HOW TO BE MORE EFFECTIVE AND FULFILLED

 

 Do the little things in life keep you in the ruts?

 

Learning how to prioritize work or house tasks and accomplish them can help us be more effective and more fulfilled.

1. Prioritize the things you need to do.
 

Every task has a level of urgency and importance. There are four possible combinations. Understanding this will help us to prioritize the things we must get done.

 

• Not important, not urgent
• Not important, urgent
• Important, not urgent
• Important, urgent

2. Just start...do not procrastinate.

 

Sometimes the best thing to do is to just get started.

3. Learn the art of self-motivation.

 

Do not wait for your boss to motivate you into action; you may not like how it is done. If you are self-employed or do not have direct supervision, the ability to motivate yourself is a must. Give yourself rewards for accomplishing tasks. When facing decisions about what you need to do, ask yourself what will give you the greatest sense of satisfaction or relief when it is done--then do it.

4. Focus on what you are doing and stay on task.

 

Plan ahead to eliminate known distractions.

5. Don't be afraid to ask for help.

It is better to finish well with a little help than it is to not finish on you own.

 

6. Be accountable.

 

Individuals that can work well without someone to be accountable to are rare.

 

There are many more elements that help us get things done, but these six have helped me finish many projects.

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Git R Done

"Git R Done" is a saying made famous by Larry the Cable Guy (whose name is not actually Larry and who is not actually a cable guy). It is the redneck version of the Nike add "Just Do it." Whether you subscribe to the southern version or the Fortune 500 version, we all need to do something. Every organizations values those employees that get things done. People who can get jobs done well, timely, and on budget get promoted to higher positions. Here are six quick pointers that have helped me. If it was not for these six things, I would have never finished many projects.

1. Prioritize the things you need to do.

Every task has a level of urgency and importance. There are four possible combinations. Understanding this will help us to prioritize the things we must get done.

• Not important, not urgent
• Not important, urgent
• Important, not urgent
• Important, urgent

2. Just start...do not procrastinate. Sometimes the best thing to do is to just get started.

3. Learn the art of self-motivation. Do not wait for your boss to motivate you into action; you may not like how it is done. If you are self-employed or do not have direct supervision, the ability to motivate yourself is a must. Give yourself rewards for accomplishing tasks. When facing decisions about what you need to do, ask yourself what will give you the greatest sense of satisfaction or relief when it is done--then do it.

4. Focus on what you are doing and stay on task. Plan ahead to eliminate known distractions.

5. Don't be afraid to ask for help. It is better to finish well with a little help than it is to not finish on you own.

6. Be accountable. Individuals that can work well without someone to be accountable to are rare.

There are more elements that help us get things done, but these six have helped me finish many projects.

Please leave a comment below and subscribe to this blog.

Empowered Team Development

Many pastors, writers, and consultants agree that developing ministry teams are a major key to effective ministry and building a successful church. There is, however, a big difference in a group of people working together and a team. A group is normally defined as two or more people who interact in some way, whereas teams are usually thought of as groups with shared goals and common objectives. This suggests that teams are more than mere work groups. I have been part of "teams" with conflicting interests that resulted in poor team participation, communication, and effectiveness. In reality, they were teams in name only.

A team is a collection of individuals who exist within a larger social system or organization. These individuals are identified by themselves and others as a team. They are interdependent and perform tasks that affect the other individuals and other groups.

Teams have several common characteristics. A team can be of any size, but a team of relatively few members are easier to manage and tend to be more effective.  Think of an NFL football team. Each team is allowed fifty-three players on the active roster (only forty-six can suit up for a game). The players are categorized as offensive or defensive players. They are further divided  by the position they play. A football team is really a team of teams. Each player and each team have different functions and goals, but they all share in the ultimate goal of winning the last game of the season. A church is also a team of teams with the same God-given mission.

The main characteristic that differentiates a team from a group is that teams are formed around common interests and values. Common interested and values bond the team members to one another. A shared values system creates a sense of identity and purpose. The second important characteristic of a team is their purpose. Teams are not appropriate for every church function, but they should be formed when the team is likely to outperform individuals or groups working independently. When a team is formed, their purpose should be well defined with specific goals and objectives.

Some churches and organizations have teams that meet perpetually like church boards and budget committees. Some ad hoc teams are formed for particular projects then disbanded when their tasks are completed. In either case, team building are formed in phases.

1. ORIENTATION PHASES- this is about the make-up of the team. Team members learn about the other members as they come together. They share their personal goals, values, dreams, and plans, etc.
2. CONFLICT PHASE - the ground rules are established, roles are identified, and procedures are clarified. Tension is necessary just as friction is necessary for movement. During this phase different ideas, procedures, jobs and tasks are discussed.
3. EMERGENCE PHASE - The outcomes of the group discussion regarding team structures, procedures, and relationships and the establishing of the individual roles begin to emerge. This phase ends when a consensus is reached and recorded.
4. PERFORMANCE PHASE - During this phase, the team functions are executed. If the team is perpetual, periodic evaluation of the members, their roles, and procedures is necessary. 
5. TERMINUS PHASE - Only temporary teams will come to an end. There are advantages of having teams with a predetermined life-cycle. This is especially true if the team is experiencing conflict or they are not effective.

Effective teams have a clear understanding of goals to be achieved and an enthusiastic commitment to accomplishing those goals. Recent polls have shown that the average organizational member does not have a clear understanding of their organizational goals. It can be assumed that the top leadership has a clear understanding of their overall purpose. Often this understanding is not clearly and continually communicated to the members. Many churches are guilty of the same mistake. Every Church differs in size, location, and make-up. Each church strives to accomplish God's plan in a unique way. The uniqueness should be communicated to the ministry teams.This mission keeps church leaders focused and the ministries aligned.

Teams should be developed in accordance with the various functions of the church. "24 to Double" (http://www.24todouble.org) suggests seven teams:

1. Outreach
2. WOW (First Impressions)
3. Shock & Awe (Production of cutting edge services)
4. Worship
5. Follow-up
6. Children
7. Small Groups

These represent some natural teams that leaders form. However, churches will develop teams according to their resources and what are needed to accomplish their mission.

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Please visit www.dunamisempower.org for more empowerment resources.

A Proud Ambivert

Everyone that knows me well would say that I would be more of an introvert than an extrovert. We live in a world that tends to see things in black or white terms (yes/no; positive/negative; good/bad; etc.). However, things are not usually as simple as this. When I was an undergraduate student I socialized with a group of friends every afternoon in the cafeteria. I was always a part of the group, but not always a part of the conversation. I felt I needed to interject myself into the conversation only when I had something of value to add. One afternoon, a new addition to the social group asked me why I didn't join the group. Her perception was that I was not a part of the group because I did not talk as much as the rest. I felt I was very much a part of the group and the conversation regardless of my verbal input. This person went on to state that "I didn't have to be shy and that I should come out of my shell." I did not agree with her assessment of myself, but it did make me realize that the perception others have of me is different than my own. I admit that I tend toward introversion, but I have never felt shy. In fact I have always felt to be more of an extrovert than introvert, but behavior says differently. Being shy and being introverted are not synonymous, but I think that extroverts would see them as being the same. 

About ten years ago, I took a personality test and I came out on the extroversion end of the scale. I felt somewhat vindicated, but felt that the scale was probably not accurate. About five years ago I was given the Myers-Briggs Personality Type assessment. The result was ESTJ. For those unfamiliar with the Myers-Briggs test, the "E" indicates the person (in this case me) is an extrovert. In two separate personality tests, I was scored as being more of an extrovert than an introvert. If this is true, then why would myself and others always assume that I was an introvert? This caused me to investigate the matter more thoroughly.

Then I read about "ambiverts". If introversion and extroversion are opposite ends of a scale (introversion being 0 and extroversion being 10), what about those that fall in the center of the scale? There is a third personality type that nobody talks about--the ambivert. An ambivert has a balance of extroversion and introversion tendencies. Carl Jung, the psychologist that developed this theory, said that there were no truly introverts or extroverts and if they were, they would be in an asylum. In fact, it has been estimated that ambiverts make up about 68% of the population. Ambiverts are the shades of gray in the black and white world of introverts and extroverts.

Understanding that I probably have as many extroversion traits as introversion traits helps me to understand myself and others much much better. One article says:

1. Ambiverts are more flexible in social settings.
2. Ambiverts are more emotionally stable.
3. Ambiverts are intuitive.
4. Ambiverts are more influential.

Consider this, you may be an ambivert! Chances are you're more of an ambivert than an extrovert or introvert. The next time you are asked whether you are an introvert or extrovert and feel uncomfortable with either label--there is a third option.

I AM A PROUD AMBIVERT!!!

I want to hear from you. Does knowing that you may be an ambivert change your thinking? I want to hear your story.

Please post a comment.

Thank you