Volunteers are one of the most precious resources to a youth ministry. We know the more we have the more we can do. The challenge is keeping them around for the long haul.
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If you can get people to serve year after year it’s easier to create momentum. People will help you see the trends and tackle the larger issues. The question is, “How do you ask someone to stick around for years?”
If you want men and women to commit to your youth ministry year in and year out you need to:
If the commitment isn’t clear your volunteers are going to feel stuck. And if they feel stuck they might be reluctant to stick around. Develop a covenant or contract to help clarify what they are signing on to do.
Ask each person who serves to sign it when they jump on board. It will give you accountability. It was give them a chance to breathe. A commitment that is clear is less intimidating and will feel doable.
There are seasons where everything is great and seasons where it’s hard. Sharing stories of success will remind your team that they are planting seeds. It will remind them why what they do matters.
Save emails, letters and social media posts to share with your team. Let them know when they are having an impact and celebrate it.
When the excitement of doing something new washes away we need to be reminded of “The WHY?” We need to know why what we do is important and that’s what a vision and mission statement answer.
Make sure your team is reminded of the vision and mission. Make sure it is preached, and shared over and over again. This will help them through the rough patches.
When a volunteer feels like their thoughts matter they’ll have more buy in. Develop a system for feedback. Survey your team at the end of the year. Do a S.W.O.T. (Strengths. Weaknesses. Opportunities. Threats) analysis (For more on analyzing the year click here) and listen to their thoughts.
Don’t promise to use all their ideas, but use some of them. It’s humbling to allow others to contribute but it can and will bring your youth ministry to an entirely new level.
Your team wants to feel connected to you. If you have a large team the idea of being available to all of them seems overwhelming. Even if it’s a brief text, check-in with your team and ask them, “How’s it going?” Sometimes the smallest actions will go a long way.
Having community amongst your team is so important. It will remind them that they are not alone. They will not feel like an island. Create community by:
When you have community you have a built in support system to help people continue along the journey.
It is possible to have people serve alongside of you for years. You just need to invest in them. Make sure your volunteers know that they are important by making them a priority.
[reminder] How do you keep volunteers around for the long haul? [/reminder]