Gen X – Young & Restless

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Part 2 of a 4-part series on Generations in ChurchWorld

Last week this post introduced the generational lens for a lot of my views. Yesterday I began this four-part series by looking at the Millennials. Today I want to look at the second of four generations active in ChurchWorld leadership roles today, and the implications for you as a leader with your own team. The remaining two generations will be examined tomorrow and the next day.

Generation X – (Born 1965-1981)

Possibly the most misunderstood generation in a leadership role today, this small (approximately forty-six million) but influential population has worked to carve out its own identity from its parents and younger siblings.

As you noticed yesterday (and will again tomorrow), technology has had a big impact on the Xers. While it was a single device for the Boomers, Xers were swamped with the media choices that sprung up during their lifetimes: cable TV, digital TV, satellite TV, VCRs, video games, fax machines, microwaves, pagers, cell phones, PDAs, and of course, the most life-changing item of all: the personal computer.

Most of the inventions above were intended to simplify the American way of life, but ask any Gen X about their childhood and you fill find that it was pretty complex. Violence appeared not only on television but close to home in the form of AIDS, crack cocaine, child molesters, and drunk drivers. Taken together, the message came across to Gen X: the world wasn’t as safe as it used to be. The number of single-parent households skyrocketed, and Mom wasn’t home with milk and cookies at the end of school. Instead, it was off to afterschool care or home to an empty house to play video games till supper.

The insecurities that developed during their childhoods continued as they became adults. Lay-offs, downsizing, fierce competition were just a few of the hallmarks of the world that Gen Xers came into as they entered the work force. The rate of change they’ve seen during their lifetimes and the cynical sense that everything is temporary play into their distrust of career permanence. After all, if their computers can become obsolete in a matter of months, what does that say about their own shelf life at work?

– “When Generations Collide,” by Lynne Lancaster and David Stillman

Generation X – the 30 to mid-40 year olds in your church – are an extremely resourceful and independent groupp.

As with any of the generations discussed in this series, it is hard to define Generation X. There are some dominant themes that characterize segments of the group, and will be beneficial for leaders with Gen Xers on their team:

  • Freedom – many Xers reject workaholics and expect personal satisfaction from their jobs; their other interests are just as important as work
  • Issues of survival – national and global issues such as world hunger, famine, poverty, AIDS, pollution, and so on are large and complex; Gen Xers don’t expect these issues to be solved and indeed, see their own quality of life declining in their lifetimes
  • Feeling neglected – more than 40 percent of Gen Xers are children of divorce; often from a single parent home. Isolated from family, they turned to technology to develop relationships

Where does that leave you as a leader in ChurchWorld with Gen Xers on your team?

For Gen Xers, it’s not about job security but career security; they will build a repertoire of skills and experiences they can take with them if need be

Many Gen Xers are looking through the world with a skeptical lens

Because of what they saw their parents and friends’ parents go through, they are often not willing to pay the same price for success

They are ambitious and hard-working, but focused on balance and freedom

Raised on sound bites and accustomed to instant information, Gen Xers like their information in a manageable format

One more thing to think about: because of the large number of Millennials compared to the number of Gen Xers, a big shift in leadership will be taking place in 2015 – the majority of the workforce will shift from Baby Boomers to Millennials – completely bypassing the Gen X leaders on your team.

How do you think they are going to react to that?

Generational Disclosure: I am the parent of one Generation Xer, a 31 year-old son who has a 3-year-old son. He is a chef, kitchen manager, and regional trainer for the restaurant chain he works for. In addition, I work with several Generation Xers in my company, I network with many Xers across the country in my consulting role, and the leadership team at my church is exclusively Gen X.

The Next Great Generation

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Leave it to a Millennial to dig up some research on her own generation and send it to me. Well, that’s my daughter – what can I say?

Part 1 of a 4-part series on Generations in ChurchWorld

Last week this post introduced the generational lens that I view a lot of things through. Today I want to look at the first of four generations active in ChurchWorld leadership roles today, and the implications for you as a leader with your own team. The other three generations will be examined the rest of this week.

Just in case you wondered, there is a fifth generation that’s almost in a position of leadership – those born from the late ‘90s on. The oldest of that generation is already leading your youth or student groups, even without a position of leadership – but that is another series for another day! Now about those Millennials…

The Next Great Generation

Meet the Millennials, born in or after 1982 through the late ‘90s  – the “Babies on Board” of the early Reagan years, the “Have You Hugged Your Child Today?” sixth graders of the early Clinton years, the teens of Columbine, the much-touted Class of 2000 entering the new Millennium, and this year, poised to enter their thirties.

As a group, Millennials are unlike any other youth generation in living memory. They are more numerous, more affluent, better educated, and more ethnically diverse. More importantly, they are beginning to manifest a wide array of positive social habits that older Americans no longer associate with youth, including a new focus on teamwork, achievement, modesty, and good conduct.

When you fit these changes into the broader rhythms of American history, you can get a good idea of what kind of adult generation the Millennials have demonstrated so far, and are likely becoming. You can foresee their future hopes and fears, strengths and weaknesses, as they rise to adulthood and, in time, to power. You can understand how today’s young adults are on the way to becoming a powerhouse generation, full of technology planners, community shapers, institution builders, and world leaders. Many observers think this generation will dominate the twenty-first century like today’s fading and ennobled G.I. Generation dominated the twentieth. Millennials have a solid chance to becomeAmerica’s next great generation, celebrated for their collective deeds a hundred years from now.

– from “Millennials Rising” by Neil Howe and William Strauss

And they are the “young gun” leaders chomping at the bit in ChurchWorld today.

Millennials want to make a difference from the day they arrive on the scene, and think they can. After all, they had parents who told them how great they were. They listened to Baby Einstein to get smarter. They expected to get an A in school, and if they didn’t, they negotiated with the school staff.

Millennials bring a lot of valuable skill sets in terms of thinking outside the box and in the world of technology. They are the first generation that are digital natives. They don’t know what status quo means, but they will be the first to speak up is something doesn’t work.

Some thoughts to consider when leading Millennials:

  • Provide specific examples of what you expect at the office
  • Give them feedback at least once a month
  • Capable of learning several tasks simultaneously and performing them admirably
  • Flexible scheduling is important in developing a balanced life
  • “Fun” is not an F-word; it’s a vital aspect of a meaningful, productive workplace
  • Leadership is a participative process; they will learn best from leaders who engage them
  • Continuous learning is a way of life
  • Diversity is expected
  • Being hyper-connected is normal

By 2015 (less than four years away!) Baby Boomers will cede the majority of the workforce to the Millennials. When you consider the changes in the amount of knowledge available at our fingertips, the advent of social technologies, and the expansion of the global economy over the past decade, it’s no wonder that generational collisions are inevitable – even in ChurchWorld.

Are you ready?

Generational Disclosure: I am the parent of three Millennials: a 27 year-old son completing Air Force Basic Training, married with a daughter who is nine months old; a 23 year-old daughter who is employed as a communication director and is completing a Masters in Divinity; and an 18 year-old son who is beginning college this fall as a culinary arts/food services management major. My generational studies start at home!

The Turn of a Phrase

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It’s amazing what an impact a few words can have…

The map you see above is part of a draft report being prepared by a partnership of government, business, and citizens outlining some possibilities for the city of Charlotte.

It’s a little hard to see, but the area outlined in gold is what has traditionally been called Uptown – the area enclosed by the I-277 loop and I-77. It’s the big time – banks, corporate HQ, restaurants, sports facilities, and a few residential towers. It’s been the heart of the city.

And it’s changing…

Now notice the red circles – those are neighborhoods. They are mostly outside Uptown. Some have gone through decades of change; others are just now starting. In those neighborhoods are homes, businesses, parks, shops, and cultural events.

The visioning group mentioned above realized that Uptown can’t carry on with the dreams alone – it’s going to take a partnership of everyone working together.

That’s why they called it Center City.

It’s more than just business – or government – or residential areas. It will take all of these groups working together to fulfill the CenterCity 2020 Vision Plan.

It’s also time for the Church to step forward be a part of transforming the City.

viable | livable | memorable | sustainable

It’s going to be amazing…

How to Consistently Generate Breakthrough Ideas

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We all need good ideas. Breakthrough ideas. All day, every day.

When your team is faced with the need to come up with a new initiative or idea or expand and existing one, do you pull them together in front of a whiteboard, whip out the dry erase pens and Post-It Notes©, and announce “It’s time for a brainstorming session”?

No doubt this happens thousands of times every day in offices across the country, but traditional brainstorming methods actually have a poor track record for generating ideas that are useful for the task at hand. Why? Because traditional brainstorming actually violates many of the psychological and sociological principles of how human beings work best in a group setting.

So how do you generate ideas?

Brainsteering.

Kevin and Shawn Coyne developed the concept in a decade-long process as part of a team at the noted consulting firm McKinsey and Company. Now they are the managing directors of The Coyne Partnership, a consulting group serving senior executives and boards of directors in both the private and public sectors.

In their recently released book “Brainsteering,” the Coynes introduce the brilliantly simple concept of brainsteering as an ideation technique that better reflects the way human beings actually think and work in creative problem-solving situations.

Their book is divided into four sections:

  1. Understanding why – and how – you should ask the Right Questions
  2. Maximizing your personal ideation skills
  3. Learn to lead others in the development of new ideas
  4. Putting it all together by developing your own Billion-Dollar Idea

I’m going to tease you a little by revealing the two secrets of Brainsteering:

If you ask the right questions, answers and good ideas will soon follow

The right process for consistently generating breakthrough ideas looks very different from what you’ve probably been using

Told you it was simple! Now go get a copy of “Brainsteering,” dive into the methods behind those two secrets, and you will soon be on your way to some of the most creative ideas imaginable.

 

What’s Your SHAPE?

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I am not referring to body shape here – but actually, I am.

an occasional post in the “Brand You” series…

Popularized by Willow Creek Community Church and Saddleback Community Church in the 1990s, SHAPE is often depicted as an acronym of the following:

  • S – Spiritual gifts: a set of special abilities that God has given you to share His love and to serve others
  • H – Heart: the special passions God has given you so that you can glorify Him on earth
  • A – Ability: the set of talents that God gave you when you were born, which He also want s you to use to make an impact for Him
  • P – Personality: the special way God wired you to navigate life and fulfill your unique Kingdom purpose
  • E – Experience: those parts of your past, both positive and painful, which God intends to use in great ways

Churches who used assessments, interviews, and other discovery techniques wanted members to understand themselves – and what God was calling them to do in service to Him. Starting out as primarily document or paper-based, the process quickly migrated to the digital world. Countless churches now use some variant of the SHAPE acronym to help people focus in on their own irreplaceable, richly detailed personal design.

When trying to determine your “Brand You,” understanding your SHAPE would be a great place to start.

The Body of Christ – the church – is made up of many members, like you. Understanding your SHAPE will help the Body be in better “shape.”

Do you know your SHAPE?

Would you like to know more about SHAPE?

 

 

You’re an Original…

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… a unique, one-of-a-kind!

an occasional post in the “Brand You” series…

All of us start out as one-of-a-kind originals, but too many of us end up as carbon copies of someone else.  -Mark Batterson, “Soulprint”

You are unique – Ephesians 2:10 says that “We are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

Uniqueness is God’s gift to you, and uniqueness is your gift to God.  You owe it to yourself to be yourself. But more importantly, you owe it to the one who designed you and destined you.

So what is your “Brand You?” How do you find out?

What’s Your Capacity?

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Is your glass half-empty – or half-full? That tricky question has been around for a long time, and countless jokes and other comments have been made about it over the years. Rather than focus on the current state of the glass, what if we instead focused on its capacity?

The definitions of capacity are many and all are useful for this brief thought: Are we living up to the capacity God designed into us?

  • Do we have the ability to perform or produce something that will honor God?
  • Are we always doing the maximum amount of activity possible for God?
  • Do we understand a specific function that God has gifted us for?
  • Are we exercising our brains to increase the ability to store information for Kingdom purposes?
  • Do we have the power to learn and retain knowledge that will help us understand the facts and significance of our behavior?
  • Are we a vessel, continually being filled up, and then emptied out, for His service?

My initial thoughts about capacity always go to the last definition: What’s my capacity for receiving the gifts and blessings of the Holy Spirit? If I continually only receive, then eventually I am satiated, and can receive no more. But if I am continually pouring out, then there is always room for God to invest and indwell in me.

For me, it’s the process of filling and emptying I seek – I don’t want to be satisfied with the status quo of half-empty or half-full.

What’s your capacity?

 

Leadership is an Art: Tapestry

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If leadership is an art, then one of its most amazing forms has to be the tapestry.

Tapestry is a form of textile art, woven by hand on a loom. The vertical threads are hidden in the completed work; they are flexible in order to be drawn over and under the horizontal threads. The horizontal threads are visible, and thus have a finer quality. Because they are spun with a twist in opposite directions, they exist in tension. Together, the two types of threads create a beautiful image. Intricate, detailed images were created by artists which were then given to craftsmen to produce the finished artwork. Tapestries often contain symbolic emblems, mottoes, or a coat of arms. They were used by kings as a symbol of authority, able to be rolled up and carried to wherever the king was to be. The church used tapestries for displays on special occasions. They also served as a functional item, useful for insulation in drafty castles.

History lesson aside, a tapestry is a perfect metaphor for leaders God uses in His work:

  • God is the master Artist, creating the design of our lives; we are craftsmen who weave individual threads following His pattern
  • Leaders should not have a one-dimensional outlook on life; they need to be vertically connected to God while horizontally connected to people
  • Our connection to God should be constant, weaving over and under throughout life
  • Our connections with people are highly visible even though under some tension
  • Our leadership qualities should represent something; they are a symbol that others see and recognize what they stand for
  • As leaders, we represent authority – the question is how will you represent it?
  • Leaders are certainly visible for all to see, but they must always remember that leadership is not an end unto itself, but a function of “leading” others
  • Leadership is not fixed to a place; true leaders cannot help but lead, whether in the corporate office, the church meeting room, or the family kitchen table.

How are you weaving the threads of life into the beautiful masterpiece God has created for you?

You Can’t Improve by Coasting Downhill

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I’m training to participate in the 24 Hours of Booty bike ride in a couple of weeks. It’s my 7th annual Booty ride; I won’t ride all 24 hours, but one or more members of my team will. As you might expect, riding even part of 24 hours takes training. I don’t mind training, but I hate hills – at least going up hills. Coming down, now that’s pretty cool. You can coast and catch your breath.

The only problem is you can’t improve by going downhill all the time.

Living in North Carolina, there are hills everywhere; you can’t train without encountering them regularly. When I plan my training rides, I used to dread the uphill parts. No matter what techniques I tried, going up long, steep hills was a killer. Give me a flat surface and I can move along at a pretty good clip. Even better was a slight downhill run. I haven’t found a one-sided hill yet, so I would labor through, barely surviving, looking forward to the flying downhill on the other side.

Business blogger Seth Godin caught my eye with this comment: It’s very difficult to improve your performance on the downhills. 

I agree completely. No matter what I try, I am not going to get any better by just going faster on the downhill side. The place to improve performance, to get better, is to work on the uphills. That’s where the work is, the fun is, the improvement is. On the uphills, if I work hard and don’t give up, I have a reasonable shot at improving my time. The downhills are already maxed out by the laws of physics and safety.

Suddenly, the truth about biking can be translated into my work world as well. The best time to do great customer service is when a customer is upset. The moment you earn your keep as a public speaker is when the room isn’t just right or the plane is late or the projector doesn’t work or the audience is tired or distracted. The best time to engage with an employee is when everything falls apart, not when you’re hitting every milestone. And everyone knows that the best time to start a project is when the economy is lousy.

Godin’s book “The Dip” is a quick read that reinforces this line of thinking. A Dip is a temporary setback that you will overcome if you keep pushing. But maybe it’s really a cul-de-sac, which will never get better, no matter how hard you try. According to Godin, what really sets superstars apart from everyone else is the ability to escape dead ends quickly while staying focused and motivated when it really counts.

Winners quit fast, quit often, and quit without guilt – until they commit to beating the right Dip for the right reasons. Winners seek out the Dip. They realize that the bigger the barrier, the bigger the reward for getting past it.

What uphill are you facing right now? Will you push through it, improving your performance along the way and on the next hill?

Or will you be satisfied with coasting on the other side?

 

Are You Smarter Than a Nine-Month Old?

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I think I have met my match when it comes to a carnivorous learning – my nine-month old granddaughter. Pound for pound, I’m pretty sure her hunger for learning outpaces mine.

Carnivorous and nine-month-old don’t usually go in the same sentence, much less the same page. A little background…

“Carnivorous learning” is one of the values of Auxano, the first “clarity first” consulting group for ministry leaders. I’m a part of the team of navigators who journey with churches to help them discover their “Church Unique.” I’m proud of the label, and do all I can to earn it! In a recent post, Auxano founder Will Mancini wrote about “The Greatest Secret for Continuous Learning.”

“Learning is a free, daily opportunity to those who seize it.”

Enter my granddaughter.

At nine months old, she seizes everything – literally – and explores it with all her senses to see what she can learn. John Medina, writing in “Brain Rules,” states that:

Hypothesis testing is the way all babies gather information. They use a series of increasingly self-corrected ideas to figure out how the world works. They actively test their environment, much as a scientist would: Make a sensory observation, form a hypothesis about what is going on, design an experiment capable of testing the hypothesis, and then draw conclusions from the findings.

Babies may not have a whole lot of understanding about their world, but they know a whole lot about how to get it.

It’s a pity adults don’t.

What are you learning today – right now?

Are you learning as much as a nine-month-old?