Getting yourself unstuck

Leaders get stuck and can’t seem to maintain forward momentum.

It happens to all of us at one time or another. How do you get “unstuck?” Here is Brad Lomenick, founder of the Catalyst movement, with some simple solutions.

Originally posted by Brad Lomenick.

Sometimes we just feel stuck. Not that anything is really wrong, but more the sense that we’re not going anywhere. That place where you sense that things are okay, but not great. Where it seems like you are just going through the motions. Dependable and reliable, yes. Consistent, absolutely.

But not necessarily bringing your A-game.

I know the feeling. For me, this usually happens after an event is over, or completing a big project. About 10 days-two weeks later. I usually just feel stuck at that point. I have a hard time being creative, being intentional, getting things done, moving the ball forward, and making decisions. I feel like I’m walking in knee deep mud at these points.

Another time of the year many of us feel stuck is mid to late summer, right about now. You feeling it right now?

If so, here are a few things to do:

1.  Get out of your “normal” routine. Break up your schedule. Go on a trip. Visit someone you’ve wanted to see for quite a while. Hang out with people you don’t know but want to learn from. The key on this is break up your “normal” with something that is out of place, out of context, or just simply breaks up the rhythm. Makes you see things from a different vantage point. For me, when I travel, it usually “unsticks” me.

2.  Go back to the Basics. Sports teams will go back to the basics to get out of a rut. In football it’s back to “blocking and tackling” or in basketball it’s back to “passing, dribbling, and shooting.” For you, this could mean a number of things, but in essence, returning to the foundations of what you do, why you do it, and how you are uniquely designed to be doing what you are doing.

3.  Jump on the Inspiration train. When I get stuck, I usually take time to find some stories of inspiration, read some emails, watch some videos, and allow myself to be re-inspired and re-energized.

4.  Talk with someone who motivates you. I also like to make sure I find some time to spend on the phone or in person with people who inspire me, because they usually can pull me out of my funk that I’m in. Make sure you have some people in your life who are motivators and inspiration icons- when you are around them it just fires you up. Could be a friend, a boss, a mentor, or someone you don’t know well. For me, I’ll call Bob Goff. If you know Bob, you know what I mean!

5.  Keep it simple stupid. Kiss. Figuratively, not literally…! Start a new to do list with no more than 5 things on it. Get those done. Then move on to the next 5 things to do. Don’t overwhelm yourself with a to do list that is unachievable and not reachable. Focus on simplicity and clarity.

6.  Hang around kids. Whether your own kids or someone else’s. Children have a way of providing inspiration because of their imagination, childlike faith, and sense of amazement at everything.

7.  Return to the core. What do you love to do? What brings you to life? Maybe it’s reading a good book, or taking a drive in the country, or playing golf, or playing guitar or singing. Reconnecting to our areas of strength and passion usually reignites the momentum.

8.  Exercise. Take a run, go swimming, work out, climb a mountain, jump on a bike, water ski, play basketball, or whatever activity fits you

The winning leader

Have you experienced a teacher or professor who was brilliant in their subject, but didn’t seem to care about you as their student?Have you encountered a doctor or nurse who seemed to be a genuinely caring person, but only average in their skills?

This is a common experience and can be true in anyone from a plumber to a therapist.

But when you find someone who is both competent and cares, that is an extremely valuable person.

The same is true for leaders.

When a leader is highly competent and clearly demonstrates that he or she sincerely cares, that is always a winning combination.

I’ve met pastors who are brilliant Bible teachers, but somewhat distant from the people. I’ve also met warm and loving pastors who are only average in their communication skills.

Here’s an intriguing question. Which do you think is more important? Competence or Caring?

The quick answer might be, “It depends.”  Perhaps you’d say: “I want the pilot of my next flight to be competent; I don’t care if he’s aloof and distant. I don’t need him to hold my hand, I need him to land the plane.” Fair enough.

But there are far more situations where I think you will say caring matters. For example, I want my dentist to be really good, and I want him to care. I don’t want some guy with a drill in his hand with zero compassion!

You don’t want the teacher of your 1st grader to be brilliant in early childhood education, and yet be cold or even harsh toward your child.

As a leader, I don’t think we have to settle for either/or, and I know the people who follow you don’t have to settle.

Candidly, people have choices. They will search until they find a leader, doctor, teacher, coach, boss etc., who is both caring and competent.

Two Truths to Help You Move Forward:

1) Caring isn’t automatic.

Not everyone cares. We agree on that.You can’t learn to care. It’s not a skill. You either care or you don't and caring come from he     If you ask God to give you a heart that cares and the ability to demonstrate that you care, He will. I believe the only criteria is that you use that heart level care for the good of others and the advancement of His Kingdom.

It also takes personal capacity to care. You need to have the margin in your life to express that you care. For example, if you have a serious health issue, or a struggling marriage, or have just experienced a significant loss, or intense personal financial pressure, it’s difficult to show others that care when your life is, (understandably or otherwise), centered on you.

Further, caring isn’t independent from competence. As a church leader, if you don’t really care, it’s difficult to possess the needed empathy that allows you to be motivated to pay the price to get better.  

Truly caring is necessary in order to have have the empathy needed to be better leaders.

2) Competence always comes with a price.

I love the principle that Malcom Gladwell writes about in his book,  He calls it, “The Rule of 10,000 hours.” He lists and tells amazing stories about people who have reached an extraordinary level of excellence, and all have invested at least 10,000 hours of practice in their arena of expertise.

You can’t dodge the bullet of sacrifice to become great at what you do.

The following process will help you increase your competence so you will become better at what you do.

Honest assessment:  Gaining a solid and accurate self-awareness is where this process begins. Knowing what you are good at, and what you are not, is essential. Accurate assessment includes the honest opinion of leaders beyond you in their level of experience and capability.

No one gets really good at what they do without hard work and burning a little of the “midnight oil.” Without passionate and consistent effort, even the most naturally gifted leaders will remain average.

Great coaching:  Very few leaders can teach and coach themselves. You don’t need a coach or mentor to meet with you every week or even every month. You are fortunate if you have a great mentor or coach who meets with you two or three times a year. You need all that time between meetings to practice!

Practice, practice, practice:  Playing the guitar is different from practicing. When I play the guitar, I’m doing what I know. When I practice the guitar, I’m working on something that I can’t do till I can. Perhaps it’s a really tough chord that I just  play. So, I work on it until I can.

The same is true in leadership. If you practice something in leadership, that means you are working on a skill that you don’t have, until you do. And then you keep working on it until you master it.

Of course, if your church continues to grow, you never really master anything in leadership because as your church continues to increase in size, your skill needs to advance with it.

So how about you? What do you need to focus on more right now?

Competence or Caring?

How about each individual on your team?

4 Lessons from Disney

Walt Disney once said “You can design and create, and build the most wonderful place in the world, but it takes people to make the dream a reality.”

Just last week my family visited the bliss known as Disney World and what I found 
astounded, encouraged, amazed and invigorated (pick your verb) me and my family.  
From the moment we got out of our car we were transported into a place of wonder 
and magic.  The customer service, the rides, the shows, the cast members all proof of
 why Disney is referred to as the “happiest place on earth.”

Harvard shared in a 2011 study, that every household in the Orlando area has a
 lifetime worth of approximately $50,000 each! They believe, in a lifetime, each person
 will spend that much on anything branded Disney.  The question is why?  Why do 
people spend upwards of $120 (per person and not including food or mouse ears) for
 one day at the Magic Kingdom.  The answer lies in the emotions that are manifested 
when you walk through their gates.  So what is my point and why does this matter?

How can we take the principles of the Disney way, and apply that to the church in the 
hopes that we engage the community for Christ.

So here are the 4 lessons from Disney for the Church:

1

Create an Experience.

The Disney Way.  The moment you step onto a Disney property be it a hotel
 or one of the parks you will find that no detail has gone unnoticed.  From their signage 
to the garbage cans and manhole covers Disney has thought through every detail and
 no detail is out of place.  Walking through the park not only do you notice how clean
 and tidy everything is, I also noticed that each “themed” area had details that fully bring
 you into the story of that area.  From Frontierland’s wooden porches and pavements 
covered in horseshoe prints to Tomorrowland’s metal trees and futuristic decor Disney
 leaves no detail out.  In addition to the visual eye candy, Disney also creates ambiance 
with the subtle music.  When you are at the Magic Kingdom you will hear instrumental 
versions of Disney classics but when venturing over to Hollywood Studios you will 
typically encounter the soundtracks of some of the best “non-animated” films like 
Chronicles of Narnia,  The Rocketeer, or Pirates of the Caribbean. It is a small detail but
 a well-thought through detail.

The Church Way. I believe that most Churches already have “themed” areas.  
The pre-school and children’s areas typical have a fun playful vibe.  The Student areas 
are typically full of couches and lounging spaces.  So taking it a step further, what does 
the street entrance to your church tell people?  How does the landscaping look, how clean
 is the building?  What about when guests walk in?  Do you have background music 
playing in the foyer or lobby that breeds a feeling of joy?  For example, my church, on a 
particular Sunday during the Christmas season, will have live Christmas music at the main
 entrances of the church.  One entrance may have a string quartet or horns and another
 may have piano or guitar.  Talk about getting into the Christmas spirit.  All of these details 
seem small but by creating an experience for an attendee you have created a feeling 
of peace which will  hopefully translate into them being open to receiving the message from 
the pulpit.

2

Over Welcome

The Disney Way.  If you have ever been to Disney you may have noticed different
 people wearing large buttons/pins that say everything from First Visit, Happy Birthday 
and Just Married.  We have actually had a couple of those buttons, once for my son’s birthday
 and another for my parent’s anniversary.  It was fun to see how the Cast Members interacted
 with us and we even got some fun responses from other park goers.  It was a great 
conversation starter.  Another instance of Disney’s way to welcome their “younger” park 
goers happened to us several years ago.  My daughter, 4 at the time, was a huge fan of 
Princess Jasmine.  We spent the money and bought her the Jasmine costume which she 
wore into the park that day.  When interacting with cast members we found that they would 
go out of their way to make sure they acknowledged my daughter by lowering their head, 
bowing to her and saying “Welcome Princess”.  Made her day and we thought it was pretty
cool too.  Once again it is the little things that made us feel welcome.

The Church Way.  I know what you are thinking….after what I wrote in the previous 
paragraph you are probably thinking I am going suggest we go back to the “visitor tags” we 
used to do.  You remember those….right?  Well I’m not going to go there but there are some 
very practical things we can do.  For visitors, offer them something that no one else gets, 
maybe it is coffee and a doughnut in the designated “Newcomers” area.  Connect them with 
other people that are new, commonality is a great encourager.  Does the visitor have
 children?  The best way to break the ice is to pay attention to their kids.  Give them a sticker 
or some other fun giveaway. Parents respond when people engage their children.  In addition,
 do you have a greeter at every door welcoming everyone from member to visitor?  We have 
a greeter at our church, Mr. Joe, my family looks forward to visiting with him every Sunday 
morning.  He makes us feel like we are the only people around.  He doesn’t hurry us along, 
he engages the kids with questions about their week and what they have been doing.  
When any person walks into your church they should feel like the red carpet was rolled out 
just for them.  Engage them, make them feel like they are genuinely welcome.

3

It’s the 21^st century, use technology.

The Disney Way.  As they used to say “there’s an app for that” this applies to Disney too.  
They not only have an app that gives you ride wait times, lists of restaurants and stores.  
They also have a personalized website called My Disney Experience that integrates with the 
app.  It allows the user to go online, create an account that includes all family members and 
then from there you can book your hotel, your tickets make dining reservations, create Fast 
Pass options, put in favorites etc.  Then have all of this information available on mobile 
devices with the app.  It is so handy!

The Church Way.  So I’m sure dining reservations and sermon length times aren’t applicable
 but does your church have an app or a website that links anyone using it to past sermons or 
bible studies?  How easy is your website to navigate?  Also I have noticed a shift in churches 
moving to a more digital friendly environment. Allowing families to create accounts (with all 
family members) that keeps track of mission trip, and camp sign ups and allows you to pay 
online. Do you regularly email the community with upcoming events or sermon series?  
Technology is the best way to keep people informed and connected to you.

The Disney Way.  From the time I booked our trip, Disney began with emails.  I was receiving
 emails about how to make dining reservations, to FAQs regarding travel and hotels and even
 links for the Disney app.  Disney did everything they could to make sure that my trip ran as
 smooth as possible.  After the trip was over, I received an email about how to get access to 
my pictures that were taken by the Disney Cast Members.  They left no stone unturned when 
communicating with me and in turn I felt very prepared.

The Church Way.  Communication is vital for any church and should be first on the list when 
looking for ways to improve an experience for your congregation.  Follow up emails can be as
 easy as using automation through services like MailChimp, Constant Contact or some other
 email service.  If you have a new visitor send them a “Welcome” email and follow up with a 
list of small groups and maybe a note from the pastor. If they have been there a while keep 
them updated on all the things happening with the church and how they can get involved 
with different groups.

4.  Empower Your Volunteer (or cast).

The Disney Way.  While standing in line with my son to get his picture with Donald 
Duck, I noticed a lady in front of us that had full cast on her leg (I mean foot to hip).  Like us, 
she was waiting in the line and honestly it was hot.  At some point a cast member that was 
monitoring the line saw her and asked if she would like to hang out in the shade while he 
held her place in line (she had a family member with her but they were elsewhere).  
She obliged and was so appreciative that they would offer.  I watched as this cast member 
interacted with her and seemed to make it his mission to make sure she had an incredible 
experience in spite of her injury (at least for those few minutes).  In the end, she got her 
picture and Donald signed her cast.  It was cool to watch.

The Church Way.  For churches, the use of Volunteers is vital.  Even though Volunteers 
aren’t being paid to serve, to an empowered Volunteer payment isn’t necessary.  Empowered 
Volunteers receive joy out of helping others, if they are given the tools to succeed and are 
acknowledged from time to time for their efforts.  Typically a volunteer is the first face that a 
newcomer sees, so make sure your volunteers feel equipped with their knowledge and 
mission. Disney calls their staff and employees a cast for a reason! Cast members are part of 
the storytelling process and the experience.

Of course these are just a few lessons from Disney that I gathered as I think about our recent
 trip and my goal is just to help you think outside the box.  We have to remind ourselves that 
church isn’t just about sermons and songs it’s about the people and we need to make those 
people feel comfortable when they walk into halls of our churches .

So I will leave it with this question “What are you doing as a church to create an experience 
for everyone that walks through your doors?”

When You Say Someone is SHAPED for Ministry, What Do You Mean?

A great post by Rick Warren.

S.H.A.P.E. is an acronym I developed years ago to explain the five elements that determine what a person’s ministry should be. I believe every believer is uniquely shaped for a particular ministry. 

SPIRITUAL GIFTS: The Bible clearly teaches that God gives every believer certain spiritual gifts to be used in ministry (1 Cor. 12, Rom. 8, Eph. 4).  However, I believe spiritual gifts are only one part of the picture. In my opinion, spiritual gifts are often overemphasized to the neglect of other equally important factors. Natural abilities that you were born with also came from God. So do your experiences and inborn personality traits. These factors were also planned by your Creator. Spiritual gifts reveal part of God’s will for your ministry, but not all of it.

HEART: The Bible uses the term “heart” to represent the center of your motivation, desires, interests, and inclinations. Your heart determines why you say the things you do (Matt. 12:34), why you feel the way you do (Ps. 34:7), and why you act the way you do (Pr. 4:23). Another word for heart is "passion." There are certain subjects that you feel passionate about and others that you couldn’t care less about. Some things turn you on while other things turn you off.  That is an expression of your heart. God had a purpose in giving you your inborn interests.  Your emotional heartbeat reveals a very important key to understanding His intentions for your life. Don’t ignore your natural interests. People rarely excel at tasks they don't enjoy doing. High achievers enjoy what they do. 

ABILITIES: These are the natural talents that you were born with. Some people have a natural ability with words. They came out of the womb talking!  Other people have natural athletic abilities. They excel in physical coordination. Exodus 31:3 gives an example of how God gives people “skill, ability, and knowledge in all kinds of crafts..." in order to accomplish his purposes.  In this case, it was artistic ability to be used in building the Tabernacle. It’s interesting to me that musical talent is not listed as a “spiritual gift,” but it certainly is a natural ability that God uses in worship.   

PERSONALITY: It's obvious that God has not used a cookie cutter to create people.  He loves variety----just look around!  God made introverts and extroverts. He made people who love routine and those who love variety. He made some people “thinkers” and others “feelers.” Some people work best when given an individual assignment while others work better with a team. We need all kinds of personalities to balance the church and give it flavor. Your personality will affect how and where you use your spiritual gifts and abilities.  For instance, two people may have the same gift of evangelism, but if one is introverted and the other is extroverted, that gift will be expressed in different ways.

EXPERIENCES: God never wastes an experience. Romans 8:28 reminds us,  “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” At Saddleback, we help people consider five areas of experience that will influence the kind of ministry they are best shaped for: (1) Educational experiences: What were your favorite subjects in school?  (2) Vocational experiences: What jobs have you enjoyed and achieved results while doing? (3) Spiritual experiences: What have been the meaningful or decisive times with God in your life? (4) Ministry experiences: How have you served God in the past? (5) Painful experiences: What are the problems, hurts, and trials that you’ve learned from?

Your shape was sovereignly determined by God for his purpose, so you shouldn’t resent it or reject it.  "What right have you, a human being, to cross-examine God?  The pot has no right to say to the potter: ‘Why did you make me this shape?’ Surely a potter can do what he likes with the clay!"  Rom. 9:20 21 (JB) Instead of trying to reshape ourselves to be like someone else, we should celebrate the shape God has given to each of us.


Have you determined your own SHAPE? That’s essential for you to know as you minister to your congregation.