Sticky Teams : Keeping Your Leadership Team and Staff on the Same Page

by Larry Osborne

• ISBN13: 9780310324645
• ISBN10: 0310324645
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-03-19
• Publisher: Zondervan

Summary

Serving as a church leader can be a tough assignment. Whatever your role, odds are you've known your share of the frustration, conflict, and disillusionment that come with silly turf battles, conflicting vision, and marathon meetings.

Author Biography

Larry Osborne is the lead pastor at North Coast Church in northern San Diego County, which is widely recognized as one of the most influential and innovative churches in America. He speaks extensively on the subjects of leadership and spiritual formation. His books include Sticky Church, 10 Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe and Spirituality for the Rest of Us. He and his wife, Nancy, live in Oceanside, California.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. 13
Acknowledgments	p. 17
Introduction: Sticky Teams; What Makes Them Different?	p. 19
What sticky teams do
The power of genuine unity and cohesiveness
Fighting fair, sticking together
Why healthy and unified teams are so hard to come by
Why I wrote this book
Three groups that absolutely must work together
The Unity Factor: The One Thing That Can't Be Left to Chance	p. 23
Why it's a shocker that I got saved and called into ministry
Why unity is worth worrying about
Where to start
Brian's sad story
Achan's big mistake and what it teaches us about unity
Defining unity
Hot buttons and hot flashes
Deciding what you won't fight over
The difference between friends and strangers
Philosophical unity and why it matters big time
Landmines and Roadblocks: The Traditions, Policies, and Structures That Unintentionally Sabotage Unity
Why Boards Go Bad: Structured for Conflict	p. 35
My first board meeting
The dumbest debate ever
The five biggest roadblocks to unity
Why location matters
What happens when you sit on my couch
Let's be friends
Who would run a business this way? Who would want to run anything this way?
The two most powerful people in any large decision-making group
Is this what Paul had in mind?
Family systems: boredom personified
Why I smiled when a board member cried
Guarding the Gate: No Guts, No Unity	p. 47
Winning teams need winning players
Why it's so hard to get rid of a loser
Protecting the board gate
Speak up or shut up
Why representatives make for bad board members
The "no theys" rule
The only question that matters
Pit bulls for Jesus
Philosophical alignment
Why the best players sometimes make bad team members
Protecting the staff gate
Good enough usually isn't
Why résumés always look better than people
Why giftedness is overrated
What Game Are We Playing? How Growth Changes Everything	p. 61
Bible verses and straitjackets
Surviving an attempted coup
How track, golf, basketball, and football parallel the changes in a growing organization and why leaders and teams who don't adapt pay such a high price
Todd's frustration
Two signs that the game has changed but nobody got the memo
Why changes sneak up on us
Why adding people and programs multiplies complexity
One thing Tiger Woods will never do
Six Things Every Leadership Team Needs to Know: Axioms to Lead By	p. 73
The six urban legends of leadership
Why most of your weaknesses don't matter
Why surveys are a waste of time
The myth of buy-in and why it kills innovation
The truth about squeaky wheels and why you don't want to oil them
When it's time for a nice Christian burial
Fuzzy budgets and flexible policies, why you need them and why control freaks can't stand them
Clarifying the Pastor's Role: Why Leadership Matters	p. 87
Why the best role for a pastor depends on the pastor and the church
A bad day at the pancake house
Whose church is it?
The power of time and commitment
Why so many people see their pastor as an outsider
Determining who's best qualified to lead
The power of time and training
Pastors who can't lead
Harnessing a strong leader
The power of a first draft
Why secrets kill
Leading and listening
Clarifying Board and Staff Roles: Why Teamwork Matters	p. 101
Cutting off conflict before it occurs
The changing role of the board
From doing to approving?
When reviewing makes sense
Setting North Star direction and boundaries
The curse of micromanagement
What if your church goes mega?
When staff roles must change
Generalist to specialist
Doing to empowering
No more silos
Hamstrung on purpose
Making Room at the Top: Why Young Eagles Don't Stay	p. 113
The strange case of the ever-shrinking freshmen
What happens when the seniors never graduate
Leadership is a zero-sum game and why that leaves little room at the top
Three key questions
Why empowerment needs a platform
How a name change changed everything
Why I used to come back from vacation a day early
In the loop or in the meeting?
Who gets to ride shotgun?
Tenure or talent?
The power of a zero-based retreat
Equipped for Ministry: Getting Everyone on the Same Page
Equipped to Lead: Lobbying isn't Training	p. 127
The difference between lobbying and training and why it matters
The danger of educational separation
Why short devotions don't help mush
What a direct-mail copywriter taught me about ministry
Why training always works best when it stands alone
When most people do their best thinking
Why the process is more important than the content
Why boring is not always bad
Why John's company would have been shocked
Board Alignment: The Power of an Extra "Shepherds' Meeting"	p. 139
The three important things most boards never have time to do
Why an extra meeting makes for better meetings
The ideal environment for leadership and ministry training
Why on-the-job training is the best kind of training
Why prayer works best in a separate meeting
How time and growth change things
When the names have no faces
Staff Alignment: Plumb Lines and Assumptions	p. 149
Why staff alignment used to be a breeze
Road trips, hyper dogs, and scenic routes and what they have to do with leading a multiple staff
How to deal with a geeked-up zealot
Why generic is worthless and politically correct is incorrect
Why effective leaders are almost always weird and what they should do about it
A coach who didn't care about potential and how that helped him produce a national champion
Mission statements and mission creep
The difference between plumb lines and wish lists
Congregational Alignment: Preempting Conflict	p. 159
An argument in the parking lot
Five tools for congregational alignment
Why so many mission statements sit in a drawer somewhere
Thinning the herd with a front-loaded pastor's class
From crossed arms to nodding heads
The drip method of preaching
Sermon-based small groups
Short and sweet congregational meetings
Why you never want to give a moron a microphone
Why a three-week meeting results in a shorter meeting
Communication: Keeping Everyone on the Same Page
Change Diplomacy: Minimizing Conflict and Chaos	p. 171
The dark years
What "I love you in the Lord" really means
Why churches and horses are a lot alike
Why resistance to change isn't a spiritual problem
One thing politicians can teach pastors
Why resisters can be an innovator's best friend
Why VMTP was a great name
God and last night's pizza
Choose who you lose
Monogrammed shirts and flip-flops
Setting Salaries: Investment or Expense?	p. 183
Why setting ministry salaries is a lot like a junior high dance
The vital need for honest feedback
Why too much salary is seldom a good thing
The most important comparison: replacement cost
School teachers and company presidents, where does your pastor fit in?
What if more money comes in?
Are staff members an investment or an expense?
How to tell the difference
Talking about Money: Assumptions, Facts, and a Savings Account	p. 191
Are you flying blind?
Is it a sin to have a savings account?
The one thing a crisis and an opportunity never send ahead of time
Should a pastor know who gives what?
Why I changed my mind
A strange email
Why facts make for better plans
Smoking out the winners
Thanking donors
Is your church playing with one hand tied behind its back?
When Things Go Wrong: Telling the Truth When the Truth Is Hard	p. 201
Some letters you never want to write
Moral failures
Is your paradigm family or justice?
The worst board meeting of my life, at least so far
The first two questions everyone wants to know in a financial crisis
God-talk or straight talk?
Why C players are so hard to get rid of
Why pumping sunshine is never a good idea
Conclusion: Final Thoughts: Sticky Teams and the Gates of Hell	p. 211
Beyond platitudes and wishful thinking
What Paul and Barnabas can teach us about the impact of "loving Jesus" on staff harmony
Exposing the elephants in the room
Why I'm an optimist even when confronted by a pit-bull board member, an Absalom on the staff, or a congregation full of crazies
Discussion Questions	p. 213
Notes	p. 222
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