Dr. Bill Donahue

Developing Life-Changing Leaders

Developing the Leader Within Part 1 – Tapping into The Core

Jan 4

Posted by Nbaker in Leadership | No Comments

Dream Risky Dreams

Erwin McManus, author of Wide Awake: The Future is Waiting Within You, says “Great lives that are born out of great dreams often come through great sacrifice and great suffering.” At the core we have longings…but at the core we also know suffering and fear. But suffering and fear can be crippling to a leader, unless there is a dream emerging from that dark, intimidating place.

As a leader I wrestle with McManus’ comments like, “the limitations you are willing to accept determine the boundaries of your existence,” and “a dream needs a person to bring it to life.” Dreams, it seems, lie at the core of our existence, but require others to pull them out of us. We are easily intimidated by our dreams, fearing failure or not wanting to suffer along the way to realizing our dream.

Here is the key question for every serious leader: “Am I willing to risk the changes needed to really live?” McManus challenges us: “How long you live does not reflect how well you live. The real question is, were you alive when you died?”

Ouch! Will I be alive when I die?

Let me push this a bit further. Take time to start this now… TODAY!

  • What is stirring at the core for you right now?
  • Is it a dream worth pursuing, worth suffering for?
  • Is it a dream that is life giving?

I have been to 3 funerals in the last 15 days; 2 of them tragic deaths of men in their early 20’s, and one for a woman in her 50’s. Each time I asked myself, “What will they say about me?” I hope they talk about me like a woman I heard about some years ago. She was 79 when she died. On her desk at home they found a number of books she was reading, underlining key passages and taking notes. Also, there was a calendar of activities and commitments for her month. But most striking—this will challenge you—was a list of her goals and pursuits for the next 10 years! She was looking forward to 90 and was not about to waste a minute of her life!

So how do we answer the question, “What will it take to be fueled by life-giving dreams?” McManus says this requires focus.

Find your Focus

McManus teaches that focus comes from the Latin word for “hearth” or “fireplace” and thus means “the burning center.” What is the burning center of my life, my leadership, my work and family? To find it I must carve away distractions, cut off the peripheral could-do for the more central must-do. But the “do” must be centered in the “be” – what I am becoming.

Sure—but there’s a challenge. I am overwhelmed by the responsibilities I have, opportunities that arise, and problems I must solve. Focus seems like a luxury only a well-subsidized artist can afford—someone who’s paid to paint one portrait, not someone who’s running around splashing his brush at every blank canvas in the room.

Are you and your team focused—on change? Can you change? Really? Are the habits and patterns that scar our lives beyond transformation? Are we willing to make the effort? To say no to un-change; to wrestle with our core convictions, mission, faith, beliefs, dreams – even if we walk away from the grueling contest with a limp afterward?

It means strengthening the core. And that takes the courage to put our dreams out there – personal and strategic, individual and organizational. Then, focus our energies. And let it rip.

Risky? Yes.

But I want to be alive when I die.

Dr. Bill Donahue

 

What Great Leaders Do

Dec 23

Posted by Nbaker in Leadership | 1 Comment

As we head to the end of the year and people look at the organizational bottom line, there is another kind of assessment we should give attention to: the leadership bottom line.

Great leaders ask, “How did I develop in my ability to lead others, lead my peers and lead myself?” But what are the categories or areas of focus to evaluate? By looking at successful, strong leaders we can gain some insights into what they care about, and it can inform our own evaluation.

One thing in particular seems to mark great leaders – how they view themselves in relationship to others in the organization. Are they there to serve others, or to have others serve them?

Great leaders move from “I” to “We” in their leadership. No one likes working with, or for, a narcissist. Unfortunately, many top leaders fit the bill. It may not be totally their fault, however. Others are looking to them to lead, to take ultimate responsibility for the organization or make the difficult decisions average leaders prefer to avoid. So we expect a lot from them, and make them the center of attention.

Others started the venture and in the early days it WAS all about them – it had to be! From making sales to designing the support systems to hiring the first employees, these leaders did not have an organization…they WERE the organization.

But the question is, “As you mature in leadership, can you move from I to we?

Harvard’s Bill George says,

 “…if we believe that leadership is just about getting others to follow us and do our bidding as we climb the organization ladder, we risk being derailed.”

I have seen the inability of the senior leader(s) to move toward a “we” culture first hand, and it is devastating to the staff and customers alike.

To move to “we” instead of the proverbial “it all depends on me” requires three important shifts in your approach to leadership.

1) Give credit instead of taking credit. Even when they deserve some of the credit, great leaders pass it off to others. I am working with a CEO who really gets this concept. In the 360-degree evaluation I recently completed for him and his team, it was clear that he deflected praise to the team. In contrast, is the senior leader who requires constant affirmation and praise, even when others do most of the real work. This is so de-motivating to other leaders.

By using personal notes, email and public affirmations, my CEO friend gives credit frequently and authentically, and does not have to be at the center of the universe. His ability to share success with the team, remind others of their great contribution, and give control to others marks him as a great leader – and his people love him for it.

Want to get the real story about a leader? Ask the people who used to work for him or her. Would they return? Was it a healthy environment? Would they readily partner with them again? Or was the leader manipulative, condescending, inauthentic, self-focused, always posturing and more concerned with image control? Did he or she readily give the spotlight to others and praise them in public?

Henry Cloud, in his book Integrity, refers to this as a leader’s “wake” – what they leave behind after a meeting, a decision, or a departure. In many cases the character wake is ugly. We have all heard our share of stories of disillusioned staff members who felt betrayed, deceived, manipulated and outright lied to by a senior leader or manager. And in most cases, narcissism was at the root of it all. The desire for personal praise and prominence left a destructive wake.

2) Share the load versus dumping the load. Some leaders believe the best way to empower new leaders is to give them a greater challenge. This is a good approach…if the emerging leader has the gifts, talents and savvy to handle it. But if not, it can be a disaster, and you will be shuffling leaders around the organization or shoving them out the door.  I have seen many poor leadership calls in the last few years. In each case the pattern was the same. Give a newer leader a huge challenge, and throw them into the fire with a slap on the back and a “Good luck…Don’t screw up!” This is foolish.  It is actually a testimony of the senior person’s lack of leadership, versus the inability of the underling to perform under fire.

This method may work on occasion, but fails when the new leader is not wired for the new job, has no passion for the nature of the work, and is incapable of sharing leadership responsibilities with others. Lot’s of people drown with this “throw them in the deep end and see if they can swim” approach to leader development.  As a result they have no developmental pattern to follow, and have acquired no skill for sharing the overwhelming leadership challenges with anyone. So they roll up their sleeves and give it their best – and fail. Such leaders become gun-shy, wondering if they really were leaders in the first place. And the senior leader blames them, instead of himself.  The result is a climate of fear, disappointment, and steady turnover.

Developing and mentoring people is hard work. And few top leaders take the time to do it well. Most have a quick “teaching session” with a new leader or direct report and assume that will do the trick. The remain in steadfast control of all things, never moving from “I” to “We” as described in #1 above, making all the important decisions and using people to foster their personal goals.

3) Take responsibility for the bad news, not just the good news.  I know an organization that had to lay off 30-40 people (almost a third of the team). People working there were fired with little or no warning. Some of this was done in response to the bad economy. But it was clear from insiders and outside observes alike that a big part of the downturn was the result of poor leadership decisions. Senior leaders had ignored many warning signs communicated by employees, and had not listened to what the market was saying for years. As Jim Collins describes in How the Mighty Fall, hubris was at the core of the problem. There was an inability to see the truth because of self-obsession with past success and personal agendas (instead of organizational realities). As a result, it all came crashing down.

When it came time to make the layoffs, the Chairman and the President both were absent while the bad news was communicated. It was hard for employees to believe. And, upon their return to town, at the first gathering of the shell-shocked survivors, there was virtually no processing of the layoffs. The Chairman did not even have the courtesy to show up. It was a major trust-buster, and the survivors have lost much of their motivation.

When courageous leadership was required, there was none to be found.

But when there was good news to report, they were there to communicate it and celebrate it. Rightly so. But leaving the bad news and tough conversations to others left a major stain on the integrity of the leaders involved.

As you look to 2012, commit to give credit, share the leadership load and take responsibility for results – good or bad. That’s what great business leaders do. Your team will respect you for it and eagerly join you in moving the organization forward.

Vision Block: 7 Factors that Keep Leaders from Casting Vision

Dec 12

Posted by Bill Donahue in Vision | 2 Comments

1) Lack of CLARITY: “What exactly are we doing?”

It is hard to communicate a compelling vision when there is no clarity about the mission. I met with a leader last week and I asked, “Where is your team headed in the next 90 days?” His face did all the talking. You would have thought I asked, “How many Lilliputians attacked Gulliver on the beach?”

Without a clear direction there is no need or possibility to communicate a vision of what life or work will look like when you get there. It is a fact that in today’s fear-filled climate, the future is less predictable. But that does not mean there cannot be clarity. What you are feeling is uncertainty. But that should not cloud your vision. Set a clear course for the first quarter of 2012 and then communicate what getting there could be like as we work together.

That is why I help churches with vision clarity partnering with Will Mancini and Auxano. Few people can help bring that clarity like Auxano because the process created by Will and the team makes you confront reality and become crystal clear about direction. You can get an overview of this in Church Unique.

2) Feelings of INSECURITY “I am not a good vision caster – it is just not my style!”

Some leaders are great at leading the team but get jittery when it comes to communicating vision. They mistakenly believe that vision casting means rah-rah cheerleading and backslapping. You do not have to be Knute Rockne to communicate vision.

Vision comes from the heart, and can be seen in the eyes, long before it comes out of the mouth. What do you really believe? Where do you want to be that will make all the difference to your team, the customer, the ministry, the client? Get that in your gut.

Before you can BE the change you have to SEE the change. Can you see the difference it will make to get there? If so, just talk about it. Write about it. Share it over coffee and in the hallway and in the boardroom. Vision can be embedded one conversation at a time.

3) EGO “I want to craft my own vision because I like people depending on me.”

For some leaders, collaboration is the enemy. It is just plain easier to do it yourself. After all, you are the leader, you have the responsibility, you are the one the whole organization depends on! Without you products sit on the shelf, market share declines, people die and the world comes crashing to an end. Welcome to Egoville, at the intersection of Narcissism Avenue and Control Street. We’ve all been there. It feels good for a while. But soon you are the only one standing at the corner shouting, “I have the vision” — but all you get is a hollow echo in reply.

When vision emerges from a wider range of leaders and contributors, the ownership rises, there is more clarity (not less), and the leadership burden is shared.

4) INADEQUACY “Why would anyone listen to a vision from me?”

While some leaders are tempted to think they are the center of the universe, others feel like they never live up to the expectations associated with their role. Many believe that they are average leaders at best. Such leaders compare themselves to the “super-leaders” whose books, speeches and blogs dominate the internet.

The truth is we need more “average” leaders. Equally true is we are all inadequate at some level. Some have simply learned to fake their adequacy more than others. So what if you are not super leader? Big deal. You have more influence than you give yourself credit for, at work, home, and in the community. And you have a life people can really see – one that can embody the vision, not just talk about it.

I have been around some famous super leaders: you’d be surprised at how many give an exciting “leadership talk” or “vision cast,” but do little to practice what they preach. We need real leaders – and they are all inadequate for the job.

5) Fear of FAILURE “What if people do not buy-in and I screw up?”

Failure is the test of every leader. So what do we do when the bottom drops out? Will we mask our mistakes, ignore them, blame others, hide behind another leader, deny the failure, or minimize the impact of our oversight? Don’t choose any of those options.

First of all, people absolutely will NOT buy in. That’s why they need a determined leader with a vision! Second, failure is the crucible for growth, learning and humility. Every leader needs a good dose of it. And third, remember it takes a dozen vision explanations before someone “gets it” and even then we must give frequent reminders of the cause for which we are fighting.

So go ahead, leverage the failure – learn from it and recast the vision.

6) SHORT-SIGHTEDNESS “I am not sure these people will ever get the vision.”

Maybe you trust your ability to communicate the vision, but lack confidence in the ability of others to see it. But whatever it was that stirred the vision in you will likely ignite the fire in others—if you can see the process through to the end. Give people some time and some credit. You have been mulling this over in your head for months or years; they are just hearing it for the first time.

Cast vision using a variety of methods: props, stories, experiences, video, print and art. Every person sees this a little differently. Each has a unique learning style and filters what they hear or see through a variety of personal experiences, education and assumptions.

7) UNWILLINGNESS “I don’t have the time and energy for vision creation!”

Maybe you are overwhelmed or tired or just lazy, but you cannot muster the energy to make vision development and communication a priority. Here’s a tip: you do not realize how close you are to creating and communicating a life-changing vision!

Yes it is hard work; yes it takes some time. But it is nowhere near the amount of time and energy you will spend dragging your organization along like a ball and chain, trying to motivate the complacent and energize the confused. Work the vision and the vision will work for you.

After 4 hours of guidance of a group of young leaders we were stuck. Not even a hint at an emerging vision. So I asked them to stop thinking about the organization and focus on their wives or fiancés. “Write down why you fell in love with her. What about her makes you smile? Tell me what you love most about her.” After 10 minutes we continued.

“Now, I want you to think about your mission the same way – why are you doing this? What gets you excited? How will achieving this goal make a difference?” Then I added, “And what will it look like when it becomes a reality. Describe it to me.”  The conversation exploded with passion and energy.

The hard work paid off. We had come dangerously close to quitting; which means we were equally close to success. They did not understand that first we had to spend hours sifting through the chaos. Had we stopped early we might have settled for a “lesser” vision rather than the greater one.

Question: As you look at the 7 factors above, what stands in the way of framing your vision? What is causing Vision Block?

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Beyond Strategic Planning

Dec 1

Posted by Bill Donahue in Vision | 2 Comments

Those of us who have led or participated in classic strategic planning processes are familiar with crafting a mission, clarifying the overarching vision, doing a SWOT analysis, setting targets and goals, and identifying key stakeholders who will shape or be impacted by the plan.

Seems like a fairly essential and straightforward process. Virtually any group or organization worth its salt has such a plan, for-profit and non-profit alike.

So why do so many seem to fail? Or why do they sit in the 3-ring binder on the shelf? What do so many do so little with something that took so much work and created so much synergy?

Here are some questions to think about as you diagnose your experience with planning.

Do we shape the plan or does the plan shape us? Seems like the plan becomes the master not the tool. Rigid planning that focuses just on hitting numbers soon becomes a taskmaster that stifles creativity. Everyone bows down to worship the plan. “Well, I suppose we need to do this…after all it’s in the plan from 2009.”

Did we follow the dictum, “CLARITY FIRST!” or did we race to have a plan? Are we really clear about our mission and vision? Do we really know what we are becoming and striving for? Most groups and teams create a “Vision Statement” or “Mission Statement” so they have something to hang on the wall, put on a golf shirt or stencil on a coffee mug.  But it often lacks clarity and rarely reflects the soul of the organization.

Are we leading by passion or vision? Organizations led simply by passion – what’s hot, new, trendy, urgent, cool – actually become stagnant in the long run. Every month or year it’s a new cause, more hype, tacky slogans, and more change that does not line up with the core vision.  Employees, volunteers, clients all get weary and vote with their feet. I was part of such an organization and the last 7 years I was there it lost vision, continues to have no clarity, and leaders and followers alike are dropping like flies. We replaced vision casting with passion casting.

Are we thinking beyond ourselves? Ram Charan, a Dallas-based consultant to many successful organizations, encourages groups to ask themselves these 6 questions in the article “Sharpening Your Business Acumen”:

  1. What is happening in the world today?
  2. What does it mean for others?
  3. What does it mean for us?
  4. What would have to happen first (for the results we want to occur)?
  5. What do we have to do to play a role?
  6. What do we do next?

In your organization, church, or team, take some time to reflect on these questions. The world is changing and, more than ever, leaders are called to think beyond themselves and the immediate needs of their organizations.

It’s time to move beyond passion casting on the one hand, and rigid planning on the other. It is time for fresh, flexible thinking guided by core convictions and clear, collaborative action—in the same direction together.

Now that’s a plan.

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Leveraging Your Leadership Story

Nov 28

Posted by Bill Donahue in Leadership | No Comments

Most leaders are so overwhelmed by the present and consumed with the future that they fail to leverage the learning of the past.  In his work on the subject of authentic leadership Bill George from Harvard interviewed hundreds of leaders. They ranged from their 20’s through their 80’s and had held leadership roles in for-profit and non-profit organizations.

George tracked their successes and failures by capturing and mining their stories. The results are captured in True North, one of the tools I use when coaching strategic leaders. Bill begins with the same process that I begin with – digging into a leaders leadership journey. Using some of Bill’s guidelines and adding a few components from my experience with leaders, the process looks like this.

  1. Identify defining moments in your life, one in each of these eras: early childhood, high school years, college years and work life.  Write at least a half page describing the defining moment, why it impacted your life, and how it affects your leadership today.
  2. Look for themes in the stories. How do you react to failure or success? What issues from the past have you ignored or failed to process? What was the key learning from each experience?
  3. How has your current leadership role and style been affected by your story, and how does your story impact the way you lead and make decisions today?

Though this is only part of the process, you can already see how helpful it can be in moving ahead as a leader. For example, here is what 2 leaders have said.

“Mining my story helped me discover a pattern – conflict avoidance under stress. It started in high school and has been evident in two leadership roles. I tend to withdraw and hesitate when making key decisions as a result.”

“Overseeing staff has been a strength and a weakness in my leadership. I soon realized the strength was my ability to create a sense of team and community among these key leaders. But the weakness I discovered was an inability to share authority and power. I lost some key people along the way.”

So what can you mine from your story? Who is giving you feedback and helping you process your leadership experiences? What is the best next step for your growth?

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Leadership: Whose Values?

Oct 27

Posted by Bill Donahue in Leadership, Uncategorized | No Comments

Leaders thrive in tension. But they can also be torn apart by poorly navigated tension. This is especially true when dealing with personal and organizational values. Zealots of the past age embrace the tried and true while visionary dreamers of amazing futures are guided by the new, the hip, and the “just imagine what we could be!”

So which values make it on the list? Or better yet – WHOSE values? Those of the senior leader? The team? The customer/target audience? When you start talking values – as I do with groups and leaders I coach – you get a lot of tension. It looks like this:

Preserve the Past ————-VALUES—————Embrace the Future

The tension created here is no small thing. Preservation of the past is not bad. There is “value” to what got you here. The people and leaders who shouldered the problems of the past should not be ignored as you shape the paradigms of the future. The energy that fuels the future must be unleashed without crushing the spirits of those who built the past.

Tension is good and necessary. Why?

Tension and leadership are partners. Without tension, there is no need for leadership. Navigating the “pull” of many good forces in many different directions is the challenge of every leader. Today, for example, I will have to manage the tension between some self-leadership issues (taking advantage of some personal growth opportunities) while still reaching out to others to serve them through my coaching and consulting. Both are necessary for me.

Personal and organizational values are tested and forged in such tension. So here are three questions to ask when shaping values, given to me by a mentor many years ago.

1) What to we want to Avoid? Those who wish to preserve the past love this question. It is the guiding motif behind their energy and commitment to “keep both feet firmly planted” in what they believe. Fear – sometimes legitimate fear — of losing hard-fought ground is behind this. Or people are worried that a core value will be lost in the future.

Example: A company wants to receive just-in-time data for decision-making. Sounds like a great value (“there should be no one standing in the information line!”).

But without a filter or a process for sifting through that information (guided by strategic values and frameworks) the leadership team may act impulsively: “well, the new data tell us that we should…” So leaders who embrace the value of timely information and data must wrestle with the value to maintain brand quality, vision clarity, and consistent implementation of strategy. Or else the group will shift and sway with every new piece of data that comes down the pike.

So what might these leaders want to avoid? Impulsive decision-making; the kind that comes from an effort to be hip or current, instead of being wise.

2) What do we want to Preserve? Example: A new effort is being designed to get everyone in a group or on a team, because of a timeless value — No One Stands Alone. If we hold to a long-term value like this in the face of needed change, do we appear to be stuck in the past? Be careful here. A long-held value does not imply a lack of creativity. It simply means a desire for continuity at the core level. Fresh strategic thinking can still embrace enduring values while adding new values that will guide the future.

It can be a win-win effort.

3) What do we want to Achieve? Those committed to taking the proverbial “next hill” love this question. The problem is they often leave those committed to #1 and #2 above lying wounded on the previous hill. Vision-casters are “next hill” people. We need them. But they will look over their shoulders and see no one following if they do not re-group, re-align, and re-invest in the development of staff and volunteers who fought the last battle.

Potential achievements must never eclipse past accomplishments. Reward and recognize as you renew and re-envision.

Final Thoughts: Obsession with the future at the expense of the past is leadership suicide (let’s watch how Apple handles this the next 12 months) and obsession with the past at the expense of the future is organizational suicide (go to school on the last decade and present decisions by HP!).

Granted, there are people who will never move ahead. But there are many who will, and they just need someone who values their contribution and challenges them to become a learning community with eyes to the future. Strong companies, schools, churches, boards, and agencies that have been around understand this.

They may lack the sizzle of a Groupon. But they won’t get fried either.

How are you navigating the “Values” tension with your team?

 


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Flatten the Church

Oct 15

Posted by Bill Donahue in community, Leadership | 15 Comments

If the church is a community at every level, from her shepherding leadership through her fully-engaged membership, then why do we build structures that destroy community, distort the influence of spiritual leadership, and diminish participation by the many for the voice of a few?

This is a hard post, and you must allow me some room to vent a bit. In my last few years I have had many questions and observations about the nature of the hierarchical, one-leader-at-the-top style of leadership that pervades Christendom. I have many questions, and I invite your input and critique.

Q: Why do we have “Senior” pastors, bishops and other individuals in whom we invest so much power and control, neglecting the communal imperatives of Scripture to appoint “elders” not “an elder” to shepherd the flock? And why do so many “lead” the elders and deacons and staff? It is not about the title, per se, but that too many SP’s are expected to be alone at the top. Is this the best approach?

Why do I hear so often from staff and committed volunteers, “Whatever the pastor wants, he gets, and what he does not want, we don’t do–even if it is the right thing.” Wow…is this the Church that humble, servant Jesus died to build?

The results of this model can be disastrous.

The damage, the bad decisions, the poor theology, the errant stewardship of tens of millions of dollars, the narrow teaching, the inadequate succession plans, and the cancerous nepotism are all so toxic to community. It seems like it is everywhere.

Why do we say, “At his church” or, “He’s built a great church” — really? Has “he” built a church? Why would we ever want that?

Is this part of the reason why our churches are filled with weak disciples, disengaged members, and lackluster servants who have lost heart?

Ephesians 4 says, “one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God…” but  not one pastor. Hmmm. Instead it says he gave some –not one — to be pastors, apostles, prophets, etc. And it does not say, “and one of them is the leader of them all. He can hire and fire, and he should always get his way — it is all about him/her – his teaching, his vision, his values!” It sure seems that way based on the stories I hear.

This may sound harsh but if you could go behind the scenes of too many churches, and hear what many staff and key volunteers say about the hierarchical models they serve in, you might just be shocked at what goes on behind closed doors. Or maybe not.

The stories are riddled with power plays, anger dumps, favoritism (loyalty promotions some call them), lack of confrontation, belittling and berating of staff, treating elders and deacons as political action committees, and firing those who threaten their control  (“God has called them elsewhere” is code sometimes for that.)

Hierarchy — not authority — is a deterrent to community in any size church. But I observe that the larger the church or organization the greater the number of layers. And thus more power is given to a few over so many. It can be scary — for the people AND the leader “at the top.”

Your thoughts? Am I off base? Really wrestling with what I hear and see, and what I believe the Bible teaches about leadership in community and for community, not lording it over a community.

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Filling Rows or Forming Circles 2

Sep 28

Posted by Bill Donahue in community, Group Life | 1 Comment

I have been thinking a lot about Andy Stanley’s comments at the Group Life Conference 2009 and the implications for church ministry. If it is true that more learning, growth, care and ministry takes through transformational group-like circles, why do churches spend an inordinate amount of time, staffing and money on filling rows? Here are some possible reasons for expending so much energy on building a “row”-ing team, and I would be interested in your feedback.

Creating row-mentum: Is it that we believe filling the seats will create a catalytic experience that moves the masses to act?

Tell-a-vision: Is it about getting people aligned with what leadership is trying to do and clarifying church direction?

We-vangelism: Are we trying to create an attractional environment for members to bring people to hear a gospel presentation from an evangelist?

Gotta know when to enfold ‘em: Maybe it is the desire to connect the de-churched, re-churched and the “it’s-all-about-me”-churched, hoping they will find a home? (‘cause there are very few “unchurched” in America, and most places have not had such a person in a row for a long time—but they still “row”-manticize about having them there. Sorry, could not resist that!)

I have a truth ache: Is it because people love teaching more than learning? Is it that we enjoy hearing the old, old story more than facing the new, new reality of how far we are from real change?

I know the correct response is the “both-and” approach, large gatherings and smaller groupings. But it is so much more difficult to get people to form circles than it is to sit in rows. Just look at your percentages.  So, because it is easier, we figure “let’s leverage the large gathering!” and put tons of resources into the 60-90 minutes of a church service.

Pastors spend 20-30 hours preparing, choirs and vocalists (paid and volunteer) practice for days, musicians rehearse, greeters are recruited, welcome teams and service hosts deployed, parking attendants and programming teams are organized, buildings are built—all culminating in an event. “It’s rowtime!”

I just wonder. I wonder what a church would look like if it re-allocated the staffing, energy, creativity, money, teaching and focus from event-making to disciple-making. If it equipped catalytic shepherd-leaders to connect people to transformational disciple-making environments (like groups and missional gatherings)—what would it look like? What if instead of thousands of people coming to sit and listen we had thousands of missional shepherd-guides moving out to serve and lead…people who make disciples…who make disciples? Maybe we could move from rowtime to growtime.

Just think of $50million invested in church-planting and the creation of hundreds—thousands—of missional groups and hubs throughout the city instead of one single building?

Sadly, many places will never find out.  We are stuck in a paradigm lock. Yet I know many of you are experimenting with such expressions of the church. Many of you have been multiplying small communities that break into the culture – and you are less concerned with filling rows than you are with forming circles. And you are counting what counts. (See Reggie McNeal’s book Missional Renaissance for a great chapter on the church scorecard.)

Would love to know what you are discovering and how you are moving from an emphasis on mega-gatherings to many missional-connections. The multi-site movement is a big shift in this direction. But for sure there is a movement taking place—a shift from solitary, inflexible, hierarchical structures to clusters of missional groups, teams and gatherings that are bent on communal renovation. Churches where hundreds of leaders—not just a handful—use their gifts in the spirit of Colossians 3. Just maybe I will see this transformation across the North American church in my lifetime. And we will all be running in circles.

 

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FINALLY REUNITED

Sep 27

Posted by Bill Donahue in community | 2 Comments

I was really looking forward to the reunion. There we stood – the bald and the beautiful; the young (looking) and the restless (the insomniacs). We represented every shape and size, and some had gone to great efforts to be tanned and toned, trimmed and tight. Others, however, had made every effort to avoid making any effort. But all relished the moment.

Each lanyard had our names (maiden and current) and our graduation photos from 1976, the “bi-centennial class” from suburban Philly. Most people were a dead ringer for their black-and-white shoulder-and-head portrait. For the guys’ photos we’d been forced to wear a powder blue jacket and black bowtie; the gals were draped in a black v-neck dress. Some were hard to match. Facial boundaries, hair styles—or lack thereof—and waistlines had been altered.

You really should go to your 35th High School reunion. Everyone is 50-something, eligible for AARP, contemplating reconstructive surgery and encouraging each other saying, “You haven’t changed a bit.” Actually, for a number of people this really was true. Others had been—shall we say—“transformed” over the years, but we were kind to one another, probably much more so than during those days at William Tennent in ’76.

(If you recognized “Tennent”, the school was named for Rev.William Tennent who started the Log College, the first seminary in the US, which later birthed Princeton. Ironically, I attended Log College Junior High, Wm. Tennent HS, and Princeton Univ.).

Reunions bring out the best and worst in us, but mostly the best. Despite the fact that a few still seemed “stuck” in high school, most had done well in work, family and life, maturing nicely and aging gracefully. It was loads of fun, especially seeing friends like Paul, Billy, Dave, Michael, Bob, Dom, Gary, Chris, Ron, Mike Jimmy, Anne, Ginny, Sue, Pam, Megan, Wendy, Cheryl, Debbie M., Carolyn, Debbie K. and others. Sadly, more of my ‘ole football buddies were absent from the gang.

But there’s another reunion coming and I am looking forward to it very much. At that reunion there will be no surgeries to discuss or wondering about those who are MIA. No sorrow or pain, no grief or loss, no grieving past divorces or lamenting singleness after 50.

Like my 35th reunion there will be stories and songs, smiles and celebrations. But everyone who is supposed to be there actually will be there. There will be drinking and dancing and laughing and shouting of a different kind. The “band” will never miss a note, and everyone will love every song, even those we’ve never heard before. It truly will be a GRAND REUNION!

Our class of 1976 is having another gathering in 5 years – our 40th. And I hope to be there. No guarantees for who will make it back again. After all, I had not been back since the 20th.

But regardless of who can make it, I simply hope and pray that everyone who was at this reunion will be at the GRAND REUNION…that they will respond to the invitation to “come together” in the name of messiah Jesus.

No tickets to purchase or special travel arrangements to make. Just trusting God’s grace and the love of Jesus to bring us together. When the earthly community is reunited with our heavenly Father, it really will be grand.

And I do not plan on missing it – how about you? Let me know.

 

 

 

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What Drives Your Leadership?

Sep 12

Posted by Bill Donahue in Leadership | No Comments

As you develop leaders in your organization or ministry, consider what drives them (and what drives you). We are all moved by internal and external motivators. There are occasions to look closely at these to see what really drives our leaders and our own leadership. Bill George in True North compares external and internal motivators for leaders.

External Motivators

Compensation: Money is not necessarily a bad thing but never choose a new position or role based solely on this factor (except for something like prolonged unemployment). Follow your heart and the money will follow you. Who’s in it just for the money?

Power: The desire to control others and to manage great amounts of resources can blind us to the real mission we are to pursue. The result is hubris and it effects character — just look at the political climate of the day.

Title: What are the consequences for building your leadership around gaining a certain title? After all, you can be “king” but be king over nothing. Who is working for the nameplate?

Recognition: Are you fueled only by the rewards you can earn from others? If so, a leader may cut corners to make the “numbers.”

Status: Being higher on the ladder of success can inflate the ego very quickly. Pride lurks within.

Winning: There are always losers when you have to be the winner. At what risk?

Internal Motivators

Personal growth: A wise leader will often take the more difficult, less prestigious assignment because long-term growth is the goal, not short-term resumé-building.

Satisfaction: Knowing that it is a “job well done” is what drives the leader.

Developing others: Instead of looking for recognition, leaders work to strengthen other leaders.

Finding meaning in your work: The work itself has value, apart from how others view you or it.

True to your beliefs: Your values and beliefs guide your decisions, not your potential movement up the ladder.

Making a difference in the world: Instead of winning or gaining recognition, you strive to make an impact in the lives of others, even though it may often go unnoticed.

Q: What’s diving me today?

 

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