April 3, 2023
2004 was a year of celebration for our church family. After being in a stressful fundraising campaign for several years, our new worship center was finally ready to open. Needless to say, we were excited. The new building almost doubled the seating capacity of our previous auditorium. We now had state of the art audio and visual upgrades, more parking, and expanded office space. After being cramped in our nursery and children’s areas for years, we now had more than enough room to grow. It was a time of great momentum, expectation, and gratefulness for what God had done.
So you can imagine my surprise when one of my most trusted volunteers walked into my office and said, “Pastor I think it’s time for me to step down. I’ve been offered a position in another church. My wife and I have prayed about it and we are going to take it.” I was shocked. I was hurt. I was dumbfounded. What happened? We were just about to enter one of those most exciting times of our ministry and one of the people I believed was the most committed to the church just “quit” on me.
"Leadership contains certain elements of good management, but it requires that you inspire, that you build durable trust. For an organization to be not just good but to win, leadership means evoking participation larger than the job description, commitment deeper than any job contract's wording."
— General Stanley A. McChrystal
Most of us have the experience of having someone “quit” on us. Sometimes people actually sever their relationship with us. Sometimes they just “check out” mentally or emotionally and no longer carry their share of the load. Either way, someone quitting usually results in a loss of productivity for the organization.
Legendary Leaders understand that people don’t commit for the leader’s reasons, they commit for their own. As a leader you are trying to “lead” people somewhere and it can be very frustrating. Like a herd of cats they just don’t want to go in your direction. But what you need to remember is this, while you may believe the end goal is glorious, they may not.
The real key to motivation and casting vision in this day and age is realizing that motivation is internal. Dan Rockwell, known as “The Leadership Freak,” says, “people commit for their own reasons, not ours.” Dan says that people will ask themselves 8 questions when asked to commit:
- Does it matter?
- Do I want to?
- Can I make a meaningful contribution?
- Am I happy with what I’m currently doing?
- Do I have time and resources?
- How long is the commitment?
- Will I enjoy it?
- What’s the win?
It doesn’t matter how great you think your end goal is, or how descriptive you are in the picture you paint of the future. If you don’t answer their questions - they won’t commit or if they commit, they’ll eventually quit. Find out what matters to them and how it aligns with your vision and then they’ll convince themselves.
Book Recommendation:
1001 Ways to Energize Employees by Bob Nelson
If this Leadership Lifter has helped you, share with a friend!
God is for You
Pastor Blunt
COTR Marketplace Ministries is a ministry for those in the marketplace and those interested in starting a business. Lifelong learners, entrepreneurs, and business owners meet to grow in their leadership and skills. This is a great place to network, build relationships and exchange ideas!
Join us on Saturday, April 15, 2023 at 5pm in the main campus lobby. We will have guest speaker, Jason Selk, Director of Mental Training for the St. Louis Cardinals! In addition to working with world-class athletes, Dr. Selk helps business leaders, executives, and top sales people develop mental toughness, increase confidence and focus!
Starting with this dinner, we have added a Marketplace Connection opportunity. This is a unique avenue to share your business through displaying your product(s) or service(s). For $60 you can reserve a table where you will be able to tell others about the services you provide and sell those services and/or products. We will open this 45 minutes before and 30 minutes after the Marketplace dinner to display your business.
Dinner and childcare are included in the price of your ticket. Purchase your tickets online for just $12 or $15 at the door.