Yesterday I mentioned in the Church Creativity Conundrum that in order to get unstuck, you need to first come to grips with the fact that you are stuck.
In Imagine: How Creativity Works, Jonah Lehrer shares an amazing story of how an innovative company got unstuck. Procter and Gamble was cranking out one innovative product after another but they were stuck with no new floor products in the pipeline. The company unsuccessfully invested millions of dollars trying to develop a new soap product. Finally, they hired an outside consulting firm.
The firm determined to look at the problem without any preconceptions. They tried to forget everything they knew about mops and soaps. After spending countless hours watching people mop floors, they eventually realized that people spent more time cleaning dirty mops than dirty floors. People didn’t need a new soap, they needed a new mop. Shortly after, the Swiffer was born.
Lehrer’s premise is that creative breakthroughs happen when we learn to think differently about things that we do everyday.
Maybe there is a church creativity conundrum because we have a reshape and reinvent mindset. Creative churches are the ones who are willing to forget about the past. Instead of always trying to improve, they are not afraid to create. Instead of reinventing systems that have already served their purpose, they invent systems and practices that have never been thought of before.
Here are a few questions that you should be asking:
- Is my church stuck? If you are unsure, we would glad to help you with a ministry health assessment.
- Am I maximizing my potential as a leader? Possibly you could benefit from a coaching network to help you see ministry from another perspective.
- Is my church structured for success? Our staffing and structure reviews will help you determine the best organizational structure for future growth and get the right people in the right roles.
- Have you clarified your mission, vision and core strategies? We can help you create a strategic operating plan.
