Last evening at the church board meeting of First Wesleyan
Church in Gastonia – we took time as leaders to discuss a chapter in a book we
are going through together. Our discussion centered around innovation. This
morning I arose early and read this article as part of my daily routine. Enjoy!
In today’s rapidly changing spiritual and cultural context,
pastors and church leaders are being forced to choose between leading like a
missionary or curating a historical preservation society. The days of
successfully blending these two perspectives are long gone.
Those who choose a missionary mindset tend to value
results. They hold fast to the eternal truths of Scripture. But they’re also
quick to jettison methods and paradigms that no longer work. They’re agile and
open to change, adapting their ministry to the real world, not the world they
wished they lived in. Like the apostle Paul, they become all things to all
people so that they might save some (1 Cor. 9:22).
Those who choose a curator mindset tend to value the
past. They’re resistant to change because of a belief that the intrinsic beauty
of our old methods and paradigms are worth protecting—even if they no longer
work.
Those who know me know that I lean heavily toward a
missionary mindset. I’m a curator’s worst nightmare. But the fact is, we need some
curators, because when everyone has a missionary mindset, we can become so
focused on creating the future that we forget to protect the past. Those who
create the future without protecting the past inevitably end up building a
house without a foundation. It might look great for a while, but it won’t last
long.
Obviously, organizational agility and flexibility are
incredibly important traits. Without them a ministry has no long-range future.
But agility involves more than just the ability to quickly try new things. It
also includes the ability to quickly retreat when things don’t work out like we
thought they would.
Unfortunately, this aspect of organizational agility and
flexibility is often overlooked. Change and innovation are almost always cast
in a positive light. No one talks about their dirty little secret: Most
attempts at change and innovation fail. Always have. Always will.
We don’t hear much about these failures because there’s no
market for motivational speakers or authors who chronicle a long list of
failures. Instead, all we hear about are stories of folks who bet the farm,
burned the boats or otherwise went out on a limb and succeeded spectacularly.
(Which, by the way, tends to leave the rest of us wondering, “What’s wrong with
me?” after we go out on a limb and the limb breaks off.)
This is not to say that change and innovation are too risky
to try. Nothing could be further from the truth. It’s just to say that the
possibility of failure (and a plan for how to deal with it) should be baked into
every attempt at significant change or innovation.
So how can we balance the need for change and innovation
with the reality that most attempts won’t work out so well?
The answer is quite simple: Never implement a
significant change or innovation until you have an exit strategy in place.
That’s not a lack of faith or commitment. It’s common sense. When it comes to
leadership in a fallen world, our exit strategies are always going to be just
as important as our implementation strategies.
Here are four things to keep in mind as you lead your
church or ministry through any significant change or innovation. They will
allow you to enjoy the benefits of quick implementation without losing
credibility if things don’t work out so well.
1. Use the language of experimentation.
Whenever possible, use the language of experimentation.
“Try” things instead of “changing” things. Words are important. Change stirs up
resistance. Experiments stir up interest. People who fiercely resist a change
will often stand by to watch an experiment.
Experiments provide you with lots of wiggle room. People
expect that experiments and trial runs will need midcourse corrections. No one
is shocked if they fail. And when they fail, the cost in lost trust and
credibility is essentially zero.
Contrast that with what happens when a new initiative or
major change is oversold or overhyped. The harder you push and sell, the more
position papers you write and distribute, the less wiggle room you’ll have.
Unfortunately, this is a hard concept for many leaders and
organizations to grasp. Once we’ve decided to move forward with a major change
or initiative, our natural impulse is to immediately move into sales mode. We
use the language of persuasion. We try to convince the unconvinced, treating
naysayers as obstacles to overcome. We become obsessed with proving we’re
right.
As a result, we tend to see any hint of compromise or
retreat as a sign of weakness rather than a sign of wisdom. And when that
happens, we’ve effectively backed ourselves into a corner. There’s no way out.
The language of experimentation provides exactly what
unproven and untested ideas need most: plenty of room for midcourse
correction—and sometimes, an escape hatch for bailing out altogether.
Remember, a failed change equals a failed leader. But a
failed experiment equals a brilliant scientist.
2. Plan in pencil.
Nothing ever goes as planned.
Even the apostle Paul had to make midcourse corrections.
This is a guy who knew God well enough to write a large portion of the Bible.
Yet, in Acts 16:6-10 we find the story of one of his mission trips gone
haywire. Paul had a plan, but his plan kept running into roadblocks. His
itinerary ended up being completely rewritten. Nothing worked as planned.
It’s the same with our plans. We need them. But they are
best made in pencil. And this is especially true when it comes to our plans for
change or innovation. We don’t really know how something will work until it
hits the real world. Only then do we know what we have on our hands. Until
then, it’s just a concept or a theory.
Planning in pencil simply means keeping your options open
as long as possible. It involves using the language of flexibility rather than
certainty. It’s being careful to say, “This is what we do for now,” rather
than, “This is what we will do forever.” It’s making sure that everyone knows
that midcourse corrections aren’t simply allowed; they’re encouraged.
The only thing you and your leadership team can know for
sure about the future is that it will be different from what you expect. So the
best way to prepare is to keep as many options open as long as possible.
Never forget that successful change agents and innovators
deal with what is. They don’t worry much about what should be.
They don’t worry much about what they thought would be. They just worry
about what is. And when things change, they change. They plan in pencil.
3. Avoid the hype.
When it’s time to make a significant change or to add
something new, avoid the hype trap. It leaves no room for retreat.
If your primary goal is to get something off to a great
start, hype works well. But if your goal is long-term success (or the chance to
try something else should your latest brilliant idea not work out so well),
hype will kill your leadership future.
If we hype something that succeeds, all is well. But if we
hype something that fails, the loss in leadership chips is always significant.
Even worse, if we hype everything, it’s not long until our words become white
noise, turning us into the leadership equivalent of a carnival barker.
Most often, the hype trap is the result of
over communication. In a sincere (but misguided) effort to secure buy-in, we put
together sermon series, position papers and a host of other marketing ploys to
convince everyone that the changes we are about to make are the best thing
since flush toilets.
It seldom works. Because when it comes to significant
change, buy-in is nearly impossible to get. Studies consistently show that more
than half the population resists change until they see that it works for them
and everyone else is for it. By definition, that can’t happen on the front end
of a new endeavor.
What we actually need is permission to try
something. And that’s a lot easier to get—and a lot easier to make midcourse
corrections or even back away from if things go sour.
4. Avoid leadership ADHD.
Idea-a-minute leadership can be exhilarating, especially
when there’s a charismatic leader with a gift for selling at the helm. His or
her innate ability to make every idea seem like the next big thing never leaves
a trace of doubt.
But after a while, most people figure it out. Instead of
charging off to chase the latest butterfly, they feign agreement, but actually
do nothing. They’ve learned that “this too shall pass.” So they keep on doing
whatever they were doing before, while the newbies who haven’t figured it out
yet jump on the latest bandwagon.
Once the default response to a new idea becomes “this too
will pass,” a leader’s ability to innovate or implement significant change is
pretty much lost. When your staff sets up an office pool to see how long your
latest idea or program will last, you’ve become a leader without followers.
Ironically, ADHD leadership is not that far from innovative
leadership. It’s just a few degrees off. But they’re important degrees. Both
try lots of stuff. But non-ADHD leadership tries it in an experimental mode.
Nothing is oversold. Everything is subservient to, and judged by, its impact on
the mission.
In contrast, leaders with leadership ADHD never slow down
to experiment. Every idea that passes through their heads is pursued full speed
ahead. It’s the only speed they know.
It reminds me of the difference between Jack in the Box and
In-N-Out Burger. (Humor me … I live in Southern California, birthplace of the
famous In-N-Out chain.) In-N-Out never changes its menu and seldom advertises.
Everyone knows that if you want a consistently excellent burger, fries and a
drink, you go to In-N-Out. That’s all they do. You can’t get a salad. You can’t
get a taco. But you can get a great burger, fries and a drink.
Jack in the Box, on the other hand, always has a new item
on the menu and a funny commercial to advertise it. But Jack is usually so busy
marketing his latest peanut butter, bacon and grilled-jalapeno sandwich that he
never seems to notice that the cheeseburgers and fries are disgusting.
That’s what happens when leadership ADHD takes over. It
results in a constant stream of new initiatives and failed projects that
eventually numbs everyone to the importance of the core items on the menu.
Change and innovation are a necessary part of creating the
future. Without the organizational agility to make necessary changes, your
church will soon die and God will have to raise up wildfire down the street
(and trust me, he will). At the end of the day, change is a lot like
electricity. Handled well, it brings great blessings. Handled carelessly or
without understanding, it can burn the house down.
Source:
Larry Osborne, an Outreach
magazine consulting editor, is one of the senior pastors and teaching pastors
at North Coast Church in Vista, California. For more on unlocking innovation,
pick up Osborne’s latest book, Sticky Leaders: The Secret to Lasting Change and Innovation
(previously released under the title Innovation’s Dirty Little Secret).
