Why is it that some church teams stick together like brothers and sisters even under adversity?
Their growth is a bit sluggish, baptisms are down and the offerings are low, but the morale is still strong. The staff stay on mission, press forward with a resilient spirit, and genuinely enjoy being with each other.
Their morale is high.
Other church teams seem to realize consistent success, but they lack a positive esprit de corps.
The numbers are good, the worship services are excellent, and the finances are strong. Yet, amongst the staff, it’s more professional than personal, they lack community, and the laughter is minimal.
Their morale is low.
These two examples are obviously incomplete. There are different circumstances in every scenario. Regardless of the situation, we all know the difference between high morale and low morale on a church staff team. You can sense it in minutes.
High morale to a church staff team is like momentum is to the overall church.
High morale is a church staff’s best friend.
High morale is a key indicator of a healthy staff culture.
High morale is a staff superpower that requires consistent intentionality.
Signs of low morale are clear:
- Increasing complaints
- Phoning it in / lack of enthusiasm
- Uncooperative spirit
- Quiet quitting / minimal effort
- Chronic discouragement
- Assigning blame
- Negative attitudes
Causes of low morale are known:
- Lack of open, honest communication
- Clunky, slow, (bottlenecked) decision-making
- Unclear expectations and changing goals
- Resistance to new ideas and change
- Tolerating politics and gossip
- Lack of coaching, development, evaluation, and feedback.
- Micromanagement and lack of real empowerment
None of us have all this perfect, and there are ebbs and flows to morale. All churches go through tough and stressful seasons. The teams with high morale are resilient, resourceful and make it through the tough times better. They are gifted, grateful and get along well together.
High morale is always connected to vision and direction. Your staff want and need to know where the church is going, and the plan to get there.
High morale is the outcome of clear vision, strong strategy and healthy culture. Care, development and empowerment are also key ingredients of high morale.
12 Ways to Build High Morale On A Church Staff Team:
(Where are you strong? What areas need improvement?)
1) Consistent focus on meaningful and fulfilling work.
The best teams are consistently engaged in meaningful and fulfilling work. Candidly, team members will eventually leave if this is absent. *A paycheck is a necessary reality, but it only meets the most basic needs. Meaning and fulfillment are required to sustain the soul.
A leader’s soul level fulfillment is not only connected to a meaningful vision it must also find its place in each person’s calling. A natural connection between each person’s job description and their assignment from God is needed.
Meaningful and fulfilling work answer two important questions:
- Do I matter on the team?
- Does my work matter in the accomplishment of the mission?
2) Offer consistent development and new opportunities.
Consistent life and leadership development are essential for high morale on any successful team.
A simple approach works! Teach leadership, study leadership books together, and put good coaching into play. New job opportunities are essential. If your church cannot provide new positions, you can offer special projects and other “stretch” opportunities to keep high achievers motivated.
Invest in your team!
3) Welcome new ideas and embrace change.
Solving new problems with old solutions doesn’t work. In fact, they create new problems of their own.
Encourage the cultivation of new ideas from your team. Focus on what is better, not merely different.
Change is required for progress. Not change for the sake of change, or the lack of effort to effectively execute the previous change, but to keep ministry fresh, relevant and effective. Again, better, not just different.
Change always includes loss. Be honest about what is given up, but be clear about what it takes to achieve the mission God has set before you.
4) Demonstrate genuine love, kindness, and respect.
From the leadership to the newest staff member, the expression of love, kindness, and respect is core to high morale.
Few things will boost team morale like giving the benefit of the doubt when there’s a question, forgiving quickly, and intentional kindness under pressure.
5) Practice honest conversations and make tough decisions.
The quickest road to a dysfunctional and unhappy staff is one that does not include candid conversations about real issues that lead to productive decisions.
Many talented church teams have been taken out by the proverbial elephant in the room. Sometimes tough decisions are required. Teams that will not address the issues will suffer in both joy and productivity.
6) Stop chasing fair and cultivate a sense of reason.
Life is not fair, and if you try to do everything the same for every staff member, you are chasing an unrealistic expectation. However, there is an intuitive sense of what is reasonable and what is right. This means there is no playing favorites and everyone on the team is highly valued and cared for.
7) Create a sense of community and belonging.
Some churches like to use the word family to describe their staff, and others prefer the word team, but all benefit by cultivating a sense of genuine community. This creates an environment that is not merely an organized group of co-workers but brothers and sisters in Christ who share a sense of belonging.
Elements such as worship, prayer, and communion together make a big difference. Share burdens and comfort in difficult times.
Good old-fashioned fun and laughter is also integral to a sense of community.
8) Confront problems and unacceptable behavior.
Few things discourage staff morale more than when key leaders won’t deal with problems and carry the responsibility to deliver good solutions.
Whether it’s unacceptable behavior in staff or systems in the church that don’t work, etc., problems cannot be left untended. Even if you can’t fully solve something immediately, the staff need to know you acknowledge it and are working on it.
One of the best ways to create a healthy culture is to first clearly describe what you desire. Develop clear and written staff values. The values are used to define appropriate team behavior and create “permission” to quickly discuss problems with openness and honesty.
9) Outlaw boring and unproductive meetings.
It’s often the “little” things that really bug staff and create frustration. Poorly organized and poorly led meetings that ramble on without productive results drive good staff members nuts.
Start with a clear written agenda, get the right people in the room, make assignments clear and follow up.
10) Be generous with appreciation, credit and recognition.
You might be surprised how much you boost staff morale by something as simple as giving others credit and expressing appreciation.
Take time to express thanks and a job well done both privately and in larger meetings. Both quick and spontaneous as well as focused and more in-depth are meaningful. They key is sincerity.
Don’t say it if you don’t mean it.
11) Encourage spiritual wholeness and a healthy lifestyle.
We know what to do when it comes to health and wholeness, but it’s not easy to make it all happen in healthy rhythms.
Cultivate an environment that not only encourages spiritual wholeness and a healthy lifestyle, but coach your staff in the right direction. Offer guidance to stay on track.
Keep it simple:
- Spiritual – create space for and champion time devoted to prayer.
- Emotional – tend to matters of the heart.
- Physical – encourage regular habits for exercise and rest.
Yup, the list is short, but it’s a lifetime work in progress.
12) Practice consistent and appropriate compensation.
Money isn’t the main thing, but it matters.
Compensation is one of the most complex subjects in the church. It has two personas. On one hand, money is not among the top producers of meaning, fulfillment and high morale. However, if it is sub-par it detracts from the most important elements. It’s a complex tension to manage.
Salary contributes to a sense of being valued and appreciated, but not to meaning and fulfillment.
Managing compensation requires consistent diligence. It is necessary to conduct salary surveys, utilize a clear and written structure approved by your board, and make decisions driven by intentionality not emotion or favoritism.
It can be tough to navigate between generosity and prudence, but both sides are critical to keeping morale strong.
A practical first step is to assess where you are by using these three categories:
- Inadequate
- Competitive
- Generous
These categories can be subjective but quickly gain objectivity from how you compare to salary surveys. You can also use salary numbers that you perceive are required to make great hires.
Once you have done this work, then design a strategy to adjust the salaries over time. Don’t get discouraged. This takes time. It can take 12 – 24 months to realign salaries. Your staff will appreciate the intentional movement.
Which morale builders will help improve your team morale in the next 90-120 days? Select no more than 3 to work on at one time.
Always a vessel of knowledge. Thank you!
Hi Frankie!! You are most welcome and I appreciate your kind note.
Happy (almost) Thanksgiving!