6 Ways To Set Your Team Up For The Best Year Ever

Let me tell you about one of my team members. She is a wife, a mother, a grandmother, full time health care professional, missions trip coordinator, and a singer on the worship team. Her stepson and his two daughters live with her, as do several of her own children. She invests a great deal of herself in her family and work. On top of all that, she is one of the most committed team members I have, and I’m blown away by how dedicated she is to church music.

She is one example of incredible commitment, and I have many more on my team. I bet you have similar stories on your team. It’s endlessly amazing how much effort people are willing to put into serving God in church. They show up week after week, and put in thankless hours above and beyond their jobs and families to glorify God, and share the gospel.

Now it’s 2014, and everyone on your team is gearing up for another year of dedicated service. As you think about how to make this a banner year, consider setting your team up for success by offering them some significant gratitude. If you let them know how important they are, there's nothing they won't be capable of. Here are some great ways to give gratitude to your team.

1. Letters like Paul's. The apostle Paul is the king of letters. A healthy portion of the New Testament is made up of letters he wrote to churches around the world in the early centuries A.D. One notable thing about his letters is that he frequently began them with a confession that he had been thankful for the people of the church in his prayers.

This year, one of the best things you can do for your team is to write them thank you letters, but not just plain old thank you letters. Take a page from Paul’s book. Tell your team what about them makes you thankful to God. If you really want them to feel appreciated, commit to praying for them this year. You can even tell them how you’ll be praying.

2. Passing Presents. When I was a teenager, my dad looked at me after a worship service and said, “You know son, you have a pretty good voice.” Today, I’m a worship leader at a church. Some of the most powerful and meaningful comments are the ones we make in passing.

If you really want to make an impact on your team, think of some things you appreciate about each member. Then mention them in passing. These things are best done in a couple sentences or less. It's exceedingly simple, but sometimes it's the most impactful thing you can do.

3. Family Dinner Style. Whether your team meets during the week or during church services like mine does, providing a meal for everyone to eat together is a wonderful way to show them how thankful you are for them.

I typically ask my wife to cook for my teams around special days. Then I set up a meal for my team backstage during our services. I ask my wife to do the cooking because she’s an excellent cook. I’d prepare a meal for them, but that’d show more contempt than thanks.

4. Party. Inviting your team to your house to have some fun shows them that you’re thankful for them, especially if you go out of your way to decorate. Set up an afternoon or evening where your team can get together and cut loose. Then don’t let them help you clean up.

The holidays are a great time to throw a party. But if you want to throw a party for your team, then right after the holidays might be the best time to do it. It doesn’t really matter what kind of team you lead, typically the holidays are crunch time for people. Now that New Years day is over, it’d be a good time to get everyone together and regroup. These kind of parties also give you a chance to stand up in front of your team and tell them how much they mean to you. And don’t worry about trying not to cry because you’re probably going to cry.

5. Step up your game. Hard work is contagious. If your team has been working hard, respond by pushing yourself more. You can look to rekindle an skill that has perhaps gone dull. Or you can put energy into something new.

This year, I’ve rededicated myself to communicating with my team, and doing it in advance. That’s something they asked of me in the evaluation I had them give me last November. They’ve all been working really hard, so responding with hard work is the least I can do.

6. Brag. If your team rocks, tell everyone. Talk about them to members of other teams. Tell your church members, friends, family, strangers, and enemies. Build some hype around their performance. This is a great thing to do for a couple reasons.

First, when word of their performance gets back to them, it’ll inflate their confidence. Secondly, greatness is contagious. If you have an awesome team, let their example push other teams to do better.

Leaders are made by their teams. Without them, we’d get very little done. So as you gear up for another year of hard work, let them know how much their efforts count.

Question: What’s one thing about your team that you’re really thankful for?