TEAM DEVELOPMENT

1.         Recruiting Volunteers

        TAKEN FROM THE MAXWELL LEADERSHIP BIBLE, P 1346

Organizations staffed by volunteers require the most leadership of any group.  Such organizations must have good leaders, because their volunteers’ only incentive comes through the vision of the leadership.  The organization gives no salary, no retirement benefits, no perks. The fact is, only a small percentage of volunteers do the work.  Why don’t more people serve?

1.    No one has asked them

Hesitant to infringe on someone else’s territory, they wait to serve until they’re asked.

2.    They have a fear of responsibility.

Afraid that duties may force them to become over-committed, they hesitate to do anything.

3.    They suffer from past burnout.

Having gone from “pillars” to “pew-sitters,” they feel the need to rest and be fed.

4.    They’re intimidated by present workers.

“Pillars” unwilling to exchange power for fresh ideas keep others idle.

5.    They are ignorant of the biblical paradigm for ministry.

Many churches don’t model the priesthood of the believer or the truth of Ephesians 4:11,12.

6.    They have a preoccupation with their personal agenda and busyness.

Most people play defense with their calendar and the ultimate loses to the immediate.

7.    They feel untrained, ill-equipped, and ungifted.

Many people mistakenly believe that only trained or gifted people can serve and, since they have no training or special gifts, they don’t qualify. They don’t know their spiritual gifts nor passion.

8.    They’re unaware of the potions available.

Most leaders wrongly assume that people know the vast opportunities that exist.

9.    They don’t “own” the cause.

Many would sign up for a ministry if they could only catch a vision for the big picture. Help empower them where the ministry opportunity is owned by them.

10.           They are selfish, lazy, and indifferent.

Some don’t get involved simply because they don’t care for anything but themselves.

        So what can be done to mobilize volunteers? Try the following:

1.    Scheduled ministry interviews with new people to explain the opportunities.

2.    Offer training for every position. Model servanthood.

3.    Match ministry opportunities with spiritual gifts. Offer classes on spiritual gifts.

4.    Constantly publicize available ministry options.

5.    Make ministry involvement part of membership.

6.    Create several entry-level positions for the new, apprehensive person. Give opportunities to try something new.

7.    Teach and cast vision on the priesthood of the believer-everyone has a gift to use.

8.    Develop realistic commitment blocks for people to share the load. Volunteers have only so much time.

9.    Rotate as many ministry positions as possible to make room for new people.

10.           Constantly applaud ordinary servants who make a difference.

2.      THINK TEAM

Think of your favorite sports team.  What differentiates great teams from good teams?  Why is it so true that the team with the greatest and most talent does not always win the championship?

What makes a team a team?  There is more than just assembling a group of people together to accomplish a certain goal.  That is true at any age and whatever you are accomplishing.  When my children were very young and playing on a soccer team, which ever team had a player who had a strong leg to kick the ball and could run as fast as anyone on the field (while other players stood watching the action), chances were that team was going to win.  As my kids got older and continued playing on sports teams, the team needed more than one player to “do it all”.  The concept of team became more apparent as you needed everyone else on the team to contribute. 

In the Bible, team concept is very important.  If the understanding of God and the Gospel would continue from generation to generation, it took at team effort.  Not one person could do that alone nor simply writing it down would assure the continuation of spreading the Word of God. 

One of the saddest and most ominous portions of Scripture is found in Judges 2:6-10, as the Israelites took possession of the promised land and Joshua died.  Verse 10 states, “After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel.” A lack of working together between generations caused this to happen. 

Contrast that with Jesus who selected 12 individuals to be His team to see first hand and learn how to carry on the Gospel when Jesus left.  Paul did the same thing as he involved numerous disciples with him in carrying out the spreading the gospel throughout his known world. 

As leaders of ministries, we have the choice to include people or do it on our own.  We can be like the sports teams of young children that only need one player to carry the team or we can choose to develop teams that involve everyone on the team because each person brings certain skills and abilities to the team. 

It is so easy to develop the mindset that I will do the task myself.  I do not have to involve anyone, train anyone or watch as I allow someone else to do the work who will not do it the same way as I would.  It takes work to bring someone along, showing the person how to do something, offering the tools and resources to accomplish the task and then letting the person take that responsibility and make it their own. 

It is easier to simply say I will do it my way and my way IS the best.  It is easier to keep my pride and ego in the way and block others from developing their skills and abilities, to keep the praises to myself (and then to blame the failures on others because they did not cooperate with you).  Trust me, no matter the task, the great majority of time it is easier to do it by yourself and your way!

That is not team and that leads to failure like in Judges 2:10.  The responsibility of the gospel is bigger than you or I.  We are one small part of the whole picture of the Kingdom.  If Jesus determined the best way to develop the Body of Christ was to involve a team, who are we that we are bold enough to say that what I am doing on earth for the Kingdom of God, I will do it alone.  That is pride and has no place in developing the Kingdom.

3.      BUILDING THE KINGDOM AS A TEAM

No man (or woman) is an island.  We interact with people all the time.  That is the human dynamic and God created us to be social beings.  It is a gift from Him and one that He wants us to use in forwarding the Kingdom of God.

Only in the way God can make it happen, He brings people into our lives to co-labor together in the Kingdom.  We have the choice to accept or reject those gracious gifts.  The Body of Christ is to help us complete our tasks and complement, not compete with, one another’s giftings.  Members of the Body are our teammates.  As spiritual leaders we are to build our team members up. 

We become stronger spiritually when we work together (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10).  God brings gifted people into our lives to help us accomplish the tasks God has laid on our hearts.  If you can accomplish those opportunities continuously by yourself, the likelihood is that you are not looking to see who God is bringing along side you to accomplish your tasks or there is pride in your life where you do not want help. 

If you do not want your team member to be successful in ministry, then there is a pride or jealousy issue.  Get over it.  One of the main responsibilities of a spiritual leader is to develop others, so the Kingdom is enhanced and continued. 

Look at the people who cross into your life.  They may be the answers to the assignments you have.  Just as described in Acts 13:1-3, the Holy Spirit will affirm those team members.   Henry Blackaby said, “The Holy Spirit guides companions together, whether the leader identifies the companion or the companion is drawn to a leader.  It is still evidence of the Spirit at work in the hearts of the people.” 

If you have a vision or dream from God to accomplish some task, it is bigger than you.  Jesus had His team.  Paul involved many companions to accomplish his mission.  Nehemiah did not rebuild Jerusalem’s walls by himself.  If your vision is to reach your neighbor, this will take other Christians sharing and living their lives in such a way that the Holy Spirit will draw the person to Christ. 

How we treat team members is very important to God.  Treat them correctly.  The value of a team member is priceless if they are like-minded (1 Corinthians 1:10).  Recall the friendship between Jonathan and David.  Jonathan had every human right to be jealous and angry because he was the lawful heir to the king’s throne.  Yet he knew David would be the next king of Israel and chose to love David. 

From 1 Samuel 18 and 20, we know Jonathan and David were like-minded.  The love that flowed between the two are an example of how we should respect and care for team members.  There was no jealousy.  Jonathan wanted only the best for David, desiring him to be successful and made David more important than himself. 

If we have leaders over us, honor and respect them, serve them with sincere hearts.  If we are in charge of others, honor and respect them, love them and care for their needs.  If we made everyone else’s needs more important than our own, the world would see a love for others that would draw them to Jesus.  Christians need to be the example to the world of how a team respects and cares for one another and works together.  What kind of team are you and I promoting?

4.        WORKING TOGETHER AS A TEAM

How do we work together in a team?  What qualities are needed to be a team that pursues God?  First be an example.  Submit and be humble before your team members.  Demanding unquestioned submission and blind loyalty is not biblical.

As spiritual leaders, we need to help fan the flame of our team members’ giftings.  (2 Timothy 1:6-8).  We have the opportunity to see the potential and offer opportunities to grow in their areas of gifting.  Often it can be the encouragement from a leader that takes a mentoree to a whole new level.  According to Henry Blackaby, “Part of our role should be to affirm God’s call on the lives of our companions and to do everything we can to ensure their success and obedience to God’s assignments.  We are not to stand in their way or in any way cancel their God-given vision or tasks.”

Look at the mentoring/discipling model in Scripture.  A person who holds you back from your ministry is not one who is walking beside you.  You are supposed to accomplish more together, thus adding up individual efforts.  That is synergy.

If we leaders help those who come after us, there will be a respect and love which leads to a wonderful legacy for us (I Thessalonians 1:3)   Our team members or disciples are not given to us to make us look good or successful.  They are not to be manipulated to be loyal, no matter what.  Make sure you encourage their first loyalty is to Jesus, even if that goes against our plans or desires.  For all of us, our first loyalty is to Jesus!  Power has a way of corrupting that principle.

Invest in your team member’s life and the lives of his family (I Corinthians 10:15-16).  The biggest reason why missionaries leave the field is due to relationship conflicts.  As the leader you need to care for your team members and their families.  Task ministry means nothing if you abuse your staff.

Loyalty and the next core value has to be to spouses and families.  Husbands and wives need to share visions and dreams God gave to them.  It goes both ways.  If a wife has a vision for ministry, the husband needs to be supportive and encouraging even if it gives her a more prominent role in the Kingdom.    This does not mean the spouse has to physically be involved in the ministry of the other spouse.  Being like-minded is what is needed.  As spiritual leaders, we need to affirm our team members’ spouses and families and make sure from our responsibility that we are not making our team compromise between ministry and family.

Our team members may be given more prominent roles in ministry than us.  Affirm that.  Do not let jealousy get in the way.  Look at John the Baptist – “He must increase, I must decrease.” (John 3:30)  That was a humble attitude.  Consider Barnabas who “found” Paul, and was willing to take a risk with Paul.  Paul became the prominent figure in ministry.  Never once do you see Barnabas get upset or feel slighted.

It is easy to try to be our team members’ hero or God’s gift to them, their secondary Savior!  Recall Paul and Barnabas being hailed as gods in Lystra (Acts 14:11-13).  They were so distraught over being called that, that they tore their clothes as a sign of great anguish.  Would some of us have relished that and enjoyed all the notoriety?  Rather, we should be greatly humbled when God allows us to be the leader of a group of His people.  We will be accountable before God on how we handled those opportunities. 

It must be said of us that by following our example, people follow Jesus (I Cor. 11:1), but He lived humbly and submissively!  Forgive when wronged.  Be honest and sincere when having to give a reference for a team member or former one.  If they wronged you, make sure you do not slander them.

5.        TEAM DIVERSITY – USING YOUR TEAM’S GIFTS

In I Samuel 17, Israel and the Philistines came out to battle, yet Israel was afraid.  Goliath came out for forty straight days and mocked both God and the Israelites.  He was a daunting figure.  To say he was muscular is a bit of understating just how strong and powerful he was.  He definitely could be selected to play on my (American) football or rugby team, by being my first selection.  Israel was terrified of Goliath.

The youngest brother, a youth, David, is sent to the battlefield by his father, Jesse, to bring some food to his oldest brothers (v. 12-22) and check to see how they were doing.  That first day he was at the battlefield, David heard the taunts of Goliath and saw the Israelites flee!  David wondered why no one from Israel challenged Goliath, which got his oldest brother, Eliab, very angry at him (v. 29-31).   This only seemed to inspire David even more to go fight Goliath (v. 29-31).

David was brought before Saul and, almost mockingly, Saul told David to go fight the giant, but David should wear Saul’s armor.  It didn’t fit David, nor did David have the strength to handle Saul’s sword (v. 32-39).  Someone else’s equipment did not work for David.  Rather, he knew the gifts and abilities he possessed.  He had fought animals with his slingshot and bare hands (v. 40-44).

We know the rest of the story.  David defeated Goliath with one shot from his slingshot (v. 45-50).  The Israelites routed the Philistines that day because someone possessed courage given to him by God and trusted in the God-given abilities and gifts given him.

When we work together with others and part of our responsibility is to determine the gifts and abilities of our team members, let us give them honest assessment of their giftings.  It is so easy to allow our pride (and ego) to step in and degrade or place less emphasis on another’s abilities.  Often we want to place our giftings and the way we have done things upon others, thinking that we have freed up people to do the work.  That is not empowering others, rather that is enslaving people.

David was enslaved by Saul’s armor, his giftings.  Using Saul’s sword, if David were to succeed, Saul could have said it was his sword that killed Goliath.  Saul had to believe David had no chance to defeat Goliath, especially after the refusal of his armor, the very equipment Saul used to defeat many enemies before.

Giving team members a responsibility and offering resources and training to help them accomplish the task is part of the process of empowering.  The key piece that is needed next is allowing the team member to perform the task using their own gifts and abilities.    They take ownership and want to make their responsibility succeed.

Do I want to help people succeed, or do I want to help people make me succeed (and look good)?  Empowering someone will allow them to reap the rewards and possibly propel them into greater things than what you or I have accomplished.  Are we willing to serve others that way?

6.        EQUIPPING THE TEAM

“A true leader is not someone who can do the work of ten people, but someone who can organize ten people to do the work.”  Dale Galloway.  We have a fallacy in our minds that we are irreplaceable.  That is not a Biblical concept. 

From Ephesians 4:11-12, we learn the truth that Biblical leadership is expressed in different ways through a variety of gifts.  “It was he (Christ) who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists and some to be pastors and teachers, (12) to prepare (equip) God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.”  The second truth on leadership here is the equipping of others for the work of service is what a Biblical leader needs to do. 

To be a Biblical leader, you must not only exercise your spiritual gift but also prepare and help develop other believers to serve the Body, to do ministry.  Could we be as so bold to say that if you are in a spiritual leadership position and not working to equip believers for service, you are not a Biblical leader? 

God has graciously given us fellow believers to work together in the Body to do ministry.  To say no to companions in ministry is to spit on God’s grace and not help keep ourselves accountable.  It is selfish ambition, perhaps jealousy and we are allowing pride to permeate into us.  God clearly shows throughout Scripture (mentoring/discipling) that we are to minister with fellow believers and constantly be helping to equip them especially those who come after us to enhance and continue the Kingdom. 

To equip another is to help that person become fully prepared, to not be deficient in any way.  Having a like-minded team member who is able to maturely serve is priceless.  It takes time, working together, getting the person involved with others who have similar gifts and be given opportunities to serve in their gifted area(s) to develop that person.  

Biblical leaders need to look for the potential in other Christians and then help develop that potential.  That does take effort and extra time.

Doing it the same way or with the same people does make our lives easier but does very little if anything to equip the next generation of leaders.  Who can you take under your responsibility and help develop?  Who is ready to go to their next level of commitment if just given the opportunity to be used the way God created them?  Ask God to show you who can build into, proving yourself as a Biblical leader.      

7.         2 Timothy 3 – Practical Application in Mentoring

3:1-5

-         Last days – from the first century to the second coming of Jesus.   Paul must have felt that this type of people were already involved in Ephesus.

-         19 general characteristics will describe these people.  All go against the nature of God – selfish, conceited, greedy, haters of good, disobedient, vicious, unforgiving, total pleasure seeking – “pray to win the lottery”.

-         Form (outward shape) of godliness but deny its power.  Godliness implies a good and holy life, a deep reverence for God.  Titus 1:16 – “They claim to know God, but their actions deny Him.  They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.”

-         On the outside, you look like a growing, loving Christian, but on the inside you are a fake!   Coke bottle – Pharisees – Matt. 23.

3:6-9

-         False teachers had gotten into the Ephesus church body.  These false teachers had entered or slyly gotten involved in homes where there were women who had a real problem with sin, with people who were vulnerable and gullible.  Because these women struggled morally, they were spiritually immature and very vulnerable to any kind of teachings.  They could never recognize the real truth.

-         Jannes and Jambres were two of Pharaoh’s magicians, according to Jewish tradition, who opposed and competed against Moses when Moses went to Pharaoh to have the Israelites freed.  Their folly, or inadequacies, were quickly revealed and so also will those who are of depraved or corrupt minds have the truth revealed about them.  God has rejected them.

-         This is a warning to us that what we teach needs to be biblical.  (Also, when we discuss issues that are not totally absolute (Biblical vs. traditional cultures), as found in Scripture, doctrines that allow discussion and some disagreement, we need to gently and meekly present our arguments, because we most likely do not have the whole understanding.)

3:10-13     -       New focus, new discussion topic

(10-11)      How did Timothy know about all these situations regarding Paul?  About the imprisonments and getting sent out of these cities?

        Acts 16 on – Timothy spent a great deal of time with Paul being mentioned!

Mentoring  (discipling) includes Bible Study, being together, discussing life issues, enjoying life together, sharing wisdom, letting the person you are mentoring see all aspects of who you are.

   I Cor. 11:1 – no Bible in those days, people had to see Jesus     

        in you.

   I Thess. 2:6-10 –

   Titus 1:5 –

(12)  Want to live a godly life – you will suffer for it.  As the days get nearer to Jesus’ return, evil will become more rampant and the godly will receive the punishment.

3:14-15

Continue follow the foundation laid by Timothy’s mother and grandmother and Paul, where Timothy was grounded in the Scriptures (Old Testament).  A Jewish boy would begin learning the OT at age 5.  Mom and grandma were teaching him before that age.  The Scripture opens us to salvation.

3:16-17

1)     All of Scripture (OT and now NT) is God-breathed, inspired. . . Holy Spirit worked, spoke through men to put down in writing God’s Words – without error.

2)     A.     Teaching (instructing Christians in God’s truths)

B.     Rebuking (those who are sinning) so people don’t follow their paths and that they may come to repentance; i.e., loving your enemies – no.  Correct way, love your enemies.

C.     Correcting (guiding those in error, in sin, to the proper, correct say of living).

D.     Training (child-rearing, showing our children the proper ways), in righteousness (guiding new believers in God’s ways) – helping develop people, equipping and empowering.

3)   (v. 17) Why use Scripture for these purposes?  So that the

        man of God (one who must provide spiritual leadership to

        others) is equipped, complete, capable, proficient in every

        way, furnished with the tools to complete every good work

        presented to him or her.

In other words, we use the Bible to develop people to become spiritual leaders so that they can perform, function, complete every good work they are involved in.

We need to feed the Word into our own lives and into the lives of others whom we have been given to help train (Eph. 4:11-12).  If you equip, then you are a Biblical leader.  The Bible will be the guide needed to accomplish that.

4)     Developing the next generation to deal with false

        teachings, hypocrisy and persecution, follow what Paul did

        with Timothy.

                A.     Mentor (30-second test) – team teach with WILD.

                B.     Feed the Word into their lives – Rom. 12:2 – Renew

                        the mind.

8.        PERSONALITY CONFLICTS IN TEAMS

In Act 13:13, Paul, Barnabas and John Mark sailed to Perga in the Pamphylia region.  At that seaport, John Mark decided to leave the ministry team.  We are never given really any reasons for his leaving.  What we do know, he became the point that caused Paul and Barnabas to split.  The leadership roles had changed in the previous city of Paphos.  John Mark had agreed to join the team when Barnabas was still the point leader. 

Barnabas’ and Paul’s styles of leadership were different because their personalities were also quite different.  Paul was more of a dominant type while Barnabas was loyal and more of a people person.  Paul would be the general of the army and Barnabas would be his loyal assistant who encouraged the troops to be faithful to General Paul. 

Thus the change in leadership and the fact that John Mark was much more loyal to Barnabas because they were related, may have been determining factors in Mark’s decision.  His maturity was still a work in progress, so he could have acted more on emotions than the stability to learn how to work with someone different in personality. Paul accused John Mark of lacking courage and commitment.  (Acts 15:37-38)

The Team Separates (Acts 15:36-40)

About three years after completing the first journey, Paul wanted to revisit the churches that they had established on the first journey.  Barnabas was in agreement with this idea and so made plans with Paul to head out.

The major problem between Paul and Barnabas came when Barnabas said he wanted to take John Mark along again.  Paul was in sharp disagreement for that to happen.  It was unwise, because John Mark had deserted the team on the first trip in Pamphylia, shortly after landing from Cyprus.  He had been involved in very little of the work on that first trip.

Now we do not know all of Paul’s arguments against taking John Mark, but they were severe enough that Paul and Barnabas could not come to a solution or agreement on John Mark, and the team broke up.  Again, John Mark was related to Barnabas and Barnabas was a people person.  He was quick to forgive, faster to see the positive aspects of a person and dwell on them.  Barnabas’ nature was to encourage, high on praise and be praised, hated rejection and was loyal.  He was warm, empathetic, good people/problem solver, was understanding, approachable, good listener, but was probably over-tolerant with non-producers and sometimes lost sight of the task because he was so concerned with the people.  Barnabas was a counselor.  Paul desired accomplishment and perfection, had aggressiveness tempered by sensitivity, and sometimes projected coolness toward people and aloofness.  He was creative, a confronter.  He was innovative and decisive and had little tolerance for those that struggled with his authoritative role.

As for John Mark, he had abandoned Paul and Barnabas for whatever reason(s) on the first journey.  It could have been the change in authority from Barnabas to Paul on that journey.  John Mark probably was more comfortable with Barnabas.  Maybe he had gotten sick, his youthfulness, or just had not matured enough spiritually to stick with a commitment, no matter the cost.

Most likely a minimum of four years had passed, and John Mark had matured and developed some.  He probably had been exposed to Paul and Barnabas’ training in Antioch.  Yet Paul would not hear of any sympathetic plea to involve John Mark again.  Yes, John had matured a bit, but he still was the one who abandoned the team and you can’t trust him (yet).  Paul’s personality included a fault of having a harder time than normal to forgive.

So, was it God’s will for Paul and Barnabas to separate?  The story is in Scripture and they both continued to have great careers, but that does not automatically mean it was God’s will.  We don’t read of Barnabas again in Acts, which is not necessarily an argument that it was not God’s will.  Obviously, John Mark continued to develop as Paul utilizes him later in Paul’s life, as one of Paul’s helpers (Colossians 4:10).  The separation of Paul and Barnabas created two mission endeavors, instead of one.

God does work through conflict and disagreement between people.  Christians do not always agree.  Problems can be solved by agreeing to disagree, and let God work His will.  Paul was the leader and focal point of the next surge of God’s work, as Paul had been given the vision.

What personality conflicts could result between Paul and Barnabas?

Did they handle this conflict over John Mark correctly?

What are arguments, both for and against taking John Mark?

Was it God’s will to not take John Mark, and that Barnabas and Paul separate?

Describe both Paul and Barnabas.  Who in your church is similar in personality to them?

9.        DEMAS – NOT ALL WORK OUT

How much do you love Jesus?  When life is not tough and it is pretty easy to be a Christian, answering that question can be very misleading. In the New Testament Paul worked with many people.  Demas is mentioned a few places as a fellow worker and even highly regarded (Colossians 4:14, Philemon 24), but in 2 Timothy 4:10, Paul told Timothy Demas left him because Demas loved this world. 

The way Paul described Demas leaving or deserting him is very strong.  The idea is when Demas left Paul, Paul was left in a difficult situation, “holding the bag”.  Demas’ timing was not good as he was in charge of some very important ministry responsibilities.  Without Demas, Paul needed Timothy to come very quickly to fill that void.  How could someone like Demas bolt from the scene so quickly?

Well, Paul made the bold statement that Demas loved this world.  Paul himself was in a very difficult situation, close to his death, possibly in prison and Demas could not handle it.  Loving the world more than loving Jesus is very dangerous in your relationship with Jesus as it shows hatred toward Him (James 4:4).  Thus, when it is no longer easy to be a Christian and there is a cost to stand for Jesus, you won’t. 

What is loving this world more than Jesus?  One aspect is denying Jesus when you may get laughed at or shunned.  Another is when the opportunity arises be involved in a good, clean activity and you choose to do something that is wrong.  There will be times when you want to hang out with a group of “friends” and do stuff that does not honor God, or you know in your heart that you should do something that honors God and you do not do it because people may ridicule you or it make take some hard work to accomplish.  Opportunities will come up to laugh and encourage jokes or statements that are derogatory and demeaning to others and you join in.  Or, perhaps you are simply afraid to let people know that you are a Christian because you fear what others will think or say about you.

If you frequently do not want to be associated with Jesus, then you need to revisit your relationship with Jesus – whether you have one or not.  Someone can hang around Jesus all their life and still not be a Christian.  Look at Judas’ life.  Do not be a Demas.  Make sure about your relationship with Jesus and ask Him for strength and courage to live the way that will honor Him.

10.      QUALITIES IN BECOMING A GODLY TEAM MEMBER

1. Relationship with God

Who you are flows out of your relationship with God

1.    Christ centered living-Galatians 2:20, Romans 8:5-17,      John 15:5-8, Mark 7:14-23

2.    Being accountable to each other to live Christ centered lives- Ecclesiastics 4:9-12, Proverbs 27:17

3.    Genuine love and grace- John 13:34-35, John 8:1-12;15:12-13, Ephesus 5:1-2

4.    Fruit of the spirit comes out as you allow the holy spirit to control you- Galatians 5:16-26

5.    Faithful walk- 1 Corinthians 11:1, 1 Thessalonians 2:7-12, Ephesians 5:1-2

6.    Committed-you can be counted upon to be one of the team when the team needs you-1Corinthians 1:10, John 17:20-23, Ephesians 5:15-21

B.                Key Features of a Team Member

1.    Faithful or responsible to the team-Matthew 6:33, 25:14-30, Luke 19:11-27, John 21:18-22 Have pure motives as you are involved with your team James 1:6-7. Make sure the team can count on your to be there and pursuing excellence in all you do (Luke 16:10-12, Colossians 3:23)

2.    Be available to do whatever, having a servant’s heart and be flexible or adaptable- John 13:1-17, Luke 2:52, Acts 10:1-23(24-48) Recall Peter when he was faced with the opportunity to meet with the gentiles, specifically cornelian, it took him some time to work through this new ministry concept- Act. 10. Don’t let your theology or the way you have done things, keep you from doing things differently in the future (don’t let the old way, habit, get in the way of ministry or serving.  You may very well be criticized for being wiling to be flexible or doing things differently but if God is leading , hang in there (Acts 11)

3.    Be teachable-Luke 5:4-5, Proverbs 12:15, 2 Timothy 2:2 Be willing to have an open mind to learn from all sorts of people.  Shutting yourself off from people’s new, fresh ideas.  Having a non-teachable attitude comes down to a pride issue and makes having that person on a team, very difficult.

4.    Be competent or prepared.-Colossians 3:23-24, Luke 6:46-49;9:57-62;14:25-33 there is no excuse for not working to develop yourself for what God has for you. He will give you the tools. Resources, help you need to accomplish his will.  It is a matter of us being obedient to his leading.  You become a valuable team member when you properly prepare yourself for the task ahead.

C.                A Quality Attitude

1.    Have the thought process, mindset of Jesus (serve)-Philippians 2:3-8, Luke 22:24-26

2. Let there be no envy, jealousy or bitterness be in you- Ephesians 4:25-32, Ephesians 5: 3-7, Philippians 2:14-15

3. Seek wisdom-James 1:5-8, Philippians 4:8

4. Be a grace giver- Luke 7:36-50, Colossians 3:12-14, Hebrews 12:14-15

5. Be disciplined “Discipline is doing what you really don’t want to do so that you can do what you really want to do.  It’s paying the price in the little things so that you can buy the bigger things.” John Maxwell.  Constantly be renewing your mind-1 Corinthians 9:24-27, Luke 16:10-12, Romans 12:1-2, Philippians 4:8, 2 Thessalonians 2:7-13, James 3:3-6, Hebrews 12:7-11

6. Never Quit, pursuer excellence- Hebrews 12:1-2, Colossians 3:23, 1 Corinthians 10:31, Colossians 3:1-2, James 1:12

7. Communicate well-Ephesians 4:29, Matthew 15:1-11,17-20, James 1:19-21

8. Pursue developing yourself so as to invest in and empower others.  Have a growth plan you can not wisely lead someone where you have not been yourself.  Always be growing and developing personally, emotionally, socially, physically and spiritually.-Mark 1:35, Luke 2:52;5:16, James 1:22-25, 1 Corinthians 10:23-24,2 Timothy 3:10-15, Philippians 4:9:11-13, James 3:13-18, 1 Samuel 16:7, 2 Timothy 2:2, John 1:40-42, Mark 3:13-15

9. Work together-1 Corinthians 1:10-13;12:4-11, Ephesians 4:11-13 John Maxwell- To collaborative team members, completing one another is more important than competing with one another. Bob Taylor- Building the team is as important as producing the product. Work at building relationships- Mark 3:13-15, John 3:16-18;10:1-5

10. Pay the price of being a team member. Your idea becomes our idea. Learn to understand the other team members and develop yourself to be able to work with basically anyone.-Galatians 2:20;6:7-10, 2 Corinthians 9;6-11, Philippians 2:3-4, John 17:15-21, 1 Corinthians 12:14-26, 1 Corinthians 3:1-9.

11. Keep the big picture of why you are on this earth your goals-Philippians 3:7-14, Acts 17:26, Acts 20:24, Matthew 28:18-20, 1 Corinthians 4:1-2

D.             Working with those in authority over you.

1.     How to pray for them-Romans 12:10;14:9;15:1-7, 1 Corinthians 14:26; 16:15-16, Galatians 6:10, Ephesians 1:17-19;4:1-3;32;5:21, Philippians 1:9-11,27, Colossians 1:9-12;3:14-17, 1 Thessalonians 1:6-7;3:10

2.     Follow the principle of Hebrews 13:17

3.     Don’t undermine the leadership team. Recall the relationship between Moses and Joshua. Joshua was Moses’ young aide and say Moses go through a lot of leadership experiences. Moses trusted in him and gave him important responsibility . Joshua was one of the 12 spies sent to check out the promise land. Caleb and he were the only spies excited about claiming what God promised the Israelites Joshua learned to put his confidence in God by watching and being mentored by Moses. Yet when the moment to trust God and claim the promise land came, Moses did not have the spiritual courage to do that. (Numbers 13-14) It had to crush Joshua. Then for the next 40 years, the Israelites wandered in the wilderness.  Perhaps each day Joshua, who was still Moses’ key aid and advisor, had to think about that decision made by the people and specifically Moses to not trust God for the promised land.  Yet no where do we read in Numbers or Deuteronomy that Joshua spoke ill about Moses, nor once did he try to undermine Moses’ leadership. He had a great deal of justification to rise up against Moses but didn’t. That showed his character and faith in God.  Ultimately Joshua was given the responsibility to lead the new generation of Israelites into the Promise Land. Joshua had security in his calling as being the associate to Moses until God chose to take Moses out of the picture. Romans 13:1-7

4.     Careful how you treat those in authority over you- Romans 13:1-7, 1 Timothy 2:1-4, Hebrews 13:17

5.     This also applies when working for difficult or terrible leaders

A.     Remember David serving under Saul-1 Samuel 18:5-16 Saul became so afraid and jealous of David that he wanted to kill David 1 Samuel 19:1-2;20:1-2,24-33

B.     David chose not to kill God’s anointed for God will take people out of power when his timing is right. 1 Samuel 24:1-13.  Be very careful what you say and how you respond to those in leadership over you.  God is in control. You may not like or even hate your leader but that is no reason to respond in a way that is disobedient to God. (1 Samuel 25:1-31;37-39)

C.     Though it is a terrible time you go through with a bad leader, God may just be developing your character or preparing you for an opportunity in your life that you will have needed to go through this experience.  Going through difficult times develops our character and also you see what is really in your heart. (2 Corinthians 1:8-11) Often in the Bible future and present leaders had to go through difficult situations.  Joseph (Genesis 37,39-41) went through thirteen years of difficult experiences to get him where God ultimately used him to save the Israelites.  Daniel faced a decree that was really unfair but showed his Character (Daniel 6). Esther was faced with the prospect of death as she faced a crisis (Esther 4)

D.     Sometimes decisions you make bring hardship upon yourself from a bad leader or simply the consequences of a sin.  Moses due to his character flaw (anger) spent 40 years in the wilderness to keep from being killed by Pharaoh (Exodres1-3). David committing terrible sins had the prophet Nathan share the consequences of his sin and how that greatly affected the nation of Israel (1Sammuel 11-12).  Add in Jeremiah who also was led by God to announce condemnation on Israel and suffered dearly for it.

E.     You may be used by God like Daniel with Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 2) and Mordecai (Esther 2:19-4:17) to speak truth into a leader (good or bad) that could change that person’s life (Ephesians 4:15).  Again Nathan was called upon to speak truth into David’s life.  These are not easy times but God has a purpose in everything he offers to you to accomplish.  Know that it is God you are serving and if you are being obedient to God, let the consequences happen. (2 Samuel 16:5-14)

F.      You could face a terrible price or consequence for being obedient to God and faithful in serving the terrible leader. John the Baptist died for staying up for truth (Matthew 14:1-12). So did Jesus your Character, reputation could be slandered. You may be fired for living a holy life.  Doing your job well and following the rules doesn’t always guarantee you wont go through the fire (Daniel 3 ) or the lion’s den (Daniel 6) and survive your job. (1 Corinthians 4:12-13). Do what is right and keep your eyes focused on God. ( 1 Peter 2:19-24, 3:17-18).  

11.       FOLLOWERSHIP

1.     Definition – Follower is someone who helps, ministers to or want

to be of service to another. 

2.     Why be a follower?

        - Learning or teaching process for becoming a leader

        - In order to pursue or accomplish a vision, you need followers

        - We are followers sometimes.  We are not the leader in everything.

- The ways we are sometimes spiritually gifted, warrants following

- In order to work together, you need those who will follow

- Be part of a group

- It is BIbical.  If you want to lead, then serve

- God may be preparing you for the next step in your faith journey

- You want to be closely involved with the leader whom you admire

- You can learn many good lessons as a follower.

- You do not have to take all the grief.

3.     Attributes of a good follower.

        - Trustworthy                                        - Problem solver

        - Loyal                                                  - Think on your own

        - Innovative/creative                             - Initiative

        - Can give constructive criticism         - Take ownership

        - Teachable                                          - Available

        - Very competent                                  - Self-starter

        - Finisher                                              - Go beyond expectations   

        - Pursue excellence – Doing your best for the organization

        - Understand the vision and direction of the organization

4.     Why is it important to have the attitude of being a servant as a follower?

In order to be like Jesus, we need to follow His example of servanthood and have the same attitude and mind as Him (Luke 22:24-26, John 13:1-17, Philippians 2:3-5, Romans 12:1-2).  You cannot Biblically serve others if you do not come with a humble attitude and desiring to build up the other person and try to meet that person’s need.  It is easy to serve with a terrible or selfish attitude, which really is not serving but rather performing a job for someone else that has to be completed.  Jesus always had others in mind no matter what He was doing.  That has to be our goal.  Then we will be godly followers because of our attitude of serving.

5.                             THE FOLLOWERSHIP TEST

                                p90-117, “The Power of Followership, Robert Kelly, 1992

                               (Injoy Life Club, John C. Maxwell, Vol 9, Number 2, The Art of Followership

                                    0          1          2          3          4          5          6

                              Rarely                     Occasionally                 Almost always

            1.         Does your work help you fulfill some societal goal or personal dream that

                        is important to you?                  Nehemiah 1, Luke 9:51-56

            2.         Are your personal work goals aligned with the organization’s priority

                        goals?               Matt. 28:18-20, Mark 12:28-33, Eph. 5:21

            3.         Are you highly committed to and energized by your work and

                        organization, giving them your best ideas and performance?

                        Col. 3:23, 2 Cor. 9:6-8, I Tim. 3:1-10, Gen. 39.

            4.         Does your enthusiasm also spread to and energize your co-workers?

                        Phil. 2:3-5, Eph. 5:15-20.

            5.         Instead of waiting for or merely accepting what the leader tells you, do

                        you personally identify which organizational activities are most critical

                        for achieving the organization’s priority goals?  Matt. 16:13-20,

                        Rom. 12:2, Matt. 28:18-20, Mark 12:28-33.

            6.         Do you actively develop a distinctive competence in those critical

                        activities so that you become more valuable to the leader and the

                        organization?    Luke 2:52, Matt. 25:14-30

            7.         When starting a new job or assignment, do you promptly build a record

                        of successes in tasks that are important to the leader?    Luke 19:11-27,

                        Acts 10, Acts 13:13-48

            8.         Can the leader give you a difficult assignment without the benefit of

                        much supervision, knowing that  you will meet your deadline with

                        highest-quality work and that you will “fill in the cracks” if need be?

                        Titus 1, Philemon, Gal. 6:7-10.

            9.         Do you take the initiative to seek out and successfully complete

                        assignments that go above and beyond your job?           Luke 19:11-27,

                        Col. 3:23, Luke 16:10-12, Matt. 25:14-30.

            10.       When you are not the leader of a group project, do you still contribute

                        at a high level, often doing more than your share?  Phil. 2:3-5.

            11.       Do you independently think up and champion new ideas that will

                        contribute significantly to the leader’s or the organization’s goals?

                        Matt. 16:13-20, Rom. 12:2.

            12.       Do you try to solve the tough problems (technical or organizational),

                        rather than look to the leader to do it for you?  Acts 10

            13.       Do you help out other co-workers, making them look good, even when

                        you don’t get any credit?           Luke 22:24-26, Phil. 2:3-5, John 13:1-17.

            14.       Do you help the leader or group see both the upside potential and down-

                        side risks of ideas or  plans, playing the devil’s advocate if need be?

                        Matt. 28:18-20, Luke 16:1-9, 9:57-62.

            15.       Do you understand the leader’s needs, goals, and constraints, and work

                        hard to help meet them?            Mark 12:28-33

            16.       Do you actively and honestly own up to your strengths and weaknesses

                        rather than put off evaluation?   I Cor. 12:1-8, Rom. 12:3-5, Gal. 6:1-5.

            17.       Do you make a habit of internally questioning the wisdom of the

                        leader’s decision rather than just doing what you are told?   Rom. 13:1-5,

                        Luke 5:1-11, Eph. 5:21.

            18.       When the leader asks you to do something that runs contrary to your

                        professional or personal preferences, do you say “no” rather than “yes?”

                        Rom. 13:1-5, Eph. 5:21.

            19.       Do you act on your own ethical standards rather than the leader’s or

                        the group’s standards?              I Tim. 3:1-10, Gen. 39.

            20.       Do you assert your own views on important issues, even though it might

                        mean conflict with your group or reprisals from the leader?  Esther 4,

                        Numbers 13-14.

                  Followership Styles

                      INDEPENDENT,  CRITICAL THINKING

                        50

                                                Alienated                                                               Exemplary

                                                Followers                                                               Followers

                        45

                        40

                               Pragmatist

                                Followers

0          15        20        30           40        45           60 

                        20

                        15

                                                Passive                                                                  Conformist

                                                Followers                                                               Followers

                         0

            DEPENDENT, UNCRITICAL THINKING

Followership                 Independent Thinking                Active Engagement

Style                             Score                                       Score

EXEMPLARY             High                                         High

ALIENATED               High                                         Low

CONFORMIST          Low                                         High

PRAGMATIST            Middlling                                  Middling

PASSIVE                    Low                                         Low

Finding Your Leadership Style

Let’s return to the questionnaire.   Use the

scoring key below to score your answers to

the questions.

Independent Thinking Items

                         Scoring

Question           1.                  

                          5.                  

                        11.                  

                        12.                  

                        14.                  

                        16.                  

                        17.                  

                        18.                  

                        19.                  

                        20.                  

Active Engagement Items

                         Scoring

Question            2.                  

                          3.                  

                          4.                  

                          6.                  

                          7.                  

                          8.                  

                          9.                  

                        10.                  

                        13.                  

                        15.                  

The Alienated Follower

Reason:            Unmet expectations and broken trust

Are you someone whose positive self-image includes:

-         Being a maverick who thinks for yourself?

-         Having a healthy skepticism that sees things for what they really are?

-         Playing the devil’s advocate in the group?

-         Being the organizational conscience?

-         Sticking up for the little person?

-          

Yet have you picked up from others that they don’t always share your perception?

In fact, do some people, especially leaders, view you as:

-         Troublesome, cynical or negative?

-         Having a chip on your shoulder – a rebel without a cause?

-         Headstrong and lacking judgment?

-         Not a team player?

-         Adversarial to the point of being hostile?

-          

The leader must give this person            (1)        Time

                                                                 (2)        Credibility

The Conformist

Reason:            Lack of personal confidence

Do you and leaders view your positive attributes as:

-         Accepting assignments easily and gladly doing the work?

-         Team playing?

-         Trusting and committing yourself to the leader or the organization?

-         Minimizing conflict?

-         Being non-threatening to the leader?

-          

But have you also gotten feedback from co-workers, your spouse, or even the leader that  you are also seen as:

-         Lacking your own ideas?

-         Unwilling to take an unpopular position and stick to it?

-         Averse to conflict?

-         Compromising your or your family’s needs and ideas to please the organization?

The leader must give this person            (1)        Confidence

                                                                 (2)        Affirmation

The Pragmatist

Reason:            Survival is a priority

Are you someone who sees the positive aspects of your followership style as:

-         Being attuned to the shifting winds of organizational politics?

-         Knowing how to work the system to get things done?

-         Keeping things in perspective?

-         Toeing in the middle line so as to keep the organization from going overboard in either direction?

-         Playing by the rules and regulations?

Yet do others sometimes interpret these in a negative light and see you as:

-         Playing political games?

-         Bargaining to maximize your own self-interest?

-         Being averse to risk and prone to cover your tracks?

The leader must give this person            (1)        Purpose

                                                                 (2)        Permission to fail

The Passive Follower

Reason:            Either don’t want to follow or don’t know how

-         Rely on the leader’s judgment and thinking?

-         Take action only when the boss gives instructions?

-         Let the people who get paid for it handle the headaches?

Have your co-workers or your boss grumbled about  your work performance, indicating that you:

-         Are only putting in your time, but little else?

-         Don’t do your share?

-         Require an inordinate amount of supervision relative to your contribution?

-         Follow the crowd without considering why?

The leader must give this person            (1)        Followership equipping

                                                                 (2)        Responsibility

The Exemplary Follower

Exemplary followers are different from other followers in that they perform well on both underlying dimensions of followership.  On the one hand, they exercise independent, critical thinking, separate from the leader or the group.  Leaders and co-workers describe them as “thinking for themselves.”  They “are their own persons,” they are “innovative and creative,” “give constructive criticism,” and “are willing to stand up to leaders.”

On the other hand, exemplary followers are actively engaged, applying their talents for the benefit of the organization even when confronted with bureaucratic inanities or non-producing co-workers.  It is said that they “take initiative,” “assume ownership,” “participate actively,” “are self-starters,” “support team and leader,” “are extremely competent,” and “go above and beyond the job.”

Exemplary followers balance these two seemingly mutually exclusive requirements.  They have to.  Independent thinking without active engagement can lead people with great ideas to fall short of implementing them, or to become smart cynics who harass the leader.  Active engagement without independent thinking can lead to yes-people who uncritically accept orders, whether good or bad.  But exemplary followers who use both these skills become enormously valuable to leaders and their organizations.

How exemplary followers add value to the organization:

1.         Focus well.

2.         Do their best in tasks important to the organization.

3.         Develop excellence in their work.

4.         Spot problems and volunteer to fix them.

5.         Champion new ideas.

A leader’s response to exemplary followers:      PARTNER WITH THEM

1.         Share information

2.         Strategize together

My father’s advice – When your workers have a plan that will work as well as your plan to reach the goal, use theirs, since they are the ones who will devote the energy to making it work.  If you force yours on them, the workers will rightfully resent it.  And be sure to give them the credit.

3.         Create an environment for followers to flourish.

            a.         Cut out bureaucracy                 d.         Keep an open door

            b.         Give them space                       e.         Let them lead whenever possible

            c.         Network them                            f.          Reward them.

Conclusion:

The goal of exemplary leadership is not merely to attract followers.  Many leaders, whether dictators or democrats, whether charismatic or matter-of-fact, can build a following.  The ultimate test of leadership is the quality of the followers.  Exemplary leaders attract exemplary followers.  As co-adventurers, they embark on a worthwhile journey together.  They rely on each other to arrive there safely and successfully.

12.      5 DYSFUNCTIONS OF A TEAM

by Patrick Lencioni

TEAM – Mark 3:13-15; Romans 12:4-6

1.         Absence of Trust

            a.         Members of teams with an absence of trust. . . .

·        Conceal their weaknesses from one another. 

·        Hesitate to ask for help or provide constructive feedback. 

·        Hesitate to offer help outside their own areas of responsibility.

·        Jump to conclusions about the intentions and attitudes of others without attempting to clarify them.

·        Fail to recognize and tap into one another’s skills and experience.

·        Hold grudges.

·        Dread meetings and find reasons to avoid spending time together.

b.                  Members o f trusting teams . . . .

·        Admit weaknesses and mistakes.

·        Ask for help.

·        Accept questions and input about their areas of responsibility.

·        Give one another the benefit of the doubt before arriving at a negative conclusion.

·        Take risks in offering feedback and assistance.

·        Appreciate and tap into one another’s skills and experiences.

·        Focus time and energy on important issues, not politics.

·        Offer and accept apologies without hesitation.

·        Look forward to meetings and other opportunities to work as a group.

c.                   Overcoming Absence of Trust

1.         Personal Histories Exercise.

2.         Identify single most important contribution each member makes to the team  and one area of either improvement upon or elimination for the good of the team.

3.         Personality Profiles.

4.         Rope Courses.

            d.         Leader’s Role – be genuinely vulnerable, willing to lose face –

Philippians 2:3-5

2.         Fear of conflict – healthy conflict is a time saver – Acts 15:1-29; 36-41.

a.                   Teams that fear conflict. . . .

·        Have boring meetings.

·        Create environments where back-channel politics and personal attacks thrive.

·        Ignore controversial topics that are critical to team success.

·        Fail to tap into all the opinions and perspectives of team members.

·        Waste time and energy with posturing and interpersonal risk management.

b.         Teams that engage in conflict . . . ..

·        Have lively, interesting meetings.

·        Extract and exploit the ideas of all team members.

·        Solve real problems quickly.

·        Minimize politics.

·        Put critical topics on the table for discussion.

c.         Overcoming Fear of Conflict

1.         Conflict is productive.

2.         Need someone who will extract buried disagreements and shed new light on them (elephant in the room).  Must stay with the conflict until it is resolved.

3.         Need to coach each other not to retreat from healthy debate.  Keep reminding one another dealing with the conflict is necessary.

            d.         Leader’s Role

1.         Leaders need to demonstrate restraint when people engage in conflict and allow resolution to occur naturally, though messy (Matthew 18:15-35).

2.         It is essential for the leader to personally model appropriate conflict behavior.

e.         Care Enough to Confront – Confront with the right attitude.  Don’t make your organization or you suffer.

            1.         Confront ASAP.

            2.         Separate the person from the wrong action.

            3.         Confront only what the person can change.

            4.         Give the person the benefit of the doubt.

            5.         Be specific.

            6.         Avoid sarcasm.

            7.         Avoid words like always and never.

            8.         Tell him how you feel about what was done wrong.

            9.         Give the person a game plan to fix the problem.

            10.       Affirm them as a person and friend ‘sandwich’ approach.  Positive

confronting is a sure sign you care for the person and have his best interests in mind.

3.         Lack of Commitment  -  Matthew 20:20-28

            a.         Commitment is a function of two things: clarity and buy-in

(Matthew 16:13-20)  The two greatest causes of the lack of commitment are the desire for consensus and the need for certainty.

1.         Consensus.  Great teams understand the danger of seeking consensus, and find ways to achieve buy-in even when complete agreement is impossible.  They understand that reasonable human beings do not need to get their way in order to support a decision, but only need to know that their opinions have been heard and considered.  Great teams ensure that everyone’s ideas are genuinely considered, which then creates a willingness to rally around whatever decision is ultimately made by the group.

2.         Certainty.  Great teams also pride themselves on being able to unite behind decisions and commit to clear courses of action even when there is little assurance about whether the decision is correct.  That’s because they understand the old military axiom that a decision is better than no decision.  They also realize that it is better to make a decision boldly and be wrong – and then change direction with equal boldness – than it is to waffle.  Contrast this with the behavior of dysfunctional teams that try to hedge their bets and delay important decisions until they have enough data to feel certain that they are making the right decision.  Remember that conflict underlies the willingness to commit without perfect information.  In many cases, teams have all the information they need, but it resides within the heart and minds of the team itself and must be extracted through unfiltered debate.  One of the greatest consequences for an executive or the top team that doesn’t commit to clear decisions is unresolved discord deeper in the organization.  If you do not have “buy-in” from all team members, the ripple effect can cause major problems.

b.                  A team that fails to commit. . . .

·        Creates ambiguity among the team about direction and priorities.

·        Watches windows of opportunity close due to excessive analysis and unnecessary delay.

·        Breeds lack of confidence and fear of failure.

·        Revisits discussions and decisions again and again.

·        Encourages second-guessing among team members.

c.                   A tean that commits . . . .

·        Creates clarity around direction and priorities.

·        Aligns the entire team around common objectives.

·        Develops an ability to learn from mistakes.

·        Takes advantage of opportunities before competitors do.

·        Moves forward without hesitation.

·        Changes direction without hesitation or guilt.

d.                  Overcoming lack of commitment

1.         Cascading messaging – at the end of meeting, the team should clearly review the key decisions made during the meeting and agree on what needs to be communicated to employees, or other constituencies about those decisions.  Creates clarity and can remove not understanding a decision.

                        2.         Deadlines – when it is due, honor the date.

3.         Contingency and worst-cast scenarios – discuss if a certain decision is made, then what would be the likely outcomes.

4.         Make decisions on low-risk situations or questions – have some wins.

e.                   Role of leader – be comfortable with the idea you may make the wrong decision.

4.         Avoidance of Accountability – The most effective means of maintaining high standards of performance on a team is peer pressure.  We hesitate because of culture and the fear of jeopardizing a valuable personal relationship.

a.                   A team that avoids accountability. . . .

·        Creates resentment among team members who have different standards of performance.

·        Encourages mediocrity.

·        Misses deadlines and key deliverables.

·        Places an undue burden on the team leader as the sole source of discipline.

b.                  A team that holds one another accountable. . . .

·        Ensures that poor performers feel pressure to improve.

·        Identifies potential problems quickly by questioning one another’s approaches without hesitation.

·        Establishes respect among team members who are held to the same high standards.

·        Avoids excessive bureaucracy around performance management and corrective action.

c.                   Overcoming avoidance of accountability

1.         Publication of goals and standards – clarify publicly exactly what the team needs to achieve, who has responsibilities and behaviors expected.

2.         Simple and regular progress reviews – giving feedback on behavior or performance – don’t wait for the year-end review.

3.         Team rewards – put more rewards to team achievements rather than on individual performance.

d.         Role of Leader – let the team serve as the primary accountability mechanism,  plus the leader must be willing to serve as the alternate arbiter of discipline when the team itself fails.

5.         Inattention to Results – ultimate dysfunction of a team is the tendency of members to care about something other than the collective goals of the group.  Must keep on the objectives or purposes.  (Jesus’ life and purpose -

            (Luke 5:27-32; 9:51-56; John 17:4)

a.                   What could someone focus on other than team results?

1.         Team status – just being a part of a particular team is good enough

2.         Individual status – tendency of people to focus on enhancing their own positions or career prospects at the expense of the team.

b.                  A team that is not focused on results . . . .

·        Stagnates/fails to grow.

·        Rarely defeats competitors.

·        Loses achievement-oriented employees.

·        Encourages team members to focus on their own careers and individual goals.

·        Is easily distracted.

c.                   A team that focuses on collective results. . . .

·        Retains achievement-oriented employees.

·        Minimizes individualistic behavior.

·        Enjoys success and suffers failure acutely.

·        Benefits from individuals who subjugate their own goals/interests for the good of the team.

·        Avoids distractions.

d.                  Overcoming Inattention to Results

1.         Public declaration of results – make known what the intended successes should be.

2.         Results-based Rewards – Tie team rewards to the achievement of specific outcomes.

e.         Role of Leader – Set the tone for a focus on results.  Team members need to know that.  Leaders must be selfless and objective, reserving recognition for those who make the real contributions to the achievement of the goals.

12.      TWELVE WAYS TO KEEP GOOD PEOPLE

by Dr. John C. Maxwell

A recent study conducted by the Gallup Organization of Princeton, NJ addressed the issue of what attracts the best employees to a company and what makes them stay.  These are the oldest questions in the business world and maybe the most important.

Twelve questions have been identified which appear to measure the “core elements” needed to attract the most loyal, productive, and talented employees.  These dozen questions were culled from questions asked in interviews with over a million employees over the past 25 years.  Using factor analysis, regression analysis, concurrent validity studies, focus groups, and follow-up interviews, Gallup statisticians isolated the questions that most accurately measure the likelihood that a given workplace will attract and keep the best people.

1.         Do I know what is expected of me at work?  The issue: expectation.

            2 Questions to Ask When Sharing Expectations

            (1)        What do you want them to know?

            (2)        What do you want them to do?

            Share Expectations with . . . .(1)        Consistency      (2)        Simplicity

2.         Do I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right?

            The Issue:         Resources

            “85% of the people cannot implement without resources.”  Stanford Research

            Determine resources based on productivity and potential, not requests.

            The best resources in the hands of the best people give the best results.

3.         At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?

            The Issue:         Matching ability with responsibilities.

            The Law of the Niche – “Each player has a place where they add the most value.”

                                                            The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork

            What you do well – develop daily.

            What you do poorly -   delegate daily.

4.         In the past 7 days, have I received recognition or praise for good work?

            The Issue:         Positive recognition

            Rules for Recognition

            (1)        It must be sincere.

            (2)        It must be specific.

            (3)        It must be immediate.

            (4)        It must be public.

            (5)        It must be given by a person others respect.

            (6)        It must be given as an incentive and example to others.

5.         Does my supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about me as a person?

            The Issue:         Care

6.         Is there someone at work who encourages my development?

            The Issue:         Growth

A distinguishing difference between Average people and Achieving people is their desire to continually grow.

7.         At work, do my opinions seem to count?

            The Issue:         Influence

            What Makes Good Leaders Good

            (1)        Good leaders are good listeners.

            (2)        Good leaders encourage the participation of their people.

            (3)        Good leaders give credit for good ideas and opinions.

            (4)        Good leaders ignore bad ideas and opinions.

            (5)        Good leaders continually ask for the opinions and ideas of people who

have good ones.

(6)        Has a good leader asked for your opinions or ideas lately?

8.         Does the mission of my company make me feel my work is important?

The Issue:         Significance

9.         Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work?

            The Issue:         Team Excellence.

The Law of the Chain – “The strength of the team is impacted by its weakest link.”                                            The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork

10.       Do I have a best friend at work?

            The Issue:         Relationships

The Law of Relationships – “Working together increases the odds of winning together.”                         The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork

11.       In the past six months, have I talked with someone about my progress?

            The Issue:         Accountability

            5 Accountability Questions

            (1)        What did you accomplish this year and how do you know?

            (2)        What do you need to learn?

            (3)        What is your failure pattern – how do you get in your own way?

            (4)        What can others do to support you?

            (5)        p90-117, “The Power of Followership, Robert Kelly, 1992

(Injoy Life Club, John C. Maxwell, Vol 9, Number 2, The Art of Followership

12.       At work, have I had opportunities to learn and grow?

            The issue:         Opportunities

13.      THE POWER OF TEAM LEADERSHIP- TYPES OF LEADERS

by George Barna     (excerpts)

1.         The Directing Leader

These leaders excel at conveying a compelling vision, but do not invest their energy in the details of the process.  They motivate people to get involved in or feel encouraged by the appealing future they describe and the significant role the people can play in bringing that future to pass.

Directing leaders are catalysts.  Directing leaders are effective public speakers and good listeners.

Directing leaders are good decision makers.  They like to have the facts at their disposal, but as often as not their decisions are based on their “gut” – their instincts are good and they have a life-long track record of success based upon their reliance on intuition.  It is during times of high stress or instability and uncertainty that the wisdom and courage of directing leaders becomes most evident.

Like everyone, directing leaders have weaknesses.  Among those are their disinterest in the minutiae of the process.  They exhibit little patience for discussions about details.  When a directing leader is not accompanied by a more detail-oriented colleague, chaos results.  They have short attention spans, favor action over reflection, and may ignore financial limitations and realities.

2.         The Strategic Leader

Generally speaking, strategic leaders are individuals who are content to remain in the background and evaluate the options that lie before the organization, eventually developing detailed plans of action.

Strategic leaders observe people and situations and collect empirical information, then they run it through their mental grid to arrive at conclusions about the real conditions and opportunities of the world.  Many strategic leaders view emotions and sensitivity as detrimental to the cause.

Strategic leaders tens to be very thorough in their investigations and do not hesitate to ask the hard questions.  Once they have amassed the facts and carefully analyzed them, strategic leaders are prone to develop creative, albeit sometimes complex solutions.

Generally, they are not the most popular leaders.  Because they focus on facts, figures, plans and  possibilities, they are sometimes portrayed as being insensitive or unemotional, even robotic.

A common complaint about strategic leaders is that they take so long to arrive at decisions.

3.         The Team-Building Leader

Team-building leaders love people. Their primary strength is their ability to interact with a wide variety of people and leave everyone feeling that they have been heard, understood and loved.

Of the four types of leaders, team-building leaders are best at mobilizing people around the vision through relational context.  They love to organize people around a common cause.

Team-building leaders love people but hate paperwork.  In fact, team-building leaders have a tendency to waffle on details.  You will also find that their strength – relationships – is also their weakness because they often get burned by investing too much trust and confidence in people who do not (or sometimes cannot) come through as promised.

4.         The Operational Leader

Operational leaders provide a degree of stability, predictability and consistency to the activity of the ministry.  They focus upon the operations of the ministry, but they do so as leaders, not as managers.  Managers lean toward maintaining and improving what exists; leaders emphasize creating new opportunities and solutions that result in breakthroughs.

Operational leaders may be low-key and virtually invisible, but their contribution is indispensable.  In the wake of the chaos and roadblocks generated by the other three types of leaders, a structural architect is needed to enable ministry to flow efficiently.  They may also serve as the hub through which all activity is coordinated.  These leaders provide the kind of attention to practical details that is rarely found in the activity of other types of leaders.

The operational leader sometimes loses sight of the fact that he or she is to be a leader, not a manager.  That role confusion can cause the leader to behave more like a manager and lose sight of the vision.  Operational leaders, by nature, dislike conflict and will sometimes give in easily in situations where a tough stand might result in an emotional battle.

A big mistake often made is teaming leaders who have the same aptitudes rather than complementary aptitudes.   Being with people who are just like us may feel more comfortable and appropriate, but invariably it leads to distress and disaster.  Effective leadership teams almost always have a degree of creative tension because they are composed of people who approach the same problem differently.  That creative tension is simply one of the positive building blocks that propels a well-matched team forward; remove the tension and you eliminate one of the strengths of the team.

14.      WINNING TEAM ENVIRONMENT

        by John Maxwell

Questions that Create a Team Environment to Win

1.     Do I understand what it takes to be a TEAM?

        Tolerance of each other’s weaknesses

        Encouragement toward each other’s successes

        Acknowledge that each of us has something to offer

        Mindfulness that we need each other

2.     Are my expectations crystal clear?

3.     Do you people understand why what we do is important?

4.     Does my team define success with their customer?

5.     Am I holding people accountable for performance?

6.     Do I seek out barriers and remove them to make their jobs

easier?

7.     Do I give them the freedom to learn, grow and deliver?

8.     Do I foster a culture of inclusion and hire people that are

different than me?

9.     Am I a consensus builder?

10.    Have I created a caring environment among the team members?

15.      QUOTES

“The longer we deny the benefits of team leadership, the less likely it is that we will experience the power of God in the church, in society, or in our personal efforts.”

                                                The Power of Team Leadership [p.34] – George Barna

Awake the Leader Within – Bill Perkins            -  excerpts

“The whole idea of a team flows from the very nature of God.  The Father, Son and Holy Spirit all work together in harmony.”         [p. 131]

“Because the vision is the reason the team exists, you must repeatedly urge those you lead to look through the telescope of their imagination and see what it is you’re heading for.”  [p. 131]

“A compelling vision has the power to liberate us from me-ism and lead us to we-ism.”  [p. 132]

“We need to help people reach their potential, help them to fly and soar as eagles, to go for it.  People will make great sacrifices when they believe that their efforts will enable a team to accomplish something extraordinary.” [p. 134]

“Most difficult thing for many people to do as part of a team – give up personal comfort, ease, recognition and rewards to make the team better and stronger.”  Mark 6:7-12.

Allow people to fail – Matt. 14:13-21

“One of the most powerful leadership lessons Jesus exemplified was the creation of a tem environment where failure was routine.”  [p. 140]   Excellence and failure are partners, not enemies.  Only way to achieve excellence is through repeated failures.  “Where there is love, there is a freedom to fail, and where there is a freedom to fail, you have a setting where new and better way of doing things will strive.”   [p. 141]

Accountability if spelled L-O-V-E.

“Coming together is a beginning.  Keeping together is progress.  Working together is success.”               James E. Hunton

“When the Law of High Morale is working at its best, the leader boosts the morale of the team and the team boosts the morale of the leader.”                John Maxwell

“Few people are successful unless a lot of other people want them to be.”

                                                                                                Arthur Charlie Brower

“Eagles don’t flock; you have to find them one at a time.”                      H. Ross Perot

“Anyone who has ever been in a combat zone knows that the soldiers are never motivated to fight out of pure patriotism. . . When you must actually do battle, you have only two motives:  you hope to stay alive and you want to help your buddies.  Psychologists have called the second ‘the affiliative motive.’  That is, most of us will pay a large price to be a part of some group of people where we depend on each other – where we know that others will cover for us, stand up for us, and bail us out if we’re in trouble.  If you can create such an association, people will flock to join you, work harder than they’ve ever worked, and often stick with you even if the financial benefits would be greater in some other place.”                  Alan L McGinnis in  The Balanced Life

Growing Strong in the Seasons of Life  -  Chuck Swindoll  [excerpt]

Once upon a time, the animals decided they should do something meaningful to meet the problems of the new world.  So they organized a school.  They adopted an activity curriculum of running, climbing, swimming, and flying.  To make it easier to administer, all the animals took all the subjects. 

The duck was excellent in swimming.  In fact, he was better than his instructor was!  However, he made only passing grades in flying, and was very poor in running.  Since he was so slow in running, he had to drop swimming and stay after school to practice running.  This caused his webbed feet to be badly worn so he became only average in swimming.  But “average” was quite acceptable, therefore nobody worried about it – except the duck.

The rabbit started at the top of his class in running, but developed a nervous twitch in his leg muscles because he had so much makeup work to do in swimming.

The squirrel was excellent in climbing, but he encountered constant frustration in flying class because his teacher made him start from the ground up instead of from the treetop down.  He developed “charley horses” from overexertion, so he only got a “C” in climbing and a “D” in running.

The eagle was a problem child and was severely disciplined for being a non-conformist.  In climbing classes, he beat all the others to the top, but insisted on using his own way of getting there!

            The Moral of this Story:  Everybody is a “10” somewhere!

16.      HOW TO BE A GOOD FOLLOWER

           Source Unknown

Consider each question, record your answer by circling the number which best reflects your opinion, with “1” being “Not at all accurate” and “5” being “Very accurate.”  Work quickly, putting down the first answer that comes to your mind.

                                                                                                            Not at all           Very

                                                                                                            Accurate        Accurate

1.   I enjoy knowing that my work makes my supervisor look good            1      2      3      4      5

2.   I dislike being asked to do things that are not my job.                          1      2      3      4      5

3.   I look for ways to pitch-in beyond my job description.             1      2      3      4      5

4.   I’m pretty strong in getting my way when people disagree.                 1      2      3      4      5

5.   I find satisfaction in cooperating with others to achieve group goals.    1      2      3      4      5

6.   I’m on the lookout for better opportunities than this organization          1      2      3      4      5

      provides.

7.   I’m committed to my organization for the long-haul.                           1      2      3      4      5

8.   I usually meet my own needs first and then look after others.             1      2      3      4      5

9.   My team’s goals are more important than my personal goals.             1      2      3      4      5

10.  I believe in “looking out for #1 (myself).                                           1      2      3      4      5

11.  My first instinct is to express curiosity about decisions I don’t            1      2      3      4      5

       like, rather than pass judgment.

12.  I’m quick to criticize decisions I disagree with.                                  1      2      3      4      5

13.  My supervisor knows better than to ask me to do things that              1      2      3      4      5

       aren’t my job.

14.  My supervisor can tell that my goal is to make him or her                  1      2      3      4      5

       successful.

15.  I don’t care whether people find me easy or difficult to work with.     1      2      3      4      5

16.  I’m known as a person stays until the job is done, even if it                1      2      3      4      5

       means staying late.

17.  I tell my co-workers what I don’t like about our organization. 1      2      3      4     5

18.  When it comes to working together to achieve our organization’s       1      2      3      4      5

       goals, people try to get me involved.

19.  I frequently help others meet their goals before meeting my own.       1      2      3      4      5

20.  Other people can count on me to stay with my organization until        1      2      3      4      5

       we succeed.

21.  I have to look out for my own interests in this organization.                1      2      3      4      5

22.  My co-workers would give me a high rating as a team player.           1      2      3      4      5

23.  Many people in my organization have heard me express my               1      2      3      4      5

       opinions when I don’t like a decision that’s been made.

24.  People see me as inquisitive, not critical.                                           1      2      3      4      5

Record your response to each question next to that question’s number below, then total each column.

Column 1                                Column 2

(1)                                            (2)       

(3)                                            (4)       

(5)                                            (6)       

(7)                                            (8)       

(9)                                            (10)     

(11)                                          (12)     

(14)                                          (13)     

(16)                                          (15)     

(18)                                          (17)     

(20)                                          (19)     

(22)                                          (21)     

(24)                                          (23)     

Total                                       Total              

If Column 1 is between 36-60, you’re considered part of the “in-group” in your organization.  In-group members are more likely to be given freedom in their jobs, and are more often asked to give their opinions about things that happen in the organization.  In-group members are usually the ones supervisors help most by giving more responsibility, support and encouragement in their work.

If Column 2 is between 36-60, you’re considered part of the “out-group” in your organization.  Your supervisor probably perceives that you are just there to “put in your time.”  You’ll typically be treated with courtesy and respect, but you’re not likely to be considered loyal or capable of taking on projects that are “mission critical.”  Your supervisor will oversee your work, but give you little display of confidence.  In addition, you’ll often be denied valuable opportunities to move ahead or have a greater say in the organization’s direction.