Competencies
Articles in this category focus on how a Christian leader can build and nurture competencies and apply them practically in ministry life.
One Thing
What is the one thing that is making us get stuck as leaders or organizations? Is it pride, ego, mistrust, poor communication, visionless leadership, or leadership style? Once we focus on that one thing, we may get moving again and reach our destination.
Jonathan Mbuna
Reading This Article Will Make You A Bit Dumber ‒ Scientifically Guaranteed ‒ And Wiser Too!
While multi-tasking might feel like you are getting more done, you are actually getting less done and possibly doing long-term damage to your brain.
Brent Hoover
6 Questions Shaping Your Week of Ministry
Just yesterday I sat down with a church planter and helped him to structure his week. No one had ever helped him with a grid for how each day should be organized and the possibilities that this could unleash. Here are some priority-centered questions that can help you shape your week.
Alan Briggs
Leading Through Crisis
Have you ever been paralyzed by a crisis? You know what you should do, but you’re caught off guard, you weren’t prepared for what is coming. Your team is looking to you for leadership, and you aren’t real sure how you’ll get through the situation. Here are five tips for successfully leading through crisis.
Russ Cline
10 Keys for Compelling Teaching
Landmarks are signs that provide clear direction. They help us keep our bearings and move us down the right path. Craig shares ten up-close and personal ways to be a compelling teacher of God’s Word.
Craig Parro
Single Tasking
Smartphones are indispensable for today’s leader, yet smartphones get us off track as well. On the plus side, multitasking is phenomenally enabled by those handhelds. However, focusing on one thing for an extended period, without electronic interruption, significantly impacts our results. Leaders must learn to balance multi-tasking and single-tasking.
Corey Olynik
Can I Borrow Your Glasses?
Research provided by McKinsey’s Organizational Health Index suggests that one of the most important behaviors for effective leadership is “seeking different perspectives.” Why do leaders choose to “go it alone?” What are the mental roadblocks that prevent leaders from taking advantage of the value of different perspectives?
Paul Metler
11 Questions to Ask to Grow More Intentional
Being intentional was a reminder for me to stay focused, to know what on earth I am here for, to live proactively, and not be caught up reacting to the many needs that surround me, and to live purposely the one life that has been entrusted to me, with courage and humility.
Rod Denton
Skip What They Skip
The late, great Elmore Leonard (Get Shorty) was once asked why so many people like his novels. He answered, “I leave out the parts readers skip.” Wow. Don’t you wish more business speakers took that advice? Can you?
Corey Olynik
The Steward Leader as Pattern Maker
Steward leaders must understand the significant impact they have on their organizational culture. To help us think about that impact, consider the concept of fractals. Fractals are complex structures that originate in simplicity. One example is a fern, which appears to be a complex structure of countless shapes and patterns that are woven together to form its intricate and beautiful leaves. Yet the entire structure can be simplified to a basic four-line pattern that is simply repeated in various directions and sizes.
Scott Rodin
How to Foster “Aha” Moments in Your Team
Rather than solving a problem analytically, when we focus our attention outwardly on the problem, insight occurs when we turn our attention inward and becomes less focused. This inward focus can help us experience a sudden “aha” solution. This historical illustration about insight describes the “aha” process well.
Charles Stone
6 Tips to Writing the Perfect Job Description
The culture is the most important piece to the puzzle. It determines the style of person that will be successful in your organization. Once you define the culture, you need to do something that will attract them. The job description will give you a tool to do just that, if it is written well.
Fred Noble
What I Wish I Had Known 20 Years Ago as a Pastor
If you are just starting out in ministry, here are five key lessons Charles Stone learned over the last 20 years as a pastor.
Charles Stone
9 Things Pastors Can Learn From Missionaries
Pastors may already be doing these things, but here are some things missionaries can remind us.
Chuck Lawless
5 Ways Successful Church Leaders Think Differently
Successful church leaders naturally think differently than the majority of church leaders. It’s one of the things that set them apart. The good news is you can learn to think just like them. Here are five ways successful church leaders think differently.
Paul Alexander
How to Nurture a Christian Way of Life
How to form Christians today is unclear. The challenge is that the basic patterns of life have shifted in an increasingly digital and networked world. The new patterns have not fully emerged, but the shifts are as profound as the move from farm to factory in earlier generations.
Dave Odom
4 Ways to Spot an Interested Leader
It is far better to have people on your team who are interested than it is people who are constantly worrying about being interesting.
Eric Geiger
How to Ensure Healthy Lone Working
Working from home can also be a hugely distracting, counter-productive and unhealthy existence. Hence, here are seven tips to help you decide when/if working at home is best for the health of your leadership.
Nick Franks
3 Mistakes Leaders Make as Soon as They Wake Up
If a leader begins a day in chaos, the entire day will likely be chaotic. Instead, a leader should begin the day with his/her affections set on the Lord and with the mind focused on what is most important.
Eric Geiger
Less Is More
Every dialogue can be either a competition, or a bond of connection with another person.
Adrian Pei