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Creating Effectiveness, Pt. 4: Improve human relationships

In Church Leadership, Church Strategy by Russ Olmon

Leadership is a people business. An understanding of people and what makes them tick is essential to fulfill leadership. You have already seen that the vast majority of your time is spent in communicating with people; eliminating communication breakdowns is an important first step to improving human relationships. Develop others Your role as a leader is more than inspiring confidence …

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Meet Matt Hall, Church Planter

In Church Planting by Russ Olmon

He didn’t grow up in church. His mom was bipolar, twice divorced, and took her own life when Matt was nine, so he went to live with his biological dad. His dad sent Matt to a Christian counselor who ended up being a child molester. By the age of twelve Matt had been kicked out of school for bringing weapons, …

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Creating Effectiveness, Pt. 3: Honor Failure

In Church Leadership, Church Strategy by Russ Olmon

Look at the lives of many of the great leaders throughout history and you will see a history of “failure.†Leaders tend to have a unique view of failure. In fact, what most people would call failure, a true leader will seldom see that way. Leaders view failure as learning experiences. They’re not afraid to try new things. When something …

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Creating Effectiveness, Pt. 2: Know Yourself

In Church Leadership, Church Strategy by Russ Olmon

Good leaders know their strengths and weaknesses. They appreciate their own worth. They have confidence in their ability. But while good leaders recognize and appreciate their strengths, they never ignore their limitations. Henry Kaiser, who built a vast industrial empire in the early 1900s, had this to say about his business organization: “I make progress by having people around me …

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Creating effectiveness, Pt. 1: Communicate your vision

In Church Leadership, Church Strategy by Russ Olmon

Science and technology alone do not create effectiveness, people do…and for people to create effectiveness they must be well led. So how exactly does a leader go about influencing and inspiring others? Communicate your vision Having a dream is not enough; you need the help of others to make your dream a reality, and that will require making your dream …

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The difference between leaders and managers

In Church Leadership by Russ Olmon

Every church requires both leadership and management — the challenge is in gaining the right balance of each. Most small church leaders do too much of the technical work in the church and manage the work of the church too little; but even if they are managing enough, almost all church leaders lead too little. To develop your church into …

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Set a personal example

In Church Leadership by Russ Olmon

One of the most effective tools you have as a leader is your own example. Your leaders watch you much closer than you might think. If you don’t practice the values and behavior necessary for your church to be a model, neither will your leaders. This is foundational to integrity. Unfortunately, many church leaders feel they don’t need to live …

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The foundation of leadership

In Church Leadership, Ministry Coaching by Russ Olmon

There is one foundational component of leadership that must be in place before you can ever hope to influence or inspire another person. If you don’t have it, there is no reason to waste your time or energy trying to develop leadership skills. Leadership skills cannot be developed without it. What is that component? Integrity. There is a part of leadership that …

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What makes an effective leader?

In Church Leadership, Church Strategy by Russ Olmon

Simply defined, leadership is the ability to influence or inspire others to take action toward a goal. When talking specifically about leadership in a church setting, that definition can be restated slightly to say leadership is the ability to influence and inspire others to accomplish the vision of your church. Do you have a vision? By definition, then, to be …

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Rey Sandoval: Church Plant Success Story

In Church Planting by Russ Olmon

Out of 7.6 billion people in the world, not one — no friends, no parents, no classmates — ever predicted that Rey Sandoval would start a church (except God, and He’s in a class of His own). BEFORE Rey had good parents. But about the time he hit middle school, he made some bad decisions. Bad became worse. Life became …