Recently, we had the opportunity to spend a week with Dave Ramsey and his team to experience The EntreLeader Master Series. So what can the church learn from these best practices?
- Build a crusader “mentality” in your team. Businesses can find purpose and understand that what they do matters. This should be a slam dunk for the church. We have the greatest mission on the planet! Communicate it, lead it, drive it! Is your team fired up and wired after this great calling?
- Get rid of the donkeys and hire thoroughbreds. We should be building passionate, highly talented teams that want to go after it. As a church, we are responsible to be great managers of the tithes and offerings that are given. Fifty percent of this typically goes to staff wages. Would you rehire everyone on your team again?
- Focus and intensity are vital to creating momentum. Focused intensity over time creates unstoppable momentum. Momentum is not random, it’s a result of laser focused intensity over time aligned to the vision God has given. Where are you doing too much? Do you have clarity on your target?
- Your values should be coming out of the pores of everyone on your team. Dave’s team oozes their values. You can smell it, hear it, feel it. Far too often churches either have no defined values or their values were an exercise done several years ago and long forgotten. Is your team living your defined values? Do they create a healthy swagger and identity?
- Five enemies of unity: Poor communication, gossip, unresolved disagreements, lack of a shared purpose, and sanctioned incompetence. Church leaders are notorious for avoiding conflict, people pleasing, and not addressing team issues. What conflicts or issues are you avoiding that need to be addressed?
- Everything sells and represents the brand of your church. Yes, sells. It’s not a dirty word and we all do it every day. From our team, website, guest services, care for our facilities, and facial expressions – it’s all saying something. Do we communicate love to our guests? Excellence? Value?
- Integrity in team building means fanatical consistency. Great teams are built when the leaders are predictable in character allowing everyone to confidentially row in the same direction. Our yes should be yes and our no should be no. Is your team able to anticipate your moves, reactions, and decisions? Do your priorities change week to week making it hard for your team to get traction?
- It’s unkind to be unclear. Communication has occured only after everyone knows what is expected. Is everyone on our team clear on their roles? Do we have clarity in our vision and where we’re going? Are team members failing because they simply don’t know they’re not hitting the mark?
- Implementation is more important than knowledge. Knowledge not applied is a waste. We drift to being “insider focused” when we simply gain knowledge. Are you executing as a team? Is your church “implementing” its faith by building relationships and loving those outside the four walls?
- Energy – Bring it! Dave’s team modeled tremendous energy, they are going after it! Is it time to shake it up? Do the people at your church look like they have the greatest hope in the world?
Photo Credit: Theresa Best via Compfight cc
