Mark Waltz | ...because People Matter

Somethin's Brewin' at Granger

2009-11-06T14:00:00-05:00

You may have seen this on Tim Steven's blog (LeadingSmart.com) a day or so ago. Curious? Read Tim's post here.

Let's just say 2010 is going to be a year to engage at Granger like never before. If you're at Granger - hang on. If you're not at Granger... hang on.

I Want to Work with You

2009-11-06T10:42:19-05:00

Each year the resourcing arm of our ministry, WiredChurches.com, offers strategic and practical workshops and learning experiences to equip other churches (Watch here for 2010 venues and dates to be released soon). I get to be part of that training experience. It's a dynamic privilege to partner with ministries who are focused on reaching and connecting people who matter to God.

I also receive multiple invitations each year to consult and train off-site with other churches and conferences. My first responsibility is to my local church - Granger Community Church - where I serve as pastor of connections. With oversight for guest services, groups, classes, volunteer involvement, retail services and member care (with a great team of staff and volunteers!), I must limit the number of invitations I accept to travel off-site to consult and train.

This year I can accept about six additional travel engagements to work with your staff and/or volunteer teams. Read this for a complete summary of how we can work together.

Here are my current available dates for 2010:

Jan 23-24 or Jan 30-31 (tentatively scheduled, unconfirmed)
Mar 20-21 (tentatively scheduled, unconfirmed)
Apr 24-25
Jul 17-18
Aug 28-29
Nov 6-7

These dates have some flexibility dependent on our local church calendar. At the same time the priority of my local ministry could alter these dates until confirmed.

I'll be in Raleigh, North Carolina on Tuesday of this next week with some of my favorite peeps. We'll be leading an all-day workshop. Here's the skinny:

Mark Beeson will be talking about leading teams from his deep well of experiences and teaching.
Kem Meyer will be delivering a talk straight out of her book about church communications.
Tim Stevens will be teaching creative ideas from his book Pop Goes the Church.
I will be teaching about creating WOW experiences at your church (based on this?)

It is going to be a packed day where we will be bringing everything we have to add value to pastors and church leaders. It's my hope you can join us! Download PDF Brochure

If you want to link up on any of the six dates in 2010 above, you can email me - mwaltz@gccwired.com or catch me on twitter. I look forward to hearing from you.

Guest Services Best Practice #13: Make Room

2009-11-05T10:26:39-05:00

Our senior pastor, Mark Beeson, says often - "New people can really be a headache for churched people. New people expect a parking space, a place to sit, and a place for their kids. And they don't know that you already have a choice parking space, a favorite seat, and a place for your kids." When a church is intentional about reaching new people who don't know they matter to God, new people will show up. And they will take your parking spot, and sit in your seat, and crowd your children's space.

Are you okay with that?

The reality is many churches aren't. By churches, of course, I mean people - 'cause the church is people.

I've visited churches who appear to be thoughtful about new guests by providing designated parking for guests. But there are only three spaces reserved! Really? You expected three guests? That's it? I've heard horror stories of church members standing in an aisle telling a guest, "that's my seat." Argggg...

Are you making room for new guests? Are you communicating that you expect them? [more on that in the next post]

What about:

asking your volunteers, staff, and members to park in the parking spaces furthest from the building, leaving the front spaces for your newer guests?
designated parking for guests - and making sure it's adequate in size?
using ushers to seat guests, providing them choice seats without regard for "owned" seats?
putting traffic teams in the parking lot who's job it is to not only direct traffic, but provide a warm welcome before guests and members reach the building?

What are you doing to make room for new people?

Still Refreshing

2009-11-05T09:31:37-05:00

Our media arts team created this months ago for a First Wednesday experience. I pulled it up again this morning to reflect on God and the Scriptures that capture His ancient and active work.

It's still refreshing to me. Enjoy.

Water from Granger Community on Vimeo.

Guest Services Best Practice #14: Get Dressed!

2009-11-04T08:16:00-05:00

It's just a good idea. Fully clothed greeters at the front doors of your church is more than helpful. And, of course, that's not exactly what I'm talking about here.

People will show up dressed. The question is will they be dressed for your guests? And how will they know how to dress unless you tell them? No rocket science here. But someone needs to communicate the expectations, whatever they are.

Years ago before jeans became the new business casual, we expected all our guest services volunteers to avoid denim and dress "professionally". We've really relaxed that expectation in recent years, but we still expect our team members to...

look in the mirror before they leave the house. Messed hair and crusty eyes are not welcoming.
leave the Bud Lite t-shirt at home for mowing. Not helpful at the front door.
dress modestly. We want people turned on to Jesus, if you know what I mean.
be themselves. Use an iron if the shirt calls for it, or don't if it doesn't.

The point is - communicate what you expect. Once your team member arrives to serve, it's a difficult conversation to ask them to not serve or go home to change. Avoid that. Be clear up-front.

Guest Services Best Practice #15: Tell Stories

2009-11-03T08:18:00-05:00

Tim Keel wrote: “Throughout history people have told stories and been shaped by them, and in doing so they have discovered and constructed ways of understanding who they are and what is happening in the world around them.” [Intuitive Leadership: Embracing a Paradigm of Narrative, Metaphor, and Chaos]

The numbers on your weekend service tally sheet represent faces. Faces of men and women and children. And those faces hold stories. Personal and real stories. And while we may not get the opportunity to engage details of life stories with many folks on the weekend, we will walk away with stories.

Over the past few weeks I've heard stories - albeit shortened versions - of pain, loss, enormous joy, and quiet peace. I heard the story of a man who is literally dying; the cancer will take his life in just a few weeks. Another man told me the heart-wrenching, but inspiring story of his 35 year old brother who died just a week ago. I celebrated with a man who started a new job this week - after being out of work for a year. I needed to hear those stories as much as those sharing needed to tell the story. They help me look at my own life, and they help me take in what is really happening around me.

I want our teams to hear stories like those. Stories that take us past the task. Past the rush of getting everyone into the service. Past the pace of a four-service weekend. Stories that cause us to pause and thank God for the people we get to encounter, offer a cup of cold water in Jesus' name, to pray for as they hurry into the service.

There are other stories. Stories of our team members' God-moments with our guests. Moments that marked them. Moments that called the best out of them. Moments where they got to witness God at work - right in front of their eyes. Everyone needs to hear those stories. Stories that help us "get it" - God is using us to bring up there down here.

America's authority on story-telling, Robert McKee put it this way: "Stories are the creative conversion of life itself into a more powerful, clearer, more meaningful experience. They are the currency of human contact."

Tell stories. And perhaps more importantly - listen to the stories of others. It is the ultimate human contact.

Have a story of hope and human touch to share from your weekend experiences? I'd love to hear it. Leave me a comment...

Busy People and Volunteering: An Interview with Tony Morgan

2009-10-30T12:01:14-04:00

I met up with Tony Morgan recently to chat about engaging busy people as volunteers in the local church. As you read this brief conversation, join me in celebrating the hundreds and hundreds of selfless volunteers who carry the ministry of Granger Community Church - on and off the campus, in and out of the local community.

You can read the entire article here. Follow Tony Morgan here and here.

Tony, it was fun to see you a couple of days ago at STORY09.

Guest Services Best Practice #16: Diversify

2009-10-27T08:39:00-04:00

There's a common leadership principle that suggests we attract who we are.John Maxwell calls it the Law of Magnetism. Maxwell suggests that leaders must work hard to add people to their team who don't merely mirror themselves.

Here's at least one application of this law in the world of Guest Services in your local church or organization. You have a dyno-leader who's 62. Professional in every way. Sharp image. Mature leadership. Formal, but personable, presentation. This leader will naturally attract others like her. That's not a bad thing.

Nor is it a bad thing that the leader of another team is 34. Sharp, but hip. Untucked, frayed jeans, no socks. Mature leader. Laid back and personable. He will attract others like himself. And that's not a bad thing either.

Except for this reality. Each of these leaders leads a greeter team. On different weekends. Which means on weekend one, when the mature 62-year old is leading, the majority of team members greeting at doors and assisting guests are mature 60-somethings. Again - there's nothing wrong with that, except that there will likely be younger people attending the service this weekend. When they arrive they're likely to assume - "I don't know if this is my church, because..." don't miss this... "there's no one here like me."

The same thing will happen next week when the team is comprised of late-20 and 30-somethings. Older people will arrive and wonder if this church is their church, because "everyone seems younger."

People want to fit in. They want to sense that they belong. Remove those barriers. Diversify your teams.

Your leaders will have to work hard to do so. They'll have to empower other younger - or older - team members to invite and involve others like them. Then when guests arrive, on any weekend, they'll sense at first glance that they just might belong.

SWITCH | Navigating Change with Chip Heath: Session 3

2009-10-23T15:05:48-04:00

Part 3 of 3: Shaping the Path (Part 1, Part 2)

Tweak the environment to make change/impact more possible ...because what often looks like a people problem is actually a situation problem
- Lieutenant General William Gus Pagonis (Gulf War & Desert Storm) called morning meetings that were consistent, 5-15 minutes in length - and they met standing up. This environment communicated urgency, the meetings were consistently focused and brief.
- Tweaking the environment provides space, communicates a new "normal" and clarifies the do-able objective.
Rally the herd
- People are often not ready for change. Consider...
- - moving people into the first sky-scraper
  - eating the first shrimp
  - UGG boots in the middle of summer
- But one change agent impacts another who impacts another who ... (you get the idea)
- New norms are formed that redefine the "win" for the person or organization

Now here's the question that a couple of us have been wondering: How do we apply this conversation about behavioral change to spiritual formation? Is mere behavioral change the point? Are the desired outcomes about...

higher weekend attendance?
more people in small groups?
a thriving marriage ministry?
larger offerings?

OR...

more people coming to Christ?
people developing meaningful relationships that help them navigate their spiritual journey?
deepening marriages that model self-sacrificing love?
generous people more focused on others than themselves

Do we see the win, the outcomes, as measurables that paint us as a success or do we see the win for what our people experience in their relationship with Jesus? How do we best help people move toward their God-designed, truest self?

SWITCH | Navigating Change with Chip Heath: Session 2

2009-10-23T12:28:44-04:00

From last post: First of all: Direct the Rider

Next...

Motivate the Elephant
- Find the Feeling
- - Change requires tapping the emotions. The "want to." The rider is outmatched by the elephant. The elephant must be excited about the change.
  - Paint a picture. Tell stories. Get people involved so they experience the problem, the reality, the people and relationships beyond the task at hand.
  - You want people to say:
  - - This is wrong! This is crazy!
    - ...AND We can fix this!
  - People then become part of the solution and move toward change.
  - John Kotter notes: Change doesn't happen by 1)thinking, 2) analyzing 3) changing. Rather it is by 1) Seeing 2) Feeling then 3) Changing
- Shrink the Change
- - Must be manageable change. A step.
  - - Make it small. Create an immediate win.
    - - Example - the dread of cleaning (a desk, a room, etc)...Fly Lady: 5-minute Room Rescue
- Grow the Elephant
- - Create an identity that makes people feel proud.
  - We love break-throughs... but don't like the thought of smashing into walls
  - A fixed mindset will shy away from challenges, will be defensive to correction and will deny or be shaped negatively by failure
  - A growth mindset embraces challenges, appreciates the opportunities that come from correction and accept failure as learning
  - - By preparing people to fail - which is always part of success - you help people to develop and live out of a growth mindset. It's normal. It's good.

What change are you working on? How will you direct the rider with clarity... then instill emotional motivation that evokes change?

SWITCH | Navigating Change with Chip Heath: Session 1

2009-10-23T11:01:07-04:00

I'm in an all-day training session with Chip Heath and about 70 other people at Willow Creek. Chip and his brother Dan are brilliant thinkers who apply their research to life: business, church, personal.

Here are some rough notes from session 1:

We are willing to change. We do it a lot.

We willingly marry; have kids… voluntarily embracing change. Major change.
These changes seem easy to accept… however, others are very difficult.

We experience the schizophrenia of change. We want to… we don't want to. We will, but we won't.

Analytical vs. emotional self

Part of us wants to get up on a Saturday morning to get a task done… another part wants to sleep in
Consider these juxtapositions; the last of these is the primary image for today's focus:

Analytical	Emotional
Reflective	Unconscious
Charioteer	Unruly horse
Superego	Id
Planner	Doer
Rider: sometimes causes us to regret, press too hard, to long, etc...	Elephant : sometimes steers us away from our intention; but also asks important questions: What if…? That's wrong!

Consider a rider on an elephant. The rider may know where he wants to go, but the elephant in largely in charge. How do you get those two in sync? That's the challenge of change.

If we spend time staring at cookies and not eating; restraining from honking; etc… it saps our will power. And when our will power is low, we more quickly give in to other temptations. [Ministries that focus on 'staying away from porn'; 'quitting smoking'; etc… often only strain and drain the self will. Sounds like Romans 7.]

Must direct the rider.

Who, by the way over-plans, over-analyzes, other-things

Find the bright spots.

How many novels/movies merely celebrate a successful marriage? Few if any. We love the conflict, the struggle, to create the story. We are not accustomed to this search.
What will we change to? That’s a challenge at the onset.
So, when find the bright spots, don't analyze them or dismiss them. Celebrate them. Own them.

Script the critical moves.

People may not be resisting change; they may have no idea how to change.
Limit the number of options. Or people won't choose.
Be specific. Abstract directives aren't helpful:

Be nicer.
Play better in the sandbox.
Be a good Christian.

Point to the destination.

Change is much easier when you know where you're headed.
Specific outcomes must motivate.

Guest Services Best Practice #17: Create a Schedule

2009-10-23T08:30:00-04:00

I learned the hard way. People need to be reminded.

Back in my student ministry days I thought that grown adults could remember meeting dates and times. After all, they get kids to soccer practice, keep doctor appointments, show up for work, and remember birthdays. All that's true. And maybe that's the point: it's ALL true. There's a lot going on.

It's happened to all of us. Weekend service. You're ready. You're on time. And someone else isn't. You cripple through the services or services on a shoestring, hoping to not miss any critical elements or people as you attempt to provide a welcoming space for your guests. It happens. People aren't always blowing off responsibility. Sometimes people just forget.

Here are some thoughts about serving as a full team:

Create a schedule. Put it on paper. Make sure everyone has it.
Make the schedule easy to remember. Build some pattern into it. Monthly. Biweekly. Find a rhythm.
Send reminders. Make phone calls. Send postcards. Tweet. Text. Email. And you must, you must, you must - not choose the easiest and preferred communication for yourself as the leader. Learn how everyone on your team is best connected. You'll likely call some, text others, and email the rest.
Follow-up when someone doesn't show. This is a simple and opportune chance to care. You may discover they're facing difficulty, illness, or worse. Reach out. You made it past the weekend. That's good. But, it's not all there is to the team.
Expect the schedule to be kept and followed. By planning it, printing it, reminding, following up you'll communicate that people matter - the team matters. "We're counting on you!"

Sunday's coming! Is your team?

Now, It's a Party

2009-10-22T11:35:00-04:00

Just a couple weeks ago we celebrated year ONE of our Granger Community Church in Elkhart. Jeff Bell and his wife, Leslee, are leading a great team of kingdom-minded people there! Way to go, team!

Elkhart Campus' One Year Review from Granger Community on Vimeo.

Guest Services Best Practice #18: Surprise Your Guests

2009-10-22T08:30:00-04:00

I'm not talking about jumping out from behind trash cans and scaring your guests. That'd be a surprise, but no.

And I'm not thinking about blowing your budget to lavish your guest with extravagant gifts.

Think simple. Think functional. Think...

umbrella escorts in inclement weather
hand sanitizer dispensers around your building
chairs/lounge area in the women's restroom
clean everything
follow-up when guests request help
mouthwash, lotion, mints in the restroom
soft seating in common areas

Check out this transformation at Christ Community in St Charles, IL (thanks for sharing the pics, Brian!):

Before...

After...

The point isn't too merely surprise your guests. The surprise communicates care and value.

...because people matter.

It's a Pile

2009-10-16T11:58:05-04:00

A reading pile, that is. I've been slowly, but slowly working through a few books - since the spring. It's been a bit pathetic, quite honestly. Why am I putting this out there in "permanent, instant, global" world? Confession's good, right? Truth is, it's been a season. A good season, but an intense season. The pace has been unusual, even for me. My focus has been challenged, which is somewhat of a constant reality for me, but more so the past few months. Hence, my reading has been sporadic. Some would advise me to slow it down and read one at a time, but that's just not my wiring. I like the pile. And I'm ready.

In addition to my Bible here are the books I'm diving into and a quote or take-away that hooked me early:

Walter Brueggemann's The Word That Redescribes the Word
- "...like the people of God from the beginning, the church has to live between peculiarity and pluralism, between shaping ourselves as a different people - different not in our humanness but in our obedience - and living in relation to the other who is our immediate neighbor and also to the nation far off."
Chris Castaldo's Holy Ground: Walking with Jesus as a Former Catholic
- A former Roman Catholic, Castaldo is now an Evangelical pastor. His book is not a Catholic-bash-fest. Rather he writes from his experiences and seeks to help Christians with Catholic roots embrace a grace-filled relationship with God. I think I'll learn better how to help many of our people and my new friends.
Tony Dungy's Uncommon Ground: Finding Your Path to Significance
- I've been a Colts fan since living in Indianapolis 15 years ago. Following them, I've also gained great respect for their Super-Bowl winning Coach, Tony Dungy. This book comes after decades of success to say that's not all there is to success. Committed to see young men live up to the aspirations of their Creator, Dungy speaks to the reality of living life in an "uncommon" way.
Ann Spangler's & Lois Tverberg's Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus: How the Jewishness of Jesus Can Transform Your Faith
- The authors draw from a rich well of research to help us Westerners read the Bible as the document it is - Jewish. Their well-written, story-filled book brings the nuances and customs of an ancient culture to bear on our often surface-skimming read of the Scriptures. And it's written for simple folk like me.
Donald Miller's A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life
- Challenged with the task of remembering all the details of his life, Miller writes: "I know I've had more experiences than this, but there's no way I can remember everything. Life isn't memorable enough to remember everything. It's not like there are explosions happening all the time or dogs smoking cigarettes. Life is slower. It's like we're all watching a movie, waiting for something to happen, and every couple months the audience points at the screen and says, "Look, that guy's getting a parking ticket." It's strange the things we remember."
John Burke's Soul Revolution: How Imperfect People Become All God Intended
- On of our Groups experiences at Granger is centered around this book, intended to help people be transformed as they engage personal relationship with God. My wife and I are reading it together. I invited a team to read it with me, along with another friend. Burke awakens a challenge that Frank Laubach wrote about and practiced nearly 80 years ago. It's really all about practicing the presence of Jesus.

I'll finish out the Guest Services Best Practices list soon, then be occasionally posting and/or tweeting from my reading. Maybe you'd like to join me and read one of these books over the next few weeks.

Welcome to my reading journey.

Advice to a New Dad

2009-10-13T17:19:04-04:00

A gentleman in our church just emailed me a picture of his new baby girl, prouder than snot to be a new dad of his precious princess. He asked what additional advice I had for him. So, without a lot of prolonged thought, I fired back:

Love her momma well. Make sure she sees it, hears it, knows it.
Tell her how beautiful she is and how proud of her you are of her– often.
Listen. Then listen some more. Keep listening.
Trust her. Make sure she knows it.
Always hug her.
Show her what it looks like to be treasured: treat her like a princess.
Don’t be afraid to say “no.” You’ll say it a lot.
Be sure to say “yes” to lots of right things.
Pray all the time.
Buy a shotgun.

Nuf said? What would you add?

Guest Services Best Practice #19: Think One Chance

2009-10-12T08:25:00-04:00

Over the past few days I've been through a fair amount of frustration with Comcast. Three of four conversations with different reps left me feeling like I had done something wrong. I felt chided, even scolded a couple of times. I'd chuck the whole deal with them and go to another provider, but I'm in an older neighborhood and ... well, I feel stuck with Comcast. So, I'm negotiating and finding the arrangement livable.

I'm really not that hard to get along with, honest. But, like you, there's something in me that knows I have personal value. And when we experience "customer service" that isn't "customer care," we feel de-valued. Great service is about value.

We could happen into a restaurant where the food is excellent. I mean, the best we've ever eaten. But if the service is poor - slow, impersonal, or indifferent, we'll likely be so distracted by the lack of service that we'll miss just how superb the meal is.

That's why we'll stop going to a restaurant that can't seem to get our steak cooked as requested. It's why we'll switch dry cleaners after more than a couple shirts are ruined or not pressed properly. We're not snobs. We just know that value can be communicated, so we go to places, businesses and people where that's our consistent experience.

Our guests in our church do the same thing. Every weekend.

They assess - involuntarily - the sense of personal value they experience. It could be the best message our pastor has ever preached. It could be the most inspiring media, impactful music... but, if our guests didn't feel welcomed, found the restroom dirty, the parking lot difficult to navigate, the children's room crowded - they may sit in our service and completely miss the message that they matter to God.

They may choose, in one visit, to not return simply because they didn't experience value. Call it guest services, call it customer care, call it ministry. It doesn't matter the label. Our people will experience value - or not. And they'll make decisions about returning based on it.

We may only get one chance.

What are you doing to make that one weekend for that one guest be an experience of personal value? Will people be distracted or embraced by the excellence of your care? Will they leave and not return or come back to experience the love of Christ through his people?

Think "one chance."

Guest Services Best Practice #20: Team is More than Task

2009-10-09T08:45:00-04:00

Unfortunately, a team of people committed to a common task or cause can be so focused on that task that they forget they're doing it together. Mark Beeson has reminded us often at Granger that we want to keep some kind of "balance" between task and relationship. It probably looks something like 49% relationship, 51% task, and maintaining that balancing act requires diligent intentionality.

Any task worth accomplishing requires focus. Greeting guests, serving beverages in a cafe, feeding the poor, teaching children, performing the arts - these and more require attention. It's easy when the pace is fast and the need is intense to put your nose to the grindstone, relentless on just "gitten' 'er dun." The risk is that we miss the people with whom we're serving and miss half the benefit of serving in team.

Here are some quick thoughts about maximizing relationships in the process of accomplishing the tasks of ministry:

build "connect" time into the serve time

expect volunteers to arrive early enough to eat together, pray together and prepare for the serve

if you're the leader of the team, make sure you're "free" during the serving time to talk, invest, and celebrate "wins"

if you allow yourself to get "stuck" in a task role, you'll not be available to do so...

extend the conversation beyond the serving component

using email, phone, Twitter, Facebook and personal visits, encourage the team to share life by supporting each other outside the weekend or other serving times

initiate a mass-email follow-up to the serving time

send emails, listing prayer concerns, praises, news about team members and the next gathering

remember birthdays, anniversaries, and other important high points in the lives of your team members

bring in a cake, send a card, allow time for people to talk to each other about their other interests

celebrate the "wins" of the task

acknowledge that the team accomplished "x", celebrate stories you've heard from guests and members to mark the effectiveness of the team

What else are you doing to balance the tension between task and team?

Guest Services Best Practice #21: Hang a Sign

2009-10-08T08:32:00-04:00

Self-disclosure: Pretty much any building I enter - restaurant, airport, mall, church, museum, store, your house - I'm looking for a restroom. There aren't too many homes with signage for bathrooms, but, then again, I generally know the host, so I can ask.

When a new guest comes to your church, they're likely to look for one of three things (maybe all three):

restroom
children's center
auditorium or worship center

Self-disclosure #2: When we opened our new auditorium at Granger Community a few years ago, we were strategic and careful about where signage was placed and just what it communicated. However, I recently toured our building with my guest services coaches and we made some disappointing discoveries. Some signage is too busy with font that's too small to read without standing still. Some signage has been added in recent months and secondary bulkhead hides it. Other signage uses our in-house language that may not be all that helpful to our guests (thanks, Kem Meyer for the eye-opener).

So, when hanging signage, ask:

What are guests really looking for? Is a sign with an arrow to the recycle bin really all that helpful or necessary?
If this sign were hanging in an airport would guests see it as they rush to catch a plane? If not, make the sign bigger (if your church is smaller, think smaller airport... but think about people reading signage as they move).
Will people understand what "churchutopia" means? Or would it be better to simply say, "Kids' Center"?

Hang a sign. And hang it effectively.

Wondering. What goofy signs have you seen in churches - or elsewhere?

Guest Services Best Practices #22: Everyone Can Greet

2009-10-07T16:16:00-04:00

At first the notion that everyone can greet flies in the face of what I train and coach – with our own people and leaders of other churches. A warm body, even a warm smiling body, just isn’t enough. There’s a unique wiring that people-people, wow-makers possess. Make no compromises.

However, here’s what’s true. The only people greeting guests should not be limited to your greeters or other guest services team members. Your guests may see the occasional “official” nametag on an usher or hospitality host or greeter, however, those volunteers and staff aren’t the only people your guests will see – or interact with.

Nor do they care if someone is wearing a label or not. A warm, inclusive, accepting greeting is a warm, inclusive, accepting greeting regardless who’s doing the greeting.

Consider Ruth Saratore from Granger Community.

I attended Ruth’s funeral on Monday of this week. She was 88 years old. Always sat on the second row, left side of the center aisle, every Sunday. Ruth wasn’t one of those people who felt she owned that seat. In fact, she was constantly inviting people to sit with her.

Matt spoke at Ruth’s funeral. His story? Five years ago he entered Granger Community for the first time. Alone, tentative, looking for a seat. He made it down front early one Sunday and heard the sweetest sound. It was Ruth. “Are you alone young man? Sit right here with me.” No, Ruth wasn’t hitting on him. She was in her eighties. He was barely 30. At the end of the service, she told him, “I’ll be here next week. I hope you come back. I’ll be saving a seat for you.”

That was enough for Matt. Granger was his home. His church.

Several more people revealed the same “sit with me” story. Stories that continued beyond the weekend service. Phone calls. Visits. Ruth extending herself to serve and love others.

She never wore a nametag. She wasn’t a greeter (although she could have been). She didn’t volunteer at guest relations.

But she greeted. Warmly, inclusively, and unconditionally accepting.

Guests don’t really care who warmly receives them. You don’t need a label or a tag. They don’t really care.

What’s your church culture like? What culture are you creating?

Everyone can greet.

What’s your story of an authentic, caring culture?

Guest Services Best Practices - You Decide What's Next

2009-10-06T18:42:19-04:00

Okay, we have 22 more Guest Services Best Practices to go in this ongoing Top 47 list. Tomorrow's post is in the works, but I'm wondering what you'd like to read about over the next week? Comment here. Send me a tweet (MarkLWaltz):

Team is More than Task
Hang a Sign
Get Dressed!
Plan the Understated
Follow-up
Surprise Your Guests
Listen to Complaints
Collaborate
Value Your Volunteers
Tell Stories
Don’t Just Fix It
Think “One Chance”
Diversify

Okay. Fire away.

Guest Services Best Practice #23: Stock Toilet Paper

2009-10-06T08:29:00-04:00

Okay, this post is not for the faint of heart. It's rated PG-13. Read on at your own risk.

Ever gone into your own bathroom at home, sat down... only to discover someone didn't restock the toilet paper? Crap. (That was bad, huh?) The tissue is in the hall closet. So, you do the only thing you can do: you yell for someone to bring you a roll of toilet paper. Simple. You're home. With people you love. It happens.

Now, consider the same scenario with a guest at your church. Holy crap. (Even worse, huh?)

Go ahead. Play this out. Your guest is in the restroom stall. There is no toilet paper. This isn't home. He or she doesn't know where the stock is. They're not going to yell for help. They're stuck. They're just stuck. If they do find a way out of the restroom, they may never come back. Not to the restroom - to your church.

First impressions are lasting impressions.

Stock toilet paper. 2-ply. Don't go with the 1-ply cheap stuff. That's about as bad.

Guest Services Best Practice #24: Answer the Phone

2009-10-05T07:55:00-04:00

This was almost laughable when we finally discovered it several years ago. We had answered the phone throughout the week, addressing questions about service times and location frequently. Then, on the weekends - the time when many calls come in asking about service times and location - we had all our calls going to voicemail. Sure the caller could listen to a 47-option menu and find the recorded address and service time, but, really... a recording when we had 150 guest services volunteers in the building?

Our phones are answered during all services on the weekend by a competent, gregarious, helpful volunteer. Simple. Make a great first impression - on the phone.

What other "duh" steps have you taken to improve your serve to your guests?

Guest Services Best Practice #25: Be in the Moment

2009-09-24T15:20:00-04:00

Everyone arrives at your church campus under the same circumstance. Everyone. Your guests, your volunteer teams, your staff.

Someone couldn't find their socks. The train was too long. They left late. They forgot something and had to go back. The kids were fighting. You were fighting. Someone didn't feel like going today. You overslept. You were up too late the night before. There's still a long list of un-finisheds.

The pastor, the volunteers, you. We arrive at church easily distracted. Rushed. Mind everywhere but here.

Right here. Right now.

But providing excellent guest service requires being present in the moment, from moment to moment.

Not our own moment. But someone else's moment. And the next moment, and the next person, and the next...

Here are some quick thoughts to help you stay engaged:

Sleep. The night before.
Awake with margin. To eat. To focus. To reflect on why you're going where you're going.
Go early. The train is gonna be slow; it's a train.
Meet with friends, your team well before you need to be where you're going to need to be. Debrief. Decompress. Pray. Get focused.
Keep praying. Practice presence with Jesus.
Read body language. Connect with the eyes - yours with theirs.
Ask questions. Enter into another person's world, if only for a moment.
As your mind drifts back into your day, or forward into your day, stop. Set it aside. Come back.
Engage people as Jesus would... as though they were Jesus.

Be in the moment.

Guest Services Best Practice #26: It’s Not About You

2009-09-24T10:04:00-04:00

Accept it. It's not about you. Not completely.

Around Granger there probably was a time when it was all about you. The cafe was about you. The shuttles were about you. The kids' launch zone slides were about you. The smoke and lights and music was about you.

But, after you've been around awhile, after you've agreed to join the mission we share - it's not about you.

it's about others. Others who aren't here yet or who are new to our church.

After being around a bit, you become a "regular", even a member. It's easy to let a sense of entitlement settle in. You can start to wonder "what's in it for me?" You can wish the music was more your style; think the cafe should carry your brand of coffee.

But joining the mission of the church isn't about entitlement or comfort. It's about shared responsibility. It's about sacrifice. It's about others.

Others who'll take our parking spot, our favorite seat, and the attention of the guest services teams.

Yep. That's right.

You in? It's not about you.

It's about Jesus and the others he died for, too.