Speeding Up Your Ministry IQ

Eric Ries presented on The Lean Startup at SXSWI and this was one of his slides:

If We Can Reduce the Time Between Pivots

Here’s the definition of a pivot: “a pivot occurs when a start-up tests a new direction while still keeping one metaphorical foot in the original business,” from a post on How to Change Your Ministry Direction. Often times ministry leaders become aware of the need to change directions but wait until it’s a problem instead of an annoyance to do so. To reduce the time between pivots consider asking more questions of your constituents and test to see if your tactics are in fact increasing the amount of leaders, laborers, and loot.

We Can Increase Our Odds of Success

Another easy trap to fall into is making a BIG change in response to a SMALL problem. This type of reactionary leadership rarely results in greater effectiveness. Ask yourself or your team “What is the SMALLEST change that we can make that will solve this current problem?” This will prevent making sweeping changes that end up causing as many if not more problems than the current reality.

Before We Run Out of Money

I would change this to read “Before We Start Drawing People that are Not Aligned to the Mission, Vision, and Values.” If ministry leaders fail to make the necessary pivots in a timely manner the ministry culture becomes increasingly disconnected from the mission, vision and values and become more related to the dominant personalities of the group.

How have you sped up your ministry’s IQ?