Displaying 61 - 67 of 67.
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by Renee Ruchotzke |I spent several days hiking in the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia for my vacation. (It was a good opportunity to get away from the technology that is my constant companion during the rest of the year, since there are few cell phone towers in those mountains.) Many of the trails we... -
by Renee Ruchotzke |One of my favorite Joni Mitchell songs (YouTube) begins: Every picture has its shadows And it has some source of light Blindness, blindness and sight… When I talk about leadership qualities, I find that many of the qualities can be either strengths or weaknesses—or somewhere on a continuum... -
by Renee Ruchotzke |Having a clearly articulated mission statement helps to guide a congregation’s leaders in deciding where to put their energy and resources. But often such statements are put together by a committee and can be a bit….(I hate to say it)…wordy. Last year I visited Western Michigan, where the rest... -
by Renee Ruchotzke |I've seen a disconnect between generations in our congregations when it comes to leadership. Baby Boomers, who populate the majority of our leadership positions, ask me how they can recruit more younger people for their volunteer positions. Younger Generation Xers and Millennials have a lot of... -
by Renee Ruchotzke |Responding to a changing context in order to keep your congregation vital is hard....really hard. Brain science helps us to understand that we create and use mental models of our reality that help us to filter and make sense of our experiences. But our mental models aren't always accurate or helpful. Here are some models that may be! -
by Connie Goodbread |Great leaders continually examine their motives. They ask themselves, “On what principle am I taking this stand? Am I acting for the common good? Am I trying to push a personal agenda? Do I just want my way or is there a principle at stake here?” Great leaders will admit to themselves when they... -
by Ian Evison, Kenneth Hurto |In the 1950s the family therapist Murray Bowen introduced many ideas about systems. The concept of triangulation is one of the most applicable to congregational leadership. It is, in brief, when John is frustrated with or concerned about Mary, John looks to Jane to deal with this....
