Spread the Word. Leave a Rating and Review

Hopefully, this episode has helped you lead like never before. That’s my goal. If you appreciated it, could you share the love?

The best way to do that is to rate the podcast on Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn as well.

Your ratings and reviews help us place the podcast in front of new leaders and listeners. Your feedback also lets me know how I can better serve you.

Thank you for being so awesome.

Next Episode: Ryan Hawk

Podcaster, author and speaker, Ryan Hawk, has interviewed some of the top names in leadership including Jim Collins, Seth Godin, Liz Wiseman and Gen. Stanley McChrystal. But a few years ago, he knew no one of that caliber in leadership. Ryan shares how his unique approach (learned in sales) opened doors to world-class leaders, and how leaders can go from top performers to true leaders.

Subscribe for free now so you won’t miss Episode 350.

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Source: CNLP 349: Bob Goff on Breaking Out of Safe, Dreaming Bigger Than You Think You Can and How to Make a Difference Across the Street

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What Church Leaders Are (Really) Thinking in 2020

Esther Ritchey — Mon, 29 Jun 2020 09:00:00 +0000

By: Carey Nieuwhof

As much as you wish things were getting easier in church leadership, they don’t appear to be heading in that direction.

If anything, things are more complicated than they were a month ago. And infinitely more complicated than they were a year ago.

My guess is you’ve had a thousand different thoughts rush through your mind (and heart) in 2020, not all of them, well, great.

This post was inspired by a clever and accurate post my friend Rich Birch wrote on his blog recently outlining some thoughts church staff had but wouldn’t tell their senior leaders.

I thought I’d pop into the senior leader’s head and see if anything resonates.

Please hear the tone behind this post. I’m with you as a leader.

I’ve cried actual tears for church leaders in this season and I empathize deeply with how challenging this moment is.

Yes, this is a hard time. But you will make it through. The capital C church will make it through, and it will thrive.

Sometimes naming what you’re feeling brings things to the surface you didn’t even realize were there. And yes, I’ve personally struggled with most—if not all–of these.

So what are you really thinking as a church leaders in 2020?

See if any of these ten things resonate.

1. I don’t know how much longer I can do this

Right now, most leaders are more tired than they’ve ever been.

I interviewed Levi and Jennie Lusko recently to talk about the coronavirus crisis, racial reconcillation and how they, their family and church were responding.

Levi gave me a great metaphor. He said we feel this exhaustion because we didn’t know we were running a triathalon. It’s like we got to the end of our run, we thought we were finished, and someone handed us a bicycle and then told us later we also had to swim.

Exactly.

If you’re thinking about alternative careers, other things you can do with your life, or just taking a long, extended sabbatical, hang in there.

Never quit on a bad day. If you’re going to quit on a good day. Hint: there aren’t a lot of good days right now. So hang in there.

Never quit on a bad day.Click To Tweet

In the meantime, please get the rest you need this summer (here are some simple ideas for better rest).

Taking a restorative break this summer is a great idea. A rested you is a much better you.

Leaders who never take a break end up breaking.

Leaders who never take a break end up breaking.Click To Tweet

2. I’m too tired to address the things I know I’m supposed to fix

So much is changing right now.

Long term disruptive trends that are causing decline and stagnation in the church are accelerating rapidly, and if you look at the list of issues to address and things to do, it’s arguably never been longer.

The longing you feel for everything to go back to normal is in part a natural reaction against the massive task ahead.

Denial is not a great strategy. But irrelevance and ineffectiveness are arguably worse.

So what can you do?

Get the rest you need, and lean into God and the team to give you the strength ahead to do what you need to do.

Denial is not a great strategy. But irrelevance and ineffectiveness are arguably worse. Click To Tweet

3. My thoughts and emotions are a total yoyo

Many leaders right now are feeling yoyo emotions: up one minute, down the next, and everything in between.

I get it.

One of the first casualties, when I’m stressed, are my emotions.

Sometimes they go numb, and I feel nothing. Other times, they end up being completely inappropriate or disproportionate.

Physical rest and spiritual health are key to me keeping my emotions healthy.

Your emotions impact you, your family and your team.

While this is a season, just remember that emotionally healthy leaders tend to lead emotionally healthy teams. The opposite is also true.

Emotionally healthy leaders tend to lead emotionally healthy teams. The opposite is also true. Click To Tweet

4. I’m angry at people for not coming back

Not only has the crisis accelerated long term trends of declining attendance, the possibility that many people aren’t coming back to church regularly even after coronavirus has lifted is also real.

And you’re angry at people who aren’t coming back.

If you’ve opened, you’re angry with healthy people who haven’t returned.

And if you haven’t even reopened yet, you’re probably already mad at the people you think won’t return.

So what do you do?

Feel that emotion.

Pray through it.

Vent to a friend.

And then move on.

As you know, anger is a pretty ineffective evangelism strategy.

Anger is a pretty ineffective evangelism strategy. Click To Tweet

5. I feel best about myself when the room is full

Oh this one’s so ugly you can’t even say it out loud.

But the truth is you only really feel great about yourself when the room is full.

And as much as you said you’d never do it, you’ve tied your identity to your success.

It’s hard to post that shot to Instagram when the room is empty or 25% full because of social distancing, or half as full as it used to be pre-virus. And screenshotting your online numbers doesn’t quite give you the rush a full room used to.

You wish you didn’t feel best about yourself when the room is full. But you do.

I’m not saying this is good. I’m just saying for many of us, it’s just a little too true.

And if you really want to drill down, the people who benefitted most from the old ways are the most motivated to try to bring them back.

So you’ll either spend a lot of energy trying to make things the way they were before, or you’ll spend more time on your knees and with a therapist trying to break the idolatry of a full room.

As much as I hate that option, it’s probably the best one.

Most pastors feel best about themselves when the room is full.Click To Tweet

6. I like the convenience of church online more than I want to admit

I needed to buy some shorts and sandals for our summer vacation. I could have gone to the mall, but that’s minimum 2 hours with the drive.

So before writing this post, I spend 15 minutes online and picked up the shorts and sandals I needed. They’ll be here this week.

That’s convenient, and it’s been life (retail-wise) for years.

All my life, church has been an almost full Sunday morning commitment…sometimes longer. It has been for most of you reading this too.

What’s shocked me most in 2020 is how what was a full morning or almost full morning (I’m Founding Pastor now and not as involved in the day to day as I was when I was a Lead Pastor), when I’m not teaching it’s now down to about an hour on a Sunday.

That’s a big change.

If you pre-record your messages, maybe Sunday feels different than it used to.

Even when I teach live now on a Sunday in an empty room, if we get a good take of the message during the first service, I can finish up. After all, there’s no one in the room to talk to anyway besides a minimal crew.

As much as most church leaders have railed against the challenges of online church, you probably enjoy the convenience more than you want to admit.

As much as most church leaders have railed against the challenges of online church, you probably enjoy the convenience more than you want to admit. Click To Tweet

7. I hate the prospect of church online for the future

And that said—and as much as you like online shopping personally— you hate the prospect of church online for the future.

No one has done this before, and you were good at church in the old model.

Besides, you’re a relational person. You love ministering to people you can see, touch and engage with personally.

When it comes to ministry, the internet feels like a vapor.

And you’re not sure you’re up to it.

8. I’m not sure more or my team has the skill set for the next chapter

If you drill down further, you’re a little frightened.

No one trained you for this. There wasn’t a single class in seminary in online ministry.

Other people are better at the camera than you are. Your church isn’t really staffed for this.

Maybe you just don’t have the skill set for the next era of ministry.

And perhaps your staff doesn’t either. You didn’t hire your team for this moment.

And now you’re into something you didn’t sign up for.

The truth is you can probably learn the skill set and so can your team. It just takes time and energy. Which takes up straight back to points 1-3 of this post.

Most church leaders’ silent fear: I’m not sure me or my team has the skill set for the next chapter of ministry. Click To Tweet

9. I can’t handle any more change

2020 has been one thing stacked up on the other. You feel like everything is breaking – your routine, your systems, the economy, the culture…and you don’t know how to put it back together.

And as important as some of these things are, you just can’t take any more.

So please stop. Just stop.

Can we go back to normal? I know normal is dead. But I’d really like to go back.

Of course—and you know this too–change is unkind to the unprepared. But still….

Change is unkind to the unprepared.Click To Tweet

10. I haven’t taken any time to grieve

Everybody around you is grieving and craving a return to normal, and secretly so are you, but you know in your head you haven’t really processed much. You’ve been too busy.

And as a leader, what you do is cast vision and bury your grief because you’re afraid that if you stop, you’ll break.

And as a leader, what you do is cast vision and bury your grief because you’re afraid that if you stop, you’ll break.Click To Tweet

I can personally assure you that this is a little too true.

I spent a decade not grieving the losses that piled up, and it was a major factor in my burnout.

A mentor once told me that ministry is a series of ungrieved losses. He’s right. And now more than ever.

When you grieve your losses, you’re able to move through them to a new tomorrow.

So this summer, take time to rest…and grieve. You’ll come back with fresh energy.

The situation may not be any better, but you will be. And that’s what makes the difference.

This summer, take time to rest…and grieve. You’ll come back with fresh energy. The situation may not be any better, but you will be. And that’s what makes the difference. Click To Tweet

A Simpler Way to Navigate a Complex Future

Yes, there’s a ton of change happening right now. And it’s exhausting.

As complex as things are, having a simple framework to navigate the change will make the task ahead much easier.

If you want to position yourself for the future, my brand new online training, the 30-Day Pivot, will show you how to develop your agility as a leader and as an organization to position yourself for growth.

The 30-Day Pivot is a simple 3-step process you and your team can utilize every as often as every 30 days to respond to the change around you and capitalize on it.

In the 30-Day Pivot, you’ll learn:

A simple 3-step process your team can use to arrive at your next pivot in 90 minutes or less.
An approach that fosters team-generated innovation.
An implementation and evaluation framework that will help your team move quickly and accurately.

I’ve led teams through multiple pivots, and in the 30 Day Pivot, I show you the strategy and framework you need to make quick, accurate and responsive moves that can position your organization for growth, even in the midst of deep uncertainty and change.

Some organizations and churches will thrive in the new normal.

Others won’t.

While the future is uncertain, yours doesn’t have to be.

You can learn more and gain instant access to the 30 Day Pivot here.

What Are You Feeling?

I’m so glad we’re in this season together. Sometimes, just naming what you’re feeling or thinking can be the first step to addressing it.

What are you feeling?

Scroll down a leave a comment.

The post What Church Leaders Are (Really) Thinking in 2020 appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: What Church Leaders Are (Really) Thinking in 2020

The post What Church Leaders Are (Really) Thinking in 2020 appeared first on Passion for Planting.

5 Big Attitude Differences That Separate Growing Churches From Declining Churches

Sean Cronin — Fri, 22 May 2020 09:00:35 +0000

by Carey Nieuwhof: So what’s the difference between churches that grow and churches that decline?

Well, there are many, but—crisis or no crisis—one of the biggest differences I see is in the attitude of the leaders.

The leaders of growing churches almost always share a common attitude. So do the leaders of declining churches.

And the attitude has a huge influence over the results each church sees.

Attitude may or may not be everything, but it’s close.

Here are 5 attitude differences I see again and again in growing churches and declining churches.

Attitude may or may not be everything, but it’s close.Click To Tweet

1. We Can v. We Can’t

Perhaps the biggest difference I see between growing churches and declining churches is the attitude around what’s possible.

Growing churches believe they can.

Declining churches believe they can’t.

They’re both right.

One of my all-time favorite quotes is Henry Ford’s “Whether you believe you can or believe you can’t, you’re right.” He’s correct.

Growing churches make a way when there’s no way, which seems to be what God specializes in if you read the Bible.

Growing churches make a way when there’s no way, which is something God specializes in.Click To Tweet

When you sit around your leadership table, do you come up with 20 ways to make it happen, or 20 reasons why it won’t work? That tells you far more about your church than you probably want it to.

Growing churches believe they can. It’s that simple. And even if they’re wrong, at least they tried.

The mission is important enough to take significant risk.

Growing churches believe they can. Declining churches believe they can’t. They’re both right.Click To Tweet

2. Them v. Us

Declining churches focus on themselves.

Growing churches focus on the people they’re trying to reach.

If your leadership table conversations are all about the needs and wants of your members, it’s a sign that your church is insider focused.

The mission of the church is to reach the world. Growing churches not only know that; they live it.

The instability we’re living and leading through makes that difference even more pronounced.

Some churches moved immediately into preservation mode. Others moved into mission.

The future in all likelihood belongs to those who moved into mission.

When the crisis hit, some churches moved immediately into preservation mode. Others moved into mission. The future in all likelihood belongs to those who moved into mission.Click To Tweet

Besides, who likes to hang out with selfish people?

And ironically, selfish people almost always end up in a very surprising place: alone. Because a life devoted to self ultimately leaves you alone. That’s also true for selfish churches.

If you’re becoming smaller and smaller, is it because you’re selfish?

Selfish people ultimately end up alone. The same is true for selfish churches.Click To Tweet

3. Principles v. Preferences

Declining churches focus on their member’s preferences.

Todd didn’t like the music.

Allison thinks we’re not deep enough.

Jon thinks our services are too short.

Bill says he’ll never watch online.

And so the leaders respond, trying to please everybody.

Declining churches bend to the preferences of their members.

Growing churches don’t.

Instead, they focus on the principles (even strategies) that will help them reach new people.

It’s not that growing churches ignore the needs of their members, it’s that they realize the needs of their members are best fufilled by making their lives about something bigger than their preferences (i.e. the mission).

Is your leadership team principle-driven or preference driven? There’s a world of difference between the two.

Declining churches bend to the preferences of their members. Growing churches don’t.Click To Tweet

4. Proactive v. Reactive

This is a close cousin of points 2 and 3 above, but the difference is deadly or life-giving depending on where you land.

Growing churches are proactive. They choose their agenda and immediately take action on issues that can impact their future.

Declining churches are reactive, letting members determine the agenda and reacting to problems as they arise.

In fact, most declining churches are so busy reacting to problems other people raise that they never get around to charting a course for the future.

If you never get around to charting a course for the future, you will have no future.

Growing churches have a strong bias for setting their own agendas, not in the selfish sense, but in a way that determined leaders see what the mission requires and decide to deal with it.

The leaders in a growing church simply refuse to yield to the agenda of others that would take them off mission.

And as a result, they are far more effective.

If you never get around to charting a course for the future, you will have no future.Click To Tweet

5. Today v. Someday

Growing churches act. And they act now.

Declining churches don’t.

Declining churches don’t actually say they won’t act, they’ll just say they’ll get to it ‘eventually’, or someday, or ‘when the time is right’—which means never.

By contrast, great leaders and great teams banish the word ‘someday’ from their vocabulary, because they realize that someday usuallyequals never.

If you want to be effective, you act.

If you want to be ineffective, you don’t.

Talk without action has little value. And too many church leaders specialize in talk.

Talk without action has little value. And too many church leaders specialize in talk.Click To Tweet

In addition, too many church teams meet for the sake of meeting.

If you can’t remember the last time you made a major decision that changed the course of your church, your leaders are wasting their time.

If you talk about the same issues meeting after meeting with no resolution, you’re spinning your wheels.

Does that mean you have to act on everything? Well, yes and no.

If you’re not going to act, strike the item off the agenda and move on.

If you are going to act, act. Now.

Don’t get stuck in the no man’s land of believing the lie that talking about things solves things.

Action produces traction. So act.

By the way, this simple framework will help you break the habit of talking with no action for good.

Action produces traction. So act.Click To Tweet

How Agile Are You? Take The New Agility Quiz.

Some organizations and churches are thriving and will thrive in the new normal.

Others won’t.

Over 70% of the 700+ leaders who took a recent survey predict that the future for their organization is going to look very different than before the global crisis.

While the future is uncertain, there are clear indicators and characteristics of which organizations will fail which ones will thrive in the new normal.

Not sure whether you and your team have the attitude that will move you strongly into the future?

I created a free, 14 question Agility Quiz that takes almost no time to complete. You’ll get the results immediately.

You can take The Agility here.

How’s your team?

What attitudes do you see in you and around you?

CNLP 309: Terry Wardle on Why So Many Leaders Cave Under the Pressures of Leadership, Why Leaders Implode Morally, and How to Grieve Your Leadership Losses

Sean Cronin — Tue, 24 Dec 2019 10:00:27 +0000

by Carey Nieuwhof: Few people have impacted Carey’s personal journey as much as Terry Wardle. That’s why it’s such a thrill to bring podcast listeners this interview.

Terry talks about why so many leaders cave under the pressure of leadership, what’s underneath the moral failure so many leaders experienced, and how to grieve the losses that come your way in leadership and ministry.

Welcome to Episode 309 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.

Guest Links

Facebook | Website | Healing Care | Some Kind of Crazy

Episode Links

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Conversation Links

A Failure of Nerve by Edwin H. Friedman

Some Kind of Crazy by Terry Wardle

Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott

The End of Memory by Miroslav Volf

Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman

Slingstones Podcast by Terry Wardle

Healing Care Mandate International

The High Impact Leader

3 Insights from Terry

1. Dysfunctional behavior is usually the symptom of a deeper problem

Terry is convinced that aberrant behavior is driven by deep wounds and false beliefs and ungrieved loss. When he looks back on his life, his depression, workaholism, and agoraphobia was never the problem, it was the symptom of a deeper problem of ungrieved losses from his past.

Eventually, Terry was able to work through the deeper issues of his past, and has since begun leading others through a similar healing journey. He works with people who have addictions, anger issues, deep depression, and many other struggles so that they can begin to attack the real wounds that are impacting them.

2. Ministry is a series of ungrieved losses

“Every loss in life demands an appropriate season of grieving, whether you’ve lost your favorite person or your favorite end.” Now, when Terry walks into a room of pastors, he can feel the ungrieved loss in that room. This breaks his heart and causes him to want to help more people.

When Terry first taught this in a seminar, someone grabbed him and said, “Say that quote again. Just say it again.” And he did. When he repeated the statement, the person started to cry because they realized when you experience a loss and just move on, rationalize it, or get onto the business of work, you cheat the grieving process.

3. It takes an emotional laden positive experience to overcome an emotional laden negative experience

Through his time of personal healing and counseling other leaders, Terry has learned that knowing scripture isn’t enough to get over the deep wounds and fears of our past. Terry has learned that it takes an emotional laden positive experience to overcome an emotional laden negative experience.

Just knowing the scripture, “Perfect love casts out fear,” does not cast out fear. It takes a very real experience with perfect love himself to cast out fear. This is what Terry encourages people to seek.

Quotes from Episode 309

Many people and leaders are not stable in their identity, and as a result, they use performance and achievement as a way of advancing themselves. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

Workaholism in ministry is not a matter of theology, it’s a matter of pathology. And until we deal with that pathology, we’re not going to be the men and women that we are supposed to be. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

There’s nothing that beats a person down more than trying to measure up. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

While my gifting and anointing were such that there was advancement in my ministry, I was actually just crushed inside by not dealing with the brokenness of my past. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

When you are basing your ministry on performance, your last performance isn’t good enough. It has to be the next performance. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

People want to kill the pain of loss. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

I am convinced that aberrant behavior is driven by deep wounds and false beliefs and ungrieved loss. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

Loss is meant to be grieved. And when we fail to grieve losses, that loss internalizes. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

If you have the fruit of dysfunction, you have the root of wounding. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

Grieving loss begins with finding a safe environment with people that are non condemning, empathic, who are confidential and who finally give you the permission to say what’s inside and say it like it is. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

Every wound in life, every loss in life, every false belief, needs confronted in the presence of Christ so we can be freed from those. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

When Jesus was at his worst, God didn’t give him a scripture. He gave him an experience of his presence. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

Change doesn’t happen because someone told you you need to change, change happens when you’re desperate enough to say, I must change. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

I think many of us try to forgive before we grieve. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

You got to grieve the losses that have come your way. And then if there’s someone to forgive after you’ve grieved it, you’ll have the strength to go ahead and forgive. – Terry WardleClick To Tweet

You’ll know when forgiveness is complete when the issue no longer comes to mind. – Miroslav VolfClick To Tweet

Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 309

Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?

Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

Watch Back Episodes of The Podcast on YouTube

Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our new YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen. We’ll add select episodes to YouTube as time goes on.

Didn’t See It Coming Will Help You Solve the Problems Most Leaders Miss

I wrote the book because no 18 year old sets out to be cynical, jaded and disconnected by age 35. Yet it happens all the time.

The good news is, it doesn’t have to be that way.

Here’s what top leaders are saying about Didn’t See It Coming:

“Seriously, this may be the most important book you read this year.” Jud Wilhite, Lead Pastor, Central Church

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“Uncommonly perceptive and generous…You have to read this book.” Ann Voskamp, NYT bestselling author

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“Deep biblical insight, straightforward truth, and practical wisdom to help you grow.” Craig Groeschel, Pastor and NYT bestselling author

“This book is sure to help you.” Daniel H. Pink, NYT bestselling author

“Nieuwhof’s book provides expert guidance…with an accuracy that pierces the heart.” Nancy Duarte, CEO Duarte Inc.

“A refreshingly transparent guide for all leaders in a wide variety of industries.” Bryan Miles, Co-Founder and CEO, BELAY

You can learn more and get your copy of Didn’t See It Coming here.

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The best way to do that is to rate the podcast on Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn as well.

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Thank you for being so awesome.

Next Episode: Jasmine Star

Jasmine Star dropped out of law school, didn’t even own a camera, and within 4 years was one of top photographers in the world. These days as a strategist, entrepreneur and social media influencer, Jasmine talks about how to find and connect with your dream customer or audience, how focusing on who you want to reach drives growth, and how to protect your online message against the algorithm changes that happen all the time.

Subscribe for free now and you won’t miss Episode 310.

The post CNLP 309: Terry Wardle on Why So Many Leaders Cave Under the Pressures of Leadership, Why Leaders Implode Morally, and How to Grieve Your Leadership Losses appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 309: Terry Wardle on Why So Many Leaders Cave Under the Pressures of Leadership, Why Leaders Implode Morally, and How to Grieve Your Leadership Losses

The Church Health Trends You Need to Be Looking At

Sean Cronin — Tue, 17 Dec 2019 10:00:19 +0000

Today’s blog post is by Tony Morgan. Tony is the founder and lead strategist of The Unstuck Group, a company that helps leaders grow healthy churches by guiding them through experiences that focus vision, strategy and action.

By Tony Morgan

If you’re familiar with any of my work, you probably can guess I really like numbers.

While numbers aren’t everything, without a baseline perspective, it’s hard to make decisions about ministry strategy. If you’re trying to discern whether or not a church is healthy, the numbers give you something consistent to review—an indication if all of the activity is producing the right results.

Many churches try to make changes and have no way to measure if those hard-fought changes are really having an impact—in a positive or a negative way, which is why I think it’s so important to be looking at what the numbers are telling us.

Exactly two years ago, my team released the very first version of The Unstuck Church Report. It was designed to give church leaders an objective view of church health by highlighting the trends we’re seeing in 5 key areas of ministry across a wide variety and number of churches (Ministry Reach, Staffing and Leadership, Connection, Finances and Ministry Health).

What indicators can we look at to see if a church is healthy?

It’s easy in ministry for there to be a lot of anecdotal stories that illustrate how people feel about church or a specific ministry, but what about data to show where the Church is headed?

A few quarters ago, I even dissected the difference in growing and declining churches in each of the key areas. It was fascinating.

Each quarter, I like to share the data that stands out to me.

This quarter, there were three areas in particular that I want to dig into. These are the trends that jumped out at me.

While numbers aren’t everything, without a baseline perspective, it’s hard to make decisions about ministry strategy.Click To Tweet

1. The Front-Door Challenge

I wasn’t surprised to see this show up. When my team and I work with churches, this is something that we see often, and this is also a theme we’ve seen consistently in our quarterly reports.

For churches to maintain health and growth over time, the number of first-time guests over a 12-month period needs to be equal to or greater than their average weekly attendance. But, on average, we’re seeing churches of 1,000, as an example, average 490 first-time guests in one year.

If you dig into the report, you’ll see that ministry connection numbers are getting stronger, but also that churches are seeing fewer first-time guests. These numbers combined suggest churches really are dealing with more of a “front-door” than a “back-door” challenge.

I suggest reading what I wrote on Carey’s site last month. With an outside perspective, Connexus embraced this “front-door” challenge by pursuing an inviting culture and went all-in on becoming a church that’s passionate about seeing their friends, neighbors, and colleagues experience Jesus.

(A few years later, they’ve seen their number of new guests sky-rocket.)

The number of first-time guests over a 12-month period needs to be equal to or greater than their average weekly attendance. -@tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

2. An Increase in Group Engagement Isn’t Necessarily a Win

This quarter, we saw churches report that 64% of adults and students are in small groups, but only 44% of adults and students are engaged in volunteering.

On the surface, this may look like a win. Yes, it’s encouraging that so many people are connecting into small groups for community and Bible study. And that is a great way to connect with people and build relationships. My wife Emily and I have been involved in, or led, many small groups over the years.

However, our experience at The Unstuck Group has shown that people who volunteer are actually far more “engaged” in the mission of the church. Having people involved at that volunteer level impacts many aspects of church health, including frequency of worship attendance, invitations to new guests and giving, as examples.

If you’re trying to find ways to engage people and keep them engaged, it’s critical to build up the volunteer teams and leaders of those teams.

Serving together creates a deep, rich community environment worth pursuing. It gives people the option to “own” part of the mission of the church and put their gifts and talents to use. This is how God designed the Body of Christ to engage the mission…together.

If you’re trying to find ways to engage people and keep them engaged, it’s critical to build up the volunteer teams and leaders of those teams. -@tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

3. Governance Complexity and Declining Churches

Back when I wrote the article series on the differences in growing and declining churches, the same data stuck out to me.

Declining churches have twice as many committees.

Declining churches have twice as many committees. -@tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

Churches that have large decision-making boards and multiple additional committees generally struggle, but it should be no surprise.

The more people you have making decisions about what can or can’t happen in ministry, the fewer people you have actually doing ministry.

Growing churches have streamlined their governance structure to eliminate unnecessary committees and the meetings that go with them.

This allows these churches to be more nimble when it comes to decision-making. Tough decisions that impact the overall health of the church don’t get bogged down in various layers of bureaucracy.

It’s counterintuitive, but it can often be smaller churches that struggle with having more committees and boards than larger churches. If you lead at a small church, it might be time to reevaluate how your church governance is structured to make sure it is efficient and actually serving the church’s broader vision and mission.

The more people you have making decisions about what can or can’t happen in ministry, the fewer people you have actually doing ministry. -@tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

This data is just the beginning.

The Q4 2019 report holds some really compelling data on 15+ other metrics.

I really believe this tool can help you take some valuable steps towards health in your ministry. It’s invaluable to have data and benchmarks to measure your church’s health and see where other churches are today.

If you’re interested in reading the other metrics and learning about the trends we’re seeing, you can download the report here.

It’s invaluable to have data and benchmarks to measure your church’s health and see where other churches are today. -@tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

What Changes Do You Need To Make?

Getting a church growing or helping a church that’s reaching new people grow even further can seem daunting.

It doesn’t have to be.

Whether you’re a church that isn’t growing, has plateaued, or whether you wish your church was growing faster than it is, I’d love to help you breakthrough. That’s why I created the Church Growth Masterclass.

The Church Growth Masterclass is everything I wish I knew about church growth when I got into ministry more than 20 years ago.

The Masterclass includes a complete set of videos that you can play with your team, board or staff, PDF workbooks that will help you tackle the issues you’re facing, and bonus materials that will help you navigate the most pressing issues facing churches that want to reach their cities today.

You can learn more and gain instant access to the course today.

Which of these metrics could you be doing better on?

I’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment below:

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Source: The Church Health Trends You Need to Be Looking At

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