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4 Changing Reasons I Now Attend the Global Leadership Summit

September 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment

It probably comes as no surprise to you to learn that I have attended the Global Leadership Summit every year for many, many years.

But in recent years I have found that my reasons for needing to be at the Summit have been changing. Instead of focusing solely on my own need for personal development, new reasons have been percolating to the surface.

As you consider your own participation in this year’s Summit, as with my journey, you too may want to put some weight on these factors:

1.   I need to be a part of something far bigger than myself
I recognize that my natural tendency is to make everything about myself. The Global Leadership Summit reminds me every year that God is up to something far beyond my own little sphere. This year there will be more than 7000 Christian leaders gathered at the Summit across Canada, and another 150,000 or so world-wide.

I need to be a part of something like that.

2.   Every year God seems to provide me with an opportunity to bless someone else
I’ve developed a habit to start each Summit day with the prayer, “God, if you want me to be a blessing to someone here today, I make myself available.”

Whether it’s at a coffee break, resource lineup or over lunch, each year God provides such an opportunity.

That does my soul a lot of good.

3.   Local churches coming together gives me a beautiful glimpse of the “true Church”
Somehow I sense heaven is smiling when every denomination in our community come together at the Summit.

There’s just nothing like worshipping alongside brothers and sisters in Christ from every church in the community.

4.   It’s important to celebrate the giftedness of others
There’s an army of volunteers at each Summit site, diligently serving with their gifts and talents.

I find great value in simply celebrating and affirming their servants’ hearts.

If you find yourself sitting on the fence as to whether you’ll take in this year’s Global Leadership Summit, let me challenge you to think beyond your personal development.

Perhaps, like me, you’ll find you need to be there for purposes far beyond your own leadership.

The best pricing is TODAY (September 25) for the Global Leadership Summit 2012 in Canada.

What reasons is the Summit a “can’t miss” event for you?

Filed Under: Featured, The Global Leadership Summit Tagged With: , , , , ,

How to Turn a Summit Chair into a Seat of Transformation

September 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

You’ve heard the comments before at the Leadership Summit.

With great flourish a renowned leader points to a chair in the auditorium as he passionately thunders, “That’s the chair where everything changed. I remember sitting in that very chair many years ago at a conference when my life was forever changed…”

Image via iStockPhoto.com

When a Summit speaker makes such a statement, guests typically have one of two reactions. For some they think to themselves, “I can relate. I had a similar experience at a Summit.”

But for others the response is, “Huh? I’ve never come close to that kind of moment. What gives?”

Why the difference?

I’ve learned that if you want to experience the Global Leadership Summit in such a way that is more likely to lead to a transformational moment it all comes down to what you take with you into the event.

Specifically, I believe there are at least 3 vital tools every leader must bring with them to the Summit:

1.   An expectation of transformation
If you arrive in a posture of expectancy that your world could be rocked, you stand a much greater chance of experiencing one of those “a-ha” moments.

2.   A willingness to wrestle in “real time”
In each talk, be constantly asking, “Do I agree with this? What is my immediate take away? What will I have to change in my own leadership?”

3.   A team-learning approach
In past years, team learning was difficult to work into the fabric of the Summit. But this year there will be more opportunities for you to huddle up with your team for a time of facilitated discussion. Take full advantage of these opportunities!

There can be many reasons for registering your team for an event like the Global Leadership Summit. Perhaps it’s a team-building exercise, or maybe it’s just for a well-deserved break from the grind of ministry!

But if your expectation is to actually experience growth, change and development, come prepared with these three tools.

Perhaps one day you’ll point to a seat in the auditorium and say, “That’s the chair where everything changed.”

What have been your transformational experiences at the Summit?

 

Filed Under: Featured, Leadership, Team, The Global Leadership Summit Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

What Successful People Do the LAST Hour of Their Work Day

August 24, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Fast Company recently posted an article that created a mini online “buzz” because of its practical relevance.

The piece was simply titled “What Successful People Do the First Hour of Their Work Day” and outlined 6 activities that can help maximize your day.

In response to this outstanding post I believe there are also a set of 5 practices that leaders should anchor into the last hour of every work day.

Image via iStockPhoto.com

1.   Review the day’s accomplishments
Your work day was not simply 8 hours of clock-punching. Rather, it was an investment of your most precious leadership commodity; your time.

How well did you expend it? Did you accomplish what you set out to do? Take time to evaluate. Find ways to reward yourself for accomplishing an important goal, and determine why other goals were not met.

2.   Prioritize tomorrow’s goals
Don’t leave the office until you have a game plan set for the following day. Determine what a successful tomorrow looks like and what will be required to pull it off.

This is not a “to-do list”. It’s a leadership action plan designed to maximize results.

3.   Make someone’s day
The day wasn’t all about you.

Carve intentionality into the final hour of your day to connect with members of your team, and demonstrate the level of awareness required to engage in a meaningful conversation about their day.

A little of this goes a long way.

4.   Achieve “inbox zero”
In an earlier post I outlined practical steps to ensure your email inbox is empty by day’s end.

I won’t re-preach that message here, except to say don’t leave the office until the inbox is empty. Ever.

5.   Honour your stakeholders
Take 10 minutes to connect with a handful of stakeholders; board members, donors, key influencers, etc. Fire off a quick email, pop a thank-you note in the mail, send out a word of encouragement.

Make this a daily discipline at day’s end you’ll reap long-term rewards.

By bookending your day with Fast Company’s list for the first hour of your day, accompanied by these suggestions for the last hour of your day, the time you have in between could achieve far more than you ever imagined.

What strategies are on your “must do” list to start and end each day?

Filed Under: Effectiveness, Featured, Leadership, Strategy Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Are You Recruiting Church Leaders with Free Steak Knives?

June 1, 2012 By 2 Comments

When it comes to building your church’s leadership teams, do you recruit or do you cultivate?

Every church faces the reality that it might soon need two new elders, three deacons, a new head of the finance committee, and so on. But while some churches scramble to “fill these slots”, others simply continue to cultivate and develop leaders in the congregation, guiding them toward next steps in their leadership journey.

The difference is intentionality.

Admittedly, my own church used to be far more stuck in the “recruiter” mode. At times we were so desperate to fill slots it we joked that we might need to offer a free set of steak knives to sweeten the offer.

Image via iStockPhoto.com

But today we are getting much better at replacing recruitment with cultivation.

These have been our key learnings along the way:

1.   Key leadership roles should never be filled with a “cold call”
If you’ve ever uttered the words in a phone call, “Hey Mary…ever thought about being an elder?” you are doing the church equivalent of selling vacuums door to door.

2.   Identifying leaders should be happening constantly
Another elder and I had coffee this week with a young woman in our church about to graduate from university. My prediction is that she could be on the church board in 5-7 years. Starting this week we put her on an intentional development plan.

3.   Start talking about a specific role by not talking about a specific role
When you’re ready to begin a dialogue which might lead to a specific leadership role, it should start at a much higher level. It should be a continued conversation about the church, that person’s vision, and so on. Discussing a specific role too soon can lead to awkward back-peddling later on.

4.   Allow time for God to do His work
Following an early discussion with a potential candidate, have a follow-up meeting to discuss a specific role. There must be plenty of margin in the process for prayer and consideration.

If you find yourself scrambling to “fill slots”, take the time to introduce greater intentionality to build a culture of leadership cultivation.

It could save you a fortune in steak knives.

How have you developed a culture of cultivation in your church?

Filed Under: Church, Featured, Staffing Tagged With: , , , , , ,