"Shared leadership is about accountability and not babysitting."
When I first join the staff at The Next Level Church I learned part of my job description was to be the clearing house for vacation hours/days. The other guys on staff were to report to me how they were using their vacation days and I was to keep a report or log in order to make sure they stayed within their allotted number of days.
Just about as fast as I could I dropped this responsible from the list of things I worried about. I told the guys, "We are all adults who can manage their own vacation time. Besides if you are abusing your vacation time and not getting your job done you have bigger problems than me to worry about."
I am a pastor not a babysitter.
Likewise, the Pastors around TNL don't worry if we don't see each other in the office much. I am actually in the office the most, but that does not cause me to wonder what my peers are doing with their time. Just be cause they are not in the office does not mean they are not doing what is important to God's kingdom and our community. If I ever wonder where anyone is, I just have to open Outlook which has all of our individual calendars synced together. And as always I have the freedom to ask.
This is accountability.
In the same respects there are times when life just implodes or explodes depending on how you look at it. Workload, personal health, mental health, crisis, marriages, families, friends sometimes require we retreat and recover. Extra days off, creative flexible scheduling, time away to think, pray and listen, opportunities to refresh and recharge, cutting out of church or events early are all part of the survival culture around here. Even though no one is keeping track, communication is key during these times.
This is about being a team and respecting each other.
In the end, shared leadership is about trust. Trusting that people are doing what they are called by God to do, paid to do and responsible to do. Around here we will check in with and on each other, but we refuse to babysit or handhold.
1 comment:
I don't know if you listen to Andy Stanley's leadership podcast. But an episode I was listening to was talking about how as a minister your hours need to change with your stage life. It was part of his larger message of Choosing to Cheat about whether or not work or family will win out for your time.
Sort of relates to your Favre question.
Post a Comment