MinistrySkills

Hired and Fired

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 21:13:00 +0000

You can listen to the cast HERE or on iTunes.

There is a major discrepancy in churches between the reasons that a minister gets hired and the reasons that a minister gets fired.

For us to have healthy efficient and effective churches and ministries, then we need to understand this.

You get hired for what you seem to know.

You get fired for what you did or did not do.

We need to remember this at all times. You serve your church by what you do with what you know.

The Delegation Ask

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 20:25:00 +0000

This is the simple formula to delegating tasks and responsibilities:

Always ask, don't tell
Define the who, by name
Clarify the what, with the desired outcome
Negotiate the when, be specific
Receive confirmation
Plan the follow up

Delegate, don't delete

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 20:48:00 +0000

You can listen to the cast here or in iTunes

Just because you have delegated responsibility and/or authority to someone, does not mean that that item if off of your responsibility list. While it may not be your task, it is your responsibility

When you delegate (Who will do What by When) you must include the reporting of progress, otherwise the loop has been left open.

Along with this understanding, you need to recognize that there are two times to report.

1. Before the task is completed, best with unproven people

2. After the task is completed, best with proven people

Delegate the end result

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Tue, 11 Sep 2012 18:15:00 +0000

You can listen to the cast on iTunes.

Delegate the end result.

If you don't know that then you have nothing to delegate.

There are two options for the end result of delegation based upon the decision making skills and trust level of the person you have delegated to. This is also based upon how often you have delegated to someone in the past.

If they have a high skill/trust level then the end result has 3 components:

Desired outcome
Due date
Follow up dates

If they have a low skill/trust level, then you need the following components:

Desired outcome
Clarify the steps of the action
Checkpoint dates and times
Completion date

3 Questions of Delegation

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 15:21:00 +0000

You can listen to the cast at briangorman.org or subscribe in iTunes.

Much of delegation teaching that I have heard works like this:

Make a list of everything that you currently do
Decide on what you can give up
Find the person to give that up to
Give them that task
Trust them with the authority to act

But it is not that easy, and never has been. It makes good theory, and bad practice in my experience.

The purpose of delegation in the church is to fulfill God's call for us to equip the saints, not lighten our load. The reality is that delegation will often time add to your workload in the short term as you are training and equipping people for ministry.

Over the course of the month we are going to look at a few of the essentials of delegation, including how to ask someone, what to give them and how to train them. So, to start we need to examine the most important three questions to ask in delegation.

Who is capable of more
1. Notice, we do not start with "what", but who
2. The most important question you can ask about any need in your church is focused on who God has given you, more than what needs to be done
3. Start by looking for high capacity people
What are they capable of doing
1. Not every person is meant for leadership positions and with extreme decision making skills.
2. Many people are extremely effective at getting things done, some organize, some lead, some teachers
3. One you have the person, you can begin to fine tune the "what" around their strengths.
4. This allows you to love people rather than use people
When should it be done
1. People need time frames, love them enough to give it to them clearly
2. Anything that is worth doing has a deadline
3. This also helps you to clarify the responsibility at hand

Next week, we will dive into some of these questions a little deeper, but for this week, begin looking for high capacity people in your church and begin asking yourself what they can do for God's kingdom if charged with something valuable.

Feedback to the Otter and Beaver

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 19:40:00 +0000

You can listen to the cast at briangorman.org/blog or subscribe on iTunes

Feedback to the Otter:

Key Idea: Approval
Base all feedback on reputation
Keep it short
Always include praise
Never give adjusting with other people around
Prepare for pouting

Feedback to the Beaver:

Key Idea: Sensitivity
Base all feedback on efficiency and rationale
Data first, then explain
Avoid personal, emotional details
Prepare for counter-argument

Feedback to the Lion and Golden Retriever

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 18:19:00 +0000

You can listen to the cast HERE or subscribe in iTunes

We are focusing for two weeks on some of the specifics of providing feedback to a lion and golden retriever communicator.

Feedback to the lion

Key idea: Appreciation
Base all feedback on results
Be brief
Use logical proofs of the result
Prepare for pushback

Feedback to the Golden Retriever

Key idea: respect and relationships
Base all feedback on resolutions
Use emotional proofs
Consider using "we"

Four Communicators Overview

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 19:06:00 +0000

You can listen to the podcast at briangorman.org or subscribe on iTunes.

To give quality feedback we must start by recognizing that there are four types of communicators. If we fail to recognize this then we will only give efficient and effective feedback to 25% of the time, at best.

Much of what we will be discussing will sound like the four personality types that often get covered with Myers-Briggs or one of the other models, but it is important that we stop considering personalities and start considering communication styles.

Personalities say that you are one type of person, but communication styles recognize that every person has two ways they communicate.

Broadcast - what they present to others
Receive - the best way to be heard by them

Mark Horstman - Communication is what the listener does

(that is probably essential information for a lot of preachers to recognize)

So, we are going to cover the four types of communicators and how each broadcasts and receives.

For our purposes we will use the following terms, mainly because I find them easy to remember and share with others:

Lion
- Broadcast
- - Dominant
  - Say opinion as though it is truth
  - Very direct
  - Without hesitation
  - Challenging tone
- Receive
- - Brief
  - Direct
  - No sign of weakness or fear
Otter
- Broadcast
- - Humor
  - Energetic
  - Enthusiastic
  - Action
  - Often very optimistic and self confident
- Receive
- - Story
  - Humor
  - Trivial details
  - Praise them
Beaver
- Broadcast
- - Calculated
  - Perfectionist
  - List makers
  - Ask clarification questions
- Receive
- - Information and data are king
  - Use lists
  - Avoid personal or emotional details
  - Make it actionable
Golden Retriever
- Broadcast
- - Socially cautious
  - Mumble
  - Feelings oriented
  - Shy or reserved
- Receive
- - Relationally
  - Emotionally
  - Thoughts/Feelings
  - Give warnings

Feedback Essentials

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Mon, 06 Aug 2012 14:45:00 +0000

Listen to the podcast at briangorman.org or subscribe on iTunes.

After a month of discussing meetings, we should turn our attention to feedback.

Feedback is one of the must underutilized tools in the hand of any minister.

Giving feedback, both positive and adjusting (not negative) does the following:

Shows the person matters to you
Shows that you care about the church
Helps provide alignment and clarity
Allows people to truly be their best

FEEDBACK ENCOURAGES EFFECTIVE BEHAVIOR

A simple feedback model (there are variations that we will discuss in the future)

Opening invitation to give feedback
Focus on behavior ("When you . . .")
- This is not about motive ("You intended to . . .")
- This is not about explanations ("Why did you . . . ")
- This is not about opinions ("I think . . .")
Explain the result ( ". . . this occurred . . . ")
- This can be perception, but it must be clear
- Be specific
Now you have four options for how to close
- "Thank you"
- "Next time do this"
- "What can you do to resolve this"
- Say nothing

Midweek Minutia: Feedback Model at Home

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 18:10:00 +0000

The simple model that we just laid out for using at church is also extremely valuable in all of your relationships, even at home. I use this model (when you ___, then ____) at home with my wife and kids regularly.

The most important part of this is to make sure that you are dealing ONLY with quantifiable behavior and this MUST be done without ANY emotional pretense. It should be done in a simple and understanding matter of fact tone, not rude or condescending.

For those of you who don't believe me, at least ask the following questions before you dismiss the idea, "How successful have I been in sharing issues and concerns with my spouse in the past? Has my spouse heard my intent, or does it seem like my feedback always seems to create a disagreement?"

If what you have been doing doesn't work, then try the model. I'm telling you that it just might help.

Most Important Meeting You're Probably Not Having - part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 16:18:00 +0000

You can listen to this cast at briangorman.org or subscribe in iTunes here

3 Parts of a one-on-one agenda:

Their World
1. always start with the same question
2. write down a note about whatever their answer is
Their Job
1. goals
2. event updates
3. anything that deals with their specific ministry
Our Job
1. the parts that you need to clarify for them
2. delegate projects to them here as well
3. follow up on delegated projects or previously shared feedback
4. keeping them up to date with other church issues

What to do during the meeting:

take notes
include follow-up
don't miss opportunities for feedback
this also provides coaching opportunities

Questions you might want to have ready to ask:

What is taking the majority of your time and are you okay with that
What is the follow up with __________
What were three highpoints of the most recent event or activity
What were two or three things that you will do different next time
How is your relationship with God right now
What are you reading
Who are your top volunteers
Who are your top potential volunteers
How can I help
Where do you see the most personal growth right now

Midweek Minutia: One-on-One meeting location

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 15:32:00 +0000

Since we are in the middle of introducing One-on-Ones (or I sometimes call them Individuals), we should consider where this meeting should take place. The short answer is, in your office.

I used to try to hold these in the office of the person I was meeting with so I could control the start time and I felt like I was making it easier on them. This was not the most effective or efficient way to do these meetings.

After a fair amount of personal frustration, I required that they come to my office at the appointed time. This has dramatically improved the quality of what took place for many reasons, but the following list shows some of the highlights.

It clarifies you as the one in charge of the meeting
It allows you to take notes and give feedback on promptness
The person coming in is often much better prepared
You often stay on time better because the next meeting will be starting and they will be at your door

Most Important Meeting You're Probably Not Having - Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Mon, 23 Jul 2012 16:56:00 +0000

Listen to the podcast HERE or subscribe in iTunes HERE.

Part 1

The most vital meeting that every church leader needs to be having is a regularly scheduled one-on-one.

What they are:

A one-on-one is a reoccurring meeting between just you and one other person.
They should last about 30 minutes, although some may need to go closer to 45 minutes
If you could only have one meeting, this is the one

How should you have them with and how often:

Full time ministers on staff that report directly to you need to have one every week, EVERY WEEK
If you are the only minister on staff, you should be having these with the chairman of your elders or whatever you call your oversight team. This meeting may be weekly or bi-weekly
I personally try to have one a month with the chairman of our elders
I also try to have these with key volunteers, although they are a little more informal, the principle is the same
All other staff that report directly to you should be every other week
Staff that don't report directly to you should be having them with the person they report to

I realize that this could mean multiple hours each week just in these meetings, but I promise you that it will do you more good than any other meeting you have.

If you have every worked under someone, I bet you wish that you could have had their ear a little more often, or in some cases a lot more often
If that holds true for you, why do you think it would be different for your people
These meetings allow you to:
- build trust between you and your staff or leaders
- keep from wasting the time of the whole staff in staff meetings or elders' meetings with issues that should be handled individually
- give you regular time to cast vision
- presets time to work on goals and coaching
- allows you a safe place to give adjusting feedback
- ensures that everyone is moving forward

How do you start these:

Don't just start these
Warn your people at least two weeks in advance that you want to start doing these every week (they might complain at first)
Give them a hand-full of times that are available
ask them to choose the best time for them and get back to you on when they would like
Remember, you are the boss, so you can strongly recommend (hear "order") them to adjust their schedules to make this work
The day before their first meeting is scheduled, remind them of the time and tell them to just come to your office at that time.

Midweek Minutia: Listening to Podcasts

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 18:19:00 +0000

Occasionally we will share short posts that deal with small details that are not worth making a whole cast about, but that may still be helpful to you. This is one of those posts.

Seeing how the main idea of this site is to provide a podcast for ministers and church leaders to use in order to help them build healthy, efficient and effective churches,it only seemed appropriate to help you know how to listen to podcasts more effectively.

Most of us know that we can read faster than we can talk, which is why it is sometimes easier to read what someone intends to say rather than listen to them speak. However, it is also worth knowing that your brain can listen at a similar rate to the speed that the average person can read.

With that in mind, let me share two suggestions.

1. Any time you are in your car, consider listening to your podcasts rather than the radio. It is a great use of your time and allows you to take in a great deal of information in a short time period. Even if your commute is 10 minutes, you have the chance to hear 20 minutes of teaching round-trip.

2. I would also suggest that you set your ipod, iPhone or mp3 player to play your podcasts at double time. On my phone there is a small button on the top right hand side of the screen that says 1x. If you push it then it will begin playing at 2x speed. Now your 20 minute round-trip commute allows you to take in 40 minutes of material.

Just a thought.

Meeting Essentials

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 16:02:00 +0000

Listen to the podcast HERE or subscribe in iTunes HERE.

Podcast Highlights (07/16/12)

We will discuss a wide variety of essential meetings, but this cast is about meeting essentials, the things that every meeting you lead must have.

A clear purpose for the meeting
- You should be able to articulate the main purpose for this meeting in one sentence so that you can determine the effectiveness of it
- example: To finalize our church's policy for people getting baptized, including pre-baptism, the day of baptism and post-baptism follow up
The right participants
- The only people that should be at the meeting are the direct decision makers, or those who the decision will impact directly
- On occasion you will bring in the person with the most experience, not the person with the most input
- This means that you do not need to have your whole staff at every meeting
- Determine before the meeting who needs to attend and who is not needed
- - When you start doing this, some people might feel slighted
  - You must do this for your meetings to be effective and to efficiently use the time of the participants
  - Not everyone is needed, so don't invite everyone
  - Sometimes even you are not needed
A simple copy of the agenda for every participant
- Three components to an agenda
- - Start Time
  - Item Topic
  - Bottom Line of the topic
  - (optional) Owner
Information needed for any decisions to be made, in advance
Copy of all decisions and commitments given to all participants within a week, but preferably withing 48 hours.

Ministry Skills Introduction

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Gorman) — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 19:00:00 +0000

Listen to the podcast HERE

Podcast Highlights

While there is a great deal of tremendous leadership material out there for churches and ministers, there are not a lot of resources for the nuts and bolts, day in/day out management and administration that is needed to help a church be healthy, efficient and effective.

Four Essential Systems of a healthy church
1. Delegation
2. Meetings
3. Feedback
4. Day-to-Day Productivity

These four things must be intentional or they will get dropped and you cannot run a healthy efficient effective church without all four.

1. Delegation

* We will discuss the types of tasks and roles we delegate
* Who we delegate to
* How to delegate to
* Why delegation is essential

2. Meetings

* The types of meetings you need to have
* How to set standing agendas
* Meeting ground rules
* Different roles in a meeting and how to ensure that they are there
* How to give a report in a meeting

3. Feedback

* How and when to give feedback
* What feedback should look, feel and sound like
* How often it should be given
* The need for different types

4. Day-to-Day Productivity

* How Day-to-Day defines your tomorrow
* Handling the multitude of distractions
* The power of priority management

On occasion we will veer off course to look at some theory and principles, but every post will help you have something that you can implement immediately to make a difference in your environment.

Actionable: Write these four essentials on a piece of paper and begin to ask yourself if you have a specific, repeatable and predictable system/process for each of these.