What It Really Means To Be A Student Leader
There are a lot of hard working teenagers in our ministry. Ones who will do what you ask and not complain. Are they all leaders? No, well not really....
Volunteers will leave. It’s a reality of our ministry and no matter the reason it always hurts. However, the part that haunts us the most is not knowing why.
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Life will happen, obstacles will get in the way and people will leave; however, if you want to know the why and reduce the rate of turnover in your ministry you need to address these 5 Crucial Areas:
LACK OF CLARITY
No one likes to feel overwhelmed. Walking into a room filled with teenagers can be very daunting and you need to prepare your volunteers for that experience. To build confidence you need to explain:
- What they need to do.
- Where they need to go.
- Who they can go to with questions.
The more clarity you provide the more confidence you build. Confident leaders are ready to lean in no matter how chaotic the situation may appear.
THE FEELING OF FLYING SOLO
You know you can’t do ministry on your own and that’s because the emotional, spiritual and physical wear and tear is a lot. Your volunteers are more fragile than you and that’s why you need to make sure they are connected to a mentor.
Connect the new ministers to someone who is experienced and capable of coaching them through the unknown. Your mentors don’t need to be particularly skilled, just someone who can help you love on others.
CONSTANT OPPOSITION
When you recruit ministers you need to lay on the encouragement thick. It’s during that introductory period that they will face constant opposition like:
- Busyness at work
- Voices of doubt and skepticism
- Bad weather
- Sick kids
- Rush hour traffic
- A bad latte from Starbucks
Small and serious excuses will get in their way and you just need to remind them that ministry takes work. It does take some sacrifice and you have to reassure them that the experience is worth it.
WHEN MINISTRY BEGINS TO LOSE IT’S LURE
Ministry can be fun and exciting at first and that’s because new is exciting. Over time when expectations aren’t being met and life around you gets busy it’s easy to look at it like a job. To keep your volunteers going you need to:
- Refuel them with vision.
- Invest in them as leaders and raise the bar.
- Challenge them to go deeper in their faith formation.
Ministry often loses it’s lure when it is no longer growing. To keep the ministry growing you need to keep growing your team. Don’t ease back on the investment just because they’ve committed for the long haul.
FEELING TRAPPED
When there is no end in sight it’s easy to lose momentum. Even if you want your volunteers serving for decades you need to make sure they know there are periods when they can step back, step down and even step away. It will make the journey a lot more manageable.
Communicate their ability to take time away by creating terms of service. Make sure they are aware that it’s okay to step away to take care of family, home and personal issues. Show them that you are there for them.
Volunteers leave because they no longer see the value of serving or lose a sense of purpose. You need to constantly lead them and feed them. Reduce the turnover by giving them reasons to stay.
[reminder] How are you working to decrease turnover in your ministry? What’s working? [/reminder]