Category Archives: Leadership

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April 8, 2014

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Christian Life, Leadership, National Missions

3 Secrets to Avoiding Train Wrecks in Your Church

By Carl Nichols

If you are anything like me, you HATE when things don’t go as planned. I must admit I am a little OCD in this regard. I hate for a meeting to run long, I hate for things to change at the last minute, and I hate when I plan something and then, out of nowhere, things beyond my control begin to happen. Yes, hate is a strong word, but that’s the way I feel.

Recently at Relevant Church, we launched #STUCK and focused on “circumstances beyond our control.” I learned several valuable lessons from a situation that happened during one of the services. avoid a train wreck during worshipOnly about six weeks off the heels of an entire side wall of pipe and drape falling in the middle of one of the most important seasons in the history of our church, a few weeks ago we nearly had another train wreck—during the second song of the second experience, our drummer’s in-ear monitors quit working. I noticed it immediately and was hoping the guys could keep it together. If you know anything about playing in a band, you understand that if the drummer can’t hear then everybody could be in trouble. At any rate, I thought the team did a great job of scratching through and making lemonade out of lemons. What was happening on stage was only noticeable to the trained eye, even though we nearly had a disaster in the middle of a rap portion of the song. Not only did most people not notice, but many complimented the music following the experience. With that in mind, there are three lessons I want to share:

  1. Excellence should always be the end goal. If this is the case, there is always a contingency plan for unforeseen circumstances. When you merely “get through” something in life, train wrecks are inevitable. This is true of everything from relationships to finances to business.
  2. Never underestimate the power of margin. As a fast growing church plant with limited resources, we have to be very strategic about ensuring that we have “extra” equipment, time, and planning. We have learned this the hard way on several occasions. Margin reduces stress and allows for fruitfulness.
  3. Having the right people around you is essential to achieve success. It was fun to watch each person play their part and make a success out of what could have been a disaster. Just as important as having the right people around you is ensuring that you set boundaries for the wrong people.

I’m curious, which one of these is the hardest for you?

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March 25, 2014

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Leadership, National Missions

Didn’t See That Coming

By Carl Nichols

I like to read, and I often come across quotes that absolutely impact my paradigm. A few years ago, in preparation for a teaching I came across this quote:

“time in erodes awareness of”

Building margin into my schedule has been a process for me as well as something that I have to constantly keep a pulse on. This simple quote has helped me in so many ways, and it minimizes the times that I have to say “I didn’t see that coming.” Here are just a few takeaways…

  • The longer I am in certain routines, the less aware I am of bad habits that I have developed. I am surprised at how quickly I can drift off course.
  • I must listen to people I trust and allow them to speak honestly into my life. This includes my staff, family, and mentors.
  • I have to create a score card. In business we call it “clarifying the win.” In my family, it centers around our family covenant that includes our values. At the end of the day, I must have a score card that helps me determine whether I am winning or losing in areas of my life. This helps me focus and builds margin.
  • I must learn to say “no” more often. This is so tough because culture says that we can “squeeze it in” to our already busy lives. Thinking counter culturally will require you to say no more often than you say yes. Be prepared to hurt a few people’s feelings along the way, but in the long run you will be healthier in every area of your life.
  • I must remember the basics. What got me where I am today will not necessarily take me where I want to be tomorrow, but many of the principles are timeless. For me personally this involves things like scheduled nights with my family and quiet time with God. As it relates to leadership, a couple of timeless principles include minimizing my direct people reports, limiting access to my personal time, and keeping a rigid schedule.

Question: What are some common things people don’t see coming because their time in has eroded their awareness of?

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March 21, 2014

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Family, Leadership, National Missions

What Can You Expect Out of Life?

By Carl Nichols

Every month I gather with about 40 high capacity leaders for training and leadership development. As we began discussing one of our core values, “intentional everything”, I made the following statement…

“You can’t expect what you don’t inspect.”

We are currently in the process of dissecting every area of our church with this in mind, and I believe it will have great value for us as an organization. However, I believe this is true in all areas of our life. Here are just a few:

  • You can’t expect to have a good marriage if you don’t inspect how much face time you are giving to your spouse
  • You can’t expect your kid’s grades to improve if you aren’t inspecting their priorities
  • You can’t expect to have money left at the end of the month if you aren’t inspecting your spending habits
  • You can’t expect to retire early or wealthy if you aren’t inspecting your savings habits
  • You can’t expect to get a raise on the job if you aren’t inspecting the quality of work you are putting out
  • You can’t expect your spouse to understand how you feel unless you inspect your communication habits
  • You can’t expect your business to thrive if you don’t inspect the value it brings to the market you are in
  • You can’t expect your employees or staff to live up to your expectations if you aren’t inspecting their habits and giving them constructive feedback
  • You can’t expect your team’s morale to remain high if you don’t inspect the attitudes of those involved
  • You can’t expect to win in life if you never inspect your losses

I have tried to apply these principles to my life and family. I have found that it is very easy to drift off course, but inspection allows us to correct the problems before they get out of hand.

So what can you expect out of life? You can expect what you inspect!

What areas of your life do you need to inspect more often?