4 Ways a Team Grows Together

This is a requested guest post from Ministry Library. I don’t do these for profit. I only do them when I believe in the opportunity.

Four Ways a Team Grows Together Some people hate those personality tests, but they have made a huge difference for our team. There are tons out there, but we require each person on our team to take two different personality tests, and each one tells us some very unique attributes about that person. One is the Myers-Briggs. This test gives me an insight into how that person thinks and sees the world around them. I think the best part of this test is the detailed report I get about their workplace habits and how to communicate with that person. If you’re curious, I am an INTJ. The other test is Strengths Finder 2.0, sometimes called “Leading From Your Strengths.” This test will reveal your top five (out of 34) strengths and how to maximize your talents and build them into strengths. The reason I love this test is that it allows me to create the most healthy environment possible to make each person happy, productive and successful. My two most prominent strengths are Activator and Individualization. Ask the Tough Questions Great leaders ask the tough questions! Here are five questions you need to starting asking your team. Who are you developing to take your place? If leadership development isn’t communicated and followed up on, it won’t happen. What are you doing to grow yourself? By regularly asking this question, you’ll create a culture of learning in your staff. A good followup question is, “What resource or support I can give?” Is there anything I am doing that wastes your time? Yep, that’s a toughy! I usually add, ”Please answer honestly or you’re fired!” to lighten the mood. What is your biggest hassle in your current role? I love this question so much. It will shed some serious light on your systems and organization. What can we improve on as a team or a church? Breakthroughs happen horizontally. You’ll be surprised by the creativity and problem solving that happens when you let people speak into other areas besides the one they’re in. When asking these questions, it’s important to ask followup questions to make sure you have a full understanding of their situation. Require a Coaching Call All of the world’s best athletes have coaches. Why? Because a coach can see things the athlete can’t. It’s impossible to coach yourself to the next level. We just don’t know what we don’t know. As your team and your church grow, there are going to be these “gotcha” moments that you just won’t see coming. I require my team to have regular coaching calls with people in similar roles at a church that is twice our size. I do this myself as well. Our church is in the process of launching a campus.So, I cold called seven other churches around the country that I thought would be able to coach me through this process. By talking to people that have “been there, done that,” you’ll learn from their mistakes and completely avoid those “gotcha” moments. Learn Together Imagine if you could have some of the best pastors or leaders come in and give you and your staff a personal coaching session. That would be awesome and way too expensive! Reading a book is like getting coached by the author. I think one of the best ways to learn together is to go through a book as a staff. But if you just buy them the book and tell them to read, you’ve failed as a leader. To get the most out of a book there needs to be a group experience where you can learn out loud and help each other apply what you’ve learned. I believe in this model of leadership development so much I created a resource for pastors and their teams. Its called MinistryLibrary.com We help pastors grow and lead healthy teams by creating 10-minute leadership videos and team workshops based on popular ministry and business leadership books. The workshops are where you’ll get the most value. They have take-aways, resources, discussion questions and group activities that will get your team thinking, collaborating and learning together! Check it out. MinistryLibrary.com