Leading from the Side: Empowering Your Church Staff

Leading well within a church staff is often equated to being the smartest person in the room. Yet, an "expert" culture may unintentionally curtail creativity, stifle collaboration, and weaken staff vitality over time.

Falling Into the Leadership Trap

The notion of being an ever-omniscient leader is a leadership trap many pastors unknowingly fall into. The trap convinces them that they should have all the answers, which often stems more from insecurity than leadership. Striving to avoid appearing unprepared or unnecessary, they end up dominating the staff meetings and eclipsing other members' contributions.

Guiding, Not Dominating

A leader's role is to guide, not to outshine all team members. If your staff is merely echoing you, instead of building a team, you're creating a reflection of your ideas. The consequence is members checking out or creative team members leaving due to feeling undervalued.

Empowering Your Staff

Empowering your staff involves inviting input, asking better questions, and creating room for each member to contribute. It's about learning to say, "What do you think should be the next step?" rather than asserting your ideas.

Adopt these three shifts to foster an open culture and empower your church staff:

• Ask More, Declare Less: Try asking three times more questions than giving answers in your future meetings.

• Publicly Recognize Contributions: Affirm your team members' ideas and insights openly, further encouraging the sharing culture within your staff.

• Rotate Leadership: Let others take the lead in meetings and step aside, allowing others to step up.

Embrace Shared Leadership

If your team can’t move forward without your direction, then it signifies that you are not leading but bottlenecking. Empower your church staff to share their ideas. It doesn't just lighten your load, but multiplies the reach and vitality of your ministry.

Remember the words of Jethro in Exodus if you try to do it all, you're going to wear yourself out. Just as in the early church, the need for shared wisdom and mutual submission is essential for a healthy church staff culture.

Don't strive to be the smartest person in the room. Sometimes the wisest thing a leader can do is step aside and let others rise.

Want more insights on how to avoid this leadership trap and empower your church staff? Join me in today's Healthy Church Staff Podcast episode for a deeper dive into facilitating a collaborative and embracing leadership culture in your church.