estimated time to watch video and think about questions: 15 minutes
Effective and Consistent Communication
We chose to cover communication first because it works its way into EVERYTHING else! Not everything has to be communicated, but communication has to be everything. Sometimes you have to encourage, sometimes you have to change things, sometimes you have to confront, but it all must be done well.
Create an attractive culture
DON’T: “we never have enough volunteers”
DO: “we’re always looking for passionate people!”
DON’T: “please, please, please come work in kids ministry...i’ll owe you one!”
DO: “we have awesome opportunities to serve the most important people!”
Don’t go around telling your horror stories, tell your success stories!
This generation will only respond to “let me tell you WHY you should be involved”, not HELP WANTED signs.
Weave vision into EVERYTHING
Always communicate the WHY not just the what.
Empowers people to make decisions when it’s outside the normal request.
Gives meaning to even small tasks
“Every man in our church knows that for one hour a week, they’re staring eyeball to eyeball with a kid that MAY not have a father figure.”
When you get sick and tired of saying vision, that’s when people are getting it.
For Kids Min: building up kids to be warriors, changing lives, easier to build kids than change adults…
For Ushers: Ushering is an extremely important job! “Our ushers provide the service with a distraction free, organized, and professional feel, so that givers feel like their gifts are handled properly and with care, our attenders feel well-cared for, and all communication from stage happens in the most clear way possible.”
What is the win?
Choose your audience wisely
Think carefully through this decision! It could have disastrous consequences if you choose wrongly, depending on the subject matter.
One-on-one
Targeted group
Whole team
Remember Matthew 18
Choose HOW to communciate wisely as well
Meet people where they’re at
Know how they prefer to be contacted
Encouragement
Everyone wants to feel appreciated, but when someone gives their time & energy freely, they especially want to feel appreciated.
Don’t think a good thing without saying it!
SAY thank you, WRITE thank you, SMILE thank you
Communicating Change
Change is one of those things you have to balance. You shouldn’t change things CONSTANTLY, but also not never! To keep momentum going, and excitement about your ministry, you should be constantly making improvements. “Growing people change”--growing churches/ministries change too!
Job Descriptions
Let your volunteers know what you need up front, talk about specific duties, and GET IT ON PAPER!
Confrontation will be necessary
Matthew 18
Sandwich approach
Speak the truth IN LOVE (Ephesians 4:15, “Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.” NLT)
Practical Tips:
Don’t let your language get bossy...use words like “we”, “the team”, etc…”Hey would you mind helping me with…?” NOT “I need you to..”
Compliment when you can
Ask questions, don’t assume.
Questions To Think About:
Have you ever used Matthew 18 to confront someone? How did it go?
What do you think is an attractive volunteer/employee culture?
If you volunteer now, write down your job description (without looking) and see if it matches the one you already have, or the one your supervisor would write for you.