Leading From Alignment

What happens when things get back to “normal?” When the COVID-19 shelter-in-place restrictions are lifted, what will church look like? What do we need to bring forward from this experience into our leading once we can gather again? Today’s pod will explore three powerful takeaways for leaders in this challenging season.

This week on the Leading From Alignment Podcast, we once again have the privilege of talking with Doug Clay, General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God. We’re excited to share with you Part 2 of Doug’s thoughts on leading during quarantine and leading in a post-quarantine world.

This week on the Leading From Alignment Podcast, we have the privilege of talking with Doug Clay, General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God. We’re excited to share with you Doug’s thoughts on leading during quarantine and leading in a post-quarantine world.

Every relationship carries some degree of risk. Isolating ourselves carries risk as well—maybe even more risk. God has wired us for deep friendship. Leadership doesn’t immunize us from our need for honest, meaningful, and replenishing relationships. With these challenges in mind, today’s podcast will explore seven friendship hacks leaders can use to improve the relational currency in their life.

The coronavirus has unleashed an amazing amount of stress into a leader’s world. It’s isolated many of us from friends and family. As with any challenging season of life, we tend to learn and grow a lot . . . if we take time to reflect and internalize what God is teaching us. Today’s pod will explore four lessons we’ve learned during this unprecedented time in our nation. We hope you find each one of them encouraging and uplifting.

The amount of white space in our calendar (or a lack thereof) is a pretty accurate predictor of the amount of emotional fuel we have in our tank. If our schedule contains long stretches with no white space, it’s likely we’re running on emotional fumes, regardless of what our adrenaline and cortisol hormones may be telling us. If we want to lead better, lead longer, and enjoy it more, we need margin. Today’s pod will help you understand what margin is and how to get more of it in your week.

Today’s pod explores another building block that helps us build emotional resilience: Refueling Emotionally. If you observe Jesus’ life, you discover He was never stressed out (except for Gethsemane). One reason why? He had this refueling thing figured out.

Difficult people go to church. Difficult people who go to church can cause a great deal of harm to a leader. Today’s pod, Protect Yourself from Abuse, will give you three safeguards you can use to protect yourself from abusive people who attend the church you serve and lead.

We live in an angry world. Anger is a human emotion common to us all. In previous pods, we’ve established that pastors experience a significant rate of depression . . . and I wonder if one reason is because we’re afraid to be honest about our anger. We mistakenly believe pastors “shouldn’t” get angry, and for them to express anger is immature. One thing many leaders don’t know don’t know about anger is it doesn’t magically dissipate on its own. If we don’t tell anger where to go, it will take us to places we don’t want go. In today’s pod, we’ll explore four fundamentals that help us better understand this most human of emotions, and then two places where to tell anger to go

It’s possible to be serving in the center of your God-given calling and still crash into a wall of anxiety and/or major depression. Being a pastor or ministry leader or missionary has its great points, Being used by God to influence others is fun! But being a ministry leader has it’s not so great points too. And if we fail to take a thoughtful approach to what God’s called us to do… we can get into emotional trouble. In today’s podcast, Love Yourself, we’ll explore four ways to love ourselves without becoming self-centered narcissists. And we’ll learn why loving ourselves is foundational to mental and emotional health . . . and to leadership longevity.

Many leaders struggle with the demon of insecurity. (I’m using the word “demon” metaphorically, not literally.) King Saul was the crown prince of this particular character flaw. Chosen by God to be Israel’s first king, Saul had good looks, leadership skills, flashes of spirituality . . . but he was painfully insecure. And his insecure tendencies led to a string of bad decisions. Fast forward to the 21st century. Insecure leaders are found everywhere: in the business world, in politics, in education—and unfortunately—in the Church. Today’s episode will uncover five behaviors that reveal a strong sense of security in a leader, and why it matters.

If you’re a leader in any capacity, I’m guessing you have more opportunities than you have time or energy. If you’re in a caregiver role, I suspect you have more invitations to care for people than you have calendar space to do so. It’s so easy to get lost in the day-to-day execution of our work we fail to periodically take a step back and consider this challenging question: Am I only doing what only I can do? Today’s pod will stretch you, challenge you . . . maybe even frustrate you a bit. But I believe how we grapple with the question, am I only doing what only I can do, is a great predictor of whether or not we’ll finish our God-given race well.

Nothing good ever comes from a ministry devoted to pleasing people ~ Chuck Swindol When I think about my first fifteen years of pastoral ministry, so much of it was tinged with a subconscious desire for people to like me. I craved approval without realizing it. Today’s podcast will look at some sure-fire signs indicating you’re stuck in people-pleasing mode, and offer a few ideas about how to get unstuck.

A Barna 2017 Study of 14,000 Protestant Lead Pastors in U.S. revealed that 37% of lead pastors are at medium to high risk of burnout. Here’s the thing about burnout – getting healed up from it is not like flipping a switch. It takes longer to recover than you imagine. So . . . how can you know if burnout is near? How can you prevent it? Today’s pod explores five key contributors to burnout, and three powerful behaviors that keep burnout at bay.

In pod 19, we considered what lead pastors need from their staff. Today in Episode 20 of Leading From Alignment, we’re flipping the script and exploring what associate staff members need from their lead pastor. Essentially, the staff needs their lead to answer five questions for them: Why, where, what, when, and how. Clear answers to these five questions will help a lead pastor get more out their team without killing them in the process. Answering these five questions isn’t easy. But it’s 100% necessary for your staff to reach its full potential.

Nobody knows what it’s like to be a lead pastor unless they’ve been a lead pastor. Today’s pod is the result of our combined 30+ years as lead pastors, as well as 6 years of church consulting and 15 years as mentors to pastors. Between all of those inputs – five consistent themes emerge regarding what a lead pastor seems to need from an associate: Integrity, humility, hunger, interpersonal skills, and understanding. Today’s pod will unpack those five themes.

Near the end of every calendar year, I take time to write down the two or three most important things I learned during the year. Then I spend time reflecting on those items, because I want to remember them. Practice them. Live life differently because of them. Well . . . 2019 is in the books. And I find myself reflecting on another year of learning. Today’s pod is extremely personal. It includes the three biggest epiphanies I experienced this past year. One of them? On the other side of what I fear – God has something amazing planned for me. Listen to the pod to discover the other two aha moments.

If you want to lead well for a long time—you have to figure out how to handle difficult conversations. When it comes to tough conversations, some leaders tend to bully, while others tend to wimp out. Health lies somewhere between the two. How do we find the sweet spot between these two extremes? Today’s pod focuses on six practical ideas around how to navigate these tough conversations.

Difficult people go to church. Difficult people work at the company you lead. Not all people who go to church are difficult. Not all people you work with are difficult. The vast majority are not. But the few who are difficult can make life miserable for a leader. Leaders who intend on leading for the long-haul need steel in their spine. Today’s episode focuses on how to think—from God’s perspective—about difficult people—from God’s perspective. What should we do? Ignore them? Or be direct with them?

How do you make sense of life when you feel God is leading you down a confusing path? Most of the time, His directives are logical. The numbers add up. The pieces fit together. But sometimes the numbers don’t add up when it comes to discerning God’s assignment for a particular season in your life. Today’s episode will look at three quick takeaways that hopefully will help you if you’re in a season of decision, and especially if the path you feel God is asking you to take doesn’t make total sense.

It’s not easy to finish. It’s even less easy to finish well. Question is, how do we live today to increase our chances of reaching the finish line tomorrow? Today’s podcast will explore three behaviors—going upward; going inward, and going outward. These three actions will help you finish your life’s race with a flourish.

A good night’s sleep is a leader’s cheat code. It’s an undervalued weapon in a leader’s quiver. In today’s pod we’ll explore several reasons why sleep matters, and practical ways we can leverage its power to lead our organization better and more effectively. If you’re a leader, you’re running a marathon, not a sprint. Only well-rested leaders can run the long-distance race they’ve been called to.

According to an extensive Barna research study of 14,000 U.S. lead pastors, published in January 2017, 37% of lead pastors are at medium to high risk of burnout. A whopping 66% say they have no deep friendships. 40% are not energized by ministry work. Expastor.com reports 47% of pastors suffer from depression. Many of the moral failures we read about (and those that never make the news) can be traced to exhaustion. One of the key contributors to this mess? Overscheduling, overcommitting, and rest-deprivation. The truth is, the organization you lead will only go as far as your health allows it to. Today’s episode will reveal some of the most common objections leaders give for neglecting rest . . . and what a leader can do about it.

What drives you? Passion? Or adrenaline? Passion is an intense desire or enthusiasm for something. Adrenaline is a hormone secreted by the adrenal glands, especially in conditions of stress, increasing rates of blood circulation, breathing, and preparing muscles for exertion. Passion gets us out of bed in the morning, ready to take on the day. Adrenaline keeps us up at night, unable to let go of the cares of the day. Passion produces an appropriate sense of urgency. Adrenaline makes everything seem urgent. Passion draws us, adrenaline drives us. Today’s podcast will help you to be passionate without being driven. And devoted to your cause without being devoured by it.

Transition is a reality every leader has to deal with at some point in their work life. The majority of leaders who leave for supposedly greener pastures do so prematurely. Some stay too long. Some leave at the first sign of sustained trouble—some stay in toxic environments that have no realistic hope of changing. So . . . how does a leader know: “Should I stay or should I go?” Today’s episode will zero in on five questions leaders should ask themselves before moving on to their next assignment.

One of the biggest mistakes I made as a young lead pastor was spending too much time trying to get uncommitted people to be committed. It’s a losing strategy to spend more time with problem people than with promising people. Today’s pod will shed light on how we use our time leading an organization or a team. Why do some of us fall into the trap of obsessively chasing the unfaithful fringe? We’ll explore three reasons why too many leaders operate this way . . . and why they shouldn’t.

If you’ve answered the divine call to pastoral ministry, you’ve signed up for both a fulfilling and stressful journey. It’s one thing to know what forces create and sustain stress in your life. It’s another thing to know what to do about them. Today’s pod offers five practical hacks pastors can use to address five common stressors ministry leaders face: Difficulty separating from work; the wear and tear of spiritual warfare; societal dysfunction, finances, and sensitivity. Stress is an inescapable part of the leadership role. The good news? Stress doesn't have to destroy you. You can’t totally eliminate it from your life, but you can reduce its negative impact.

In Episode 6, we introduced the concept of personal alignment and its impact on our professional leadership. Being misaligned personally leads to a host of problems: Anxiety and depression. Fatigue and lack of energy. Isolation and loneliness. In last week’s podcast, we considered the first 3 components of personal alignment: First, spiritual – basically, developing our walk with God. Second, medical – working with our doctor to ensure we’re physiologically aligned. And third, psychological – adding a counselor and/or mentor to our team to help us learn healthier thought patterns Today’s podcast will explore the remaining four alignment pieces: Physical, Schedule, Relational, and Rhythms The better aligned you are, the healthier you become. The healthier you become, the more likely it is you’ll reach your God-given potential.

06 - The Simple Yet Amazing Power of Alignment - Part 1 by Converge Coaching

When a leader casts a bold vision or enlarges their facilities to accommodate growth, it’s almost always accompanied by a certain percentage of people leaving. It throws some of these leaders into a bit of a panic: “Wait a minute! How can anyone not be excited about the clear direction we’re heading toward? How can they deny the energy and momentum we’re experiencing? Why don’t they see what I see?” From the human perspective, it often doesn’t make sense. But from the divine vantage point, it makes perfect sense. Growth often starts with subtraction. Today’s podcast will outline three reasons why this happens. You’ll discover a better way to interpret the “pruning of people” that almost always accompanies growth. It will help you resist the urge to panic when the “thinning of the herd” happens.

The other day I was talking to a bi-vocational associate pastor who was “the guy” for 3 months while his lead pastor was on sabbatical. He said something stunning to me: “Now that our pastor is on sabbatical, it’s like a switch turned on with our people. They know they have to step up, that they can’t rely on him to do all of the work because he’s not here! And it’s been an amazing season for us!” I wonder how many lead pastors get in the way of people stepping up to serve just because they try to do it all?” Because they get lost in the micro at the expense of the macro? They favor the tactical at the expense of the strategic? Today’s podcast will provide three practical hacks to getting out of your staff’s or team’s way. You’ll learn how to spend more time working “on” your ministry than “in” your ministry. How to increase the amount time you spend being strategic and reduce the amount of time you spend being tactical. Getting out of your team’s way will help you lead longer, lead better, and enjoy it more.

Have you ever wondered how your calling in life can at times be so hard? You heard the voice of God calling you to do something special, exciting—and yes, maybe even risky—and you jumped in with both feet. You’ve felt fulfilled in that calling, watched God help people through your calling, and even pinched yourself thinking: “I can’t believe I get to do this for a living!” And then comes the inevitable tough stretches. Tough stretches stretch us. They’re uncomfortable. Challenging. Sometimes they’re mystifying. And these seasons of difficulty can leave you asking: “Why?” “God, if I’m called to do this, why is it so stinking hard right now?” Today’s podcast will explore how to handle those stretches when fulfilling your calling seems hard and even confusing.

How often do we think: “I’ll be happy when the church I pastor grows to 400 people” or “when the business I lead reaches $10 million in revenue” or “when I get my Master’s degree” etc.? Leaders tend to wait to be joyful until they arrive at a certain destination, and discover when they get there, they often find themselves disappointed because they imagined they’d feel happier. Jim Branch writes: “Lord help us not live for the distant day when the in-between will be no more, but help us to have the courage to step into that sacred space of the in-between—knowing that this is the place where life is transformed.” Today, Episode 2 of Leading from Alignment Podcast. [insert link] The journey is the place where God lays the foundational blocks that will support the weight of what lies ahead in our next destination. Today’s podcast [insert link] will explore three practical ways we can embrace the journey and learn everything God wants to teach us on the way to our destination.

Questions to ask yourself when your mission feels drifting.