Square Pegs vs. Round Holes
Call me crazy (many have), but I’m a firm believer that life is too short to do something you’re not wired to do. I learned this my first semester in seminary. When you’re in seminary, you...
Category: Volunteer Culture
Why You … Yeah, You … Are Your Church’s Best Culture-Builder
The last decade or so has seen a lot of ink spilled on the topic of culture. We have healthy cultures and toxic cultures. Robust cultures and anemic cultures. Organizational culture, volunteer culture, and staff...
“Because I Should” vs. “Because It Matters”
Motivation makes a difference. Consider your typical volunteer. Or lay leader. Or staff member or spouse or child. Or … ouch … consider yourself. “Because I should” motivates us to serve on the team, do...
Your Job is Not to Make Your Volunteers Happy.
Cared for? Yes. Celebrated? Absolutely. Heard? 100%. Equipped and encouraged and loved? Always. But comfortable? Never. The gravitational pull of any church will always be towards comfort (apologies to Andy Stanley for hijacking his quote)....
Volunteer Culture: How to Lead a Lifer
This is the last of a four-part series on the types of people we find on our volunteer teams. Missed the first part? Get started here. Defining the Lifer In the first post of this series,...
Volunteer Culture: How to Lead a Ladder-Climber
This is the third in a four-part series on the types of people we find on our volunteer teams. Missed the first part? Get started here. Defining the Ladder-Climber In the first post of this...
Volunteer Culture: How to Lead a Laborer
This is part two of a four-part series on the types of people we find on our volunteer teams. Missed the first part? Get started here. Defining the Laborer In the first post of this...
Q&A: How Do I Deal with an Inconsistent Staff Leader?
Q: I’m a volunteer on a ministry team at my church. The staff member who manages our team is inconsistent at best. How can I navigate this? [from the 2024 blog survey] A: It’s hard...
How to Lead a Book Discussion
In a recent post I talked about how to choose a book (or books, because plural books are better) with your volunteers or staff. In this post, I want to talk about how you actually...
Laborers, Ladder-Climbers, and Lifers
For those of us who lead volunteer teams within the church, I think it’s important to get inside the head of our vols: what motivates them? What demotivates them? What makes them feel appreciated? What...
