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LEADERSHIP TIPS

How to Become a Mentoring Leader

10 questions to ask yourself

If you want to invest in someone’s life, to equip others to lead and serve well, ask yourself these questions:

1. Do I really want this? Am I willing to involve others in the decision making, and put up with the short-term hassle and extra work for the sake of the long-term benefit of shared leadership?
2. How can I build a relationship? I must get to know potential leaders; leadership is not based on authority as much as on personal connection between people.
3. Do I clearly understand the goal? What specific leadership positions are available? What do I realistically want this person to be and do?
4. In what ways can I assess this potential leader? Find out people’s interests, gifts, availability. What makes them tick and gets them excited in ministry? Does the person really want to serve as a leader? Is this the right time in his or her life for this position?
5. What are the best means for mentoring? Is lunch or breakfast the best time to meet—or after work? What kind of reporting or accountability is effective individually, and on what level of intensity? Ask people what they need from you, and tell them what you need in return.
6. Am I courageous enough to be honest and clear? Ask tactful questions to help the emerging leader discover his or her effectiveness—and to realize corrections that need to happen.
7. What stage of delegation is needed? Delegation is not intended to rid ourselves of work; it is intended to develop people. Now that you’ve given some leadership away, is this the time to:
1. come near to support
2. step aside so the new leader can develop confidence?
8. Am I taking care of myself? As a mentor, I want to model balance. I try to help the new leader understand the need for rest.
9. How can I say “Thank you”? In private, in public, with the person’s family—I look for victories and celebrate them with phone calls, special dinners, notes of appreciation.
10. Am I praying for this potential leader? Developing leaders takes time and effort, and all of it must be covered in the protective care of God through prayer. A leader once told me, “Move only as fast as you can on your knees.”

—Robert Damon, Valley Christian Church, Apple Valley, Minnesota

Why Volunteers Drop Out

Study discovers how to keep them involved

A major national survey of 1,030 people revealed the main reasons volunteers stop serving an organization. Although churches can do little about “lack of time,” they can keep volunteers motivated by addressing other reasons on the list:

Lack of time	71%
Lost interest because no longer involved with the organization	33%
Program/project wasn’t well managed	26%
Organization didn’t make good use of volunteer’s time	24%
Didn’t make use of volunteer’s skills or expertis	17%
Volunteer tasks weren’t clearly defined	14%
No thanks or recognition	3%

United Parcel Service’s “Managing Volunteers” Report; Daily Herald (4/1/98)

TOOLS THAT WORK

Planning for a Successful Meeting

with a better agenda

At my second church, at the end of every board meeting, one member would clear his throat and say, “Before we go, I have one more item to discuss.” As a result, we were broadsided by a negative issue at the end of every meeting.

That is why it’s so important to get everyone on the same agenda. Before each meeting, board members can give the leader items for the agenda, and any member is allowed to include any item. Then when the group meets, they discuss only items that are on the agenda. That way, there are no surprises.

I also came up with a three-part meeting agenda that keeps meetings short, productive, and on track:

1. Information Items. Every meeting should start off on a positive note, so this section of the meeting should include five to six positive reports on things happening in the organization. Information items can also include upcoming events. (In traditional meetings, finances are often the first topic addressed, and many meetings never move forward from there.) This portion of the agenda should be brief, maybe five minutes.

2. Study Items. Ninety-five percent of any meeting time should be spent “studying” or discussing issues. The goal is to brainstorm ideas. Stand at the chalkboard, white board or easel, ready to write, and call for ideas on the topic at hand. Write every idea, no matter how unusual or difficult to achieve.

Never vote on an item you’ve listed as a study item. The pressure of a vote causes people to take sides and discourages free and creative thought. The soonest your group should vote on a study item is at the next meeting. You may keep some items in the “study” section for months, as every option and objection is explored.

3. Action Items. Each one has already been in the study section of the agenda for at least one meeting, has already been discussed, and is ready for a vote. Once you use this system, you will likely never spend more than five minutes of any meeting on action items. If your board or committee members have been honest, and the discussion and study have been thorough, there’s no reason to spend a lot of time here.

—John C. Maxwell in Leadership Wired Injoy (800-333-6506 http://www.injoy.com/);

Getting to Know You

Building relationships, one crowd at a time

A growing church can become a challenge to building relationships.

Here are ways I let people know I care.

Weekly dinner. On Wednesdays, the first 25 people who call that week join my wife and me for dinner at the church. Everybody wears a name tag, and we take time to introduce ourselves. After the meal, the guests ask questions about the church or staff.
Thank-you to children. After each service, kids come to the pulpit area to give me pictures they’ve drawn. I ask them to write their names on them, and I send each one a thank-you note.
Children’s get-togethers. My wife and I invite the children to our home each year, one age group at a time. The younger kids come during the day. The church bus transports them between the church and our house. Volunteer adults help serve a meal of chicken fingers, tater tots, and Cokes (with lids to protect our carpet). The seventh through twelfth graders come after the Sunday night service for tacos, chocolate chip cookies, and drinks.

—Johnny Hunt First Baptist Church, Woodstock, Georgia

5 Proven Ways to Remember Names

Help for an essential pastoral art

It is embarrassing! Just last week you met Mrs. Mendoza, and now you cannot remember her name. Nothing makes a person feel more special than someone remembering his name after only a brief meeting. Here are five simple strategies to remember names:

Listen carefully, no matter how many distractions are going on around you. Quietly repeat the name to yourself or, better, use it in conversation: “It is good to meet you, Mr. Silbert.”
Spell the name. Quietly spelling the name to yourself helps you cement a person’s name in your memory. If it is an unusual name like Hadria, for instance, ask the person to spell it for you.
Remark about the name. Make an observation around the name. For instance, “I once knew a Linda Tosci in high school. Is she your sister?” Or invite the person to tell you more about her name. This helps you remember her name and is flattering as well. For example, “I do not hear Johnsen spelled with an ‘e’ too often. Did your ancestors came from a particular region in Scandinavia?”
Associate the name. Try connecting the person’s name with an easy-to-remember object. For example, if a person’s name is Winters, you might mentally picture him skiing. It sounds corny, but such associations are effective memory tools.
Reinforce the name. If you use a new name only once, it will not set in your memory. Say the name several times—at the beginning of the conversation and when parting (“Goodbye for now, Angela”). Afterward, mention the name to others: “Barbara Brown is interested in helping organize Christmas decorations this year.”

-Kent R. Davies, Anacortes, Washington

Evangelism in English

How to reach internationals in the neighborhood

Westminster Chapel, in Bellevue, Washington, is sandwiched between Microsoft Corporation with its international employees, neighborhoods of new immigrants from Russia and the Pacific Rim, and a community college with a large number of Japanese students. The church started Thursday “Talk Times” for international guests to converse with English-speaking hosts. For many guests, this was their first time to enter a church.

Each guest is paired with a host, who uses a discussion guide on subjects in American life and culture, designed to encourage personal sharing and to teach cultural differences. Bibles in many languages are also available. After the one-on-one talk time, refreshments are served.

Hosts, who go through training, follow up each new guest and learn whether the person is interested in exploring spiritual issues.

A few months ago, a 21-year-old Japanese woman was baptized. She spoke warmly of how Talk Times was the catalyst to help her understand a relationship with Jesus Christ.

—Mark Carlson Bellevue, Washington