I lead a great team of leaders here at my church, and everyday I’m learning to be the leader they need me to be. In this journey, I’ve discovered 6 important keys to making it happen for my team.
1. Let them be themselves. You hired them for who they are, let them be that. (Wisdom and Discretion applied as needed.)
2. Encourage Self Management. When you hire someone, let them manage their own time and productivity. (See #3 for corresponding key.)
3. Hold everyone Accountable. When letting someone be themselves, and encouraging self management on your team; it’s imperative that you also couple those things with heavy accountability. When is the last time you asked your team what their daily and weekly schedule looked like? Not that you want to change it, but just because you want to see with your eyes what they are doing with their time.
4. Say Thank You. The easiest thing to forget when leading others, yet also the easist thing to do. When you see something great, tell them you saw it. So easy to do, so easy to forget.
5. Force Teamwork. You might say, “How can you force something that should be natural?” Easy, I tell people to work together on projects. When they do that, they are being a team. I will not tolerate the solitary person on our team, we all have to buy in and be a team. And sometimes that takes the leader making that big ask!
6. Set the Example. Be the change you want to see on your team. I know it’s easier said than done…but it’s important nonetheless!
This list goes on and on and on and on…what would you add?
