SG² Steve Gladen on Small Groups

1. How do you handle unclear or wrong communication?2. How do you handle worry?3. How do you figure out who's after you?4. How do you handle failure?7 Lessons Learned from Face Plants1. Think through your response and LISTEN2. The response is always done with humility3. Everything we do is being watched by the world4. We must make sure our impact matches our intent5. We can be creative without being offensive6. When dealing with upset people, pray with them and have them pray too7. TEACH -  True, Encouraging, Age Appropriate, Culturally Honoring, How would Jesus respond? ★ Support this podcast ★

Discover the common excuses people face when joining small groups and how to effectively address them. Listen to personal stories that highlight the importance of community and connection within churches. Learn innovative solutions for overcoming barriers, such as child care issues. Gain insights on fostering impactful relationships through strategic outreach and intentional planning. Explore the significance of prioritizing the teachings of Jesus in creating supportive environments for group engagement.

1. How do you handle unclear or wrong communication?2. How do you handle worry?3. How do you figure out who's after you?4. How do you handle failure?7 Lessons Learned from Face Plants1. Think through your response and LISTEN2. The response is always done with humility3. Everything we do is being watched by the world4. We must make sure our impact matches our intent5. We can be creative without being offensive6. When dealing with upset people, pray with them and have them pray too7. TEACH -  True, Encouraging, Age Appropriate, Culturally Honoring, How would Jesus respond? ★ Support this podcast ★

Steve Gladen, Global Small Groups Pastor at Saddleback Church, pulls from his 20+ years of small group ministry experience to encourage and equip listeners to lead healthier, growing and more effective small group ministries. In this episode, Steve is joined by co-host Derek and special guest Christina Dawson to talk about 7 ways CRM can Improve Discipleship. In this episode we break down the following: High Level PerspectivePersonalized ServiceCentral Repository of Information, accessible and sharableData InsightsTime is Our Most Precious CommodityContinual Improvement – adapt or dieSoul Food – nurturing relationships that foster growth and positive impactSHOW NOTES:1. High Level Perspective: - We're all in sales - it's just a question of "what's the product?"  - Clear vision & benefit statement - don't make people guess  - Concise, positive, fun, high energy, memorableEveryone's favorite subject: Themselves!! The more you know about them, the more impactful & engaging you will be. God's tool to move them beyond themselves-Small Groups (our product) - to fill the spiritual void they have from a broken relationship with God. Small Groups bring back (read Acts 2:42-47) community, Biblical knowledge, personal development (Discipleship), serving, evangelism and worship2. Personalized Service  Our world demands real time interaction with deep personalization  Personalization = You Care / You Understand Me = Credibility  Credibility is critical in a noisy, misguided world3. Central Repository of Information, accessible and sharable   A good memory is great but it isn't transferable or scalable (institutional Knowledge)  One source of information for all team members to access  Requires thoughtfulness on the required fields vs. optional fieldsStart small, think in terms of the bare essentials or Minimum Viable ProductToo Much Information or Layout / Architecture = can drown the initiativeShared information shows competence, increases confidence & greatly improves customer experiences4. Data InsightsAbility to spot trends - very powerful in driving outcomesMove from reactive to proactive - address issues earlier Cohorts & Patterns - ability to compare outcomes & experiences over timeIncrease personalization and value to customers / peopleCompetitive advantage - data can bring knowledge & knowledge is gold5. Time is Our Most Precious Commodity Use it wisely & maximize impact Don't waste other people's time - they will reward you through avoidance Learn through data analysis how to improve time management - adjust regularly Serve people with the method they prefer, it's not about what you want or like Focus on building the perfect day & week (activities done every day / week) Don't let things slip - if a day is subpar, make it up the following day6. Continual Improvement - adapt or die  Static approaches die no matter how great they are The world is changing, people are changing and the approach has to stay current Data analysis will spot trends, help reveal required adjustments and highlight areas of application (who or where I need to apply the adjustments)7. Soul Food - nurturing relationships that foster growth and positive impact People are attracted to ideas & other people that have a positive impact on them Align the interaction to provide value / positive impact with every touch Feedback is essential and needs to be regular from a diverse group Try to score or grade user experience or engagement - If you don't measure it, it's very difficult to monitor performance and spot changes (good or bad) ★ Support this podcast ★

Listen is as we go back to February 2021 and the 3 Areas for Your Groups to Shine in Today’s Culture. We still find that this will be relevant in your group's setting today!7 Civilities Listen with your eyes (don’t roll your eyes) acknowledge their viewSleep and hungry—know the right timeSocial media news vs. Good newsNeither side may trivialize or dismiss the concerns of the other.Neither side should define the “other” according to one single characteristic or identity marker.Both sides should aim to help each other understand their own experience and perspective using a type of speech (words and tone) that can be heard by the other.Both sides should accept the fundamental ground rule of life in a free society: the essence of liberty is the right to be different and to act wrongly in the eyes of others—you will need to agree to disagree. ★ Support this podcast ★

Listen in as Pastor Rick Warren talks about the coming trends in small group ministries. This was from our Lobby 2019 Gathering and is still relevant today! Part 2 next week! ★ Support this podcast ★

Goal: To know how to set and be comfortable having coffee/follow ups with Small Group leaders.Why: We want you to be totally comfortable contacting and meeting with small group leaders.It is important to remember that these folks are just like you. They have goals, fears, hurts, insecurities, families, family problems, health concerns and everything else you can imagine.Be confident - Biblical basics:God owns everything, and I am His manager. (Ps. 24:1, Matt. 25:14-30)You are their pastor.You are responsible for their health (2 Cor 5:10)Know the landscape:These are financial, spiritual and emotional issues.Isolation, spiritual voidMaterialism, 1/3 of those earning over $250k per year live paycheck to paycheck.Business, environment setting their prioritiesPrepare Yourself:Am I living out biblical health in my own life? Do you buy what you sell?5 purposesActive in my group balancing the purposesHave YOUR own story ready to share.Where do you start:Review your group list:You may already know some of your SGL as they are very involved as volunteers, but you may have had no idea who they are. Many of these folks are not well connected, don’t attend a lot of events and may not even be on your radar.Start small and grow into the listHow many engagements can you do?Pick some names to begin and learn as much as you can before you meet:Check HC and know family names, ministries, time at SaddlebackZillow their address for where and how they liveGoogle them and their companyCheck LinkedIn, Facebook, IG etc.Make the invitation:If you know them, simply call, text, or email that you would love to grab a cup of coffee when it is convenient for them. If they ask what you want, simply say I just want to spend time with you and get to know you better. Another line I use is, I like to invest my time with the folks who are investing in our church.If you don’t know them, we have found that having an assistant set up the meeting works very well. They can call and simply say the Pastor Dave would like to see if you would get together with him for a cup of coffee. Are you available on the 23rd? They almost always ask, what does he want or why does he want to meet with us? The simplest answer is usually the best. Pastor Dave loves to meet with our members, and he gives me a list to contact, and you are on that list. This seems to take the edge off and I have never had a no.Pick a place close to them, not you. They may suggest it, or you can, based on their home/work geography. Pick a time most convenient for them.While I meet mostly with men, very often they ask to bring their wives which is perfect. Obviously if you are just meeting with a woman, you need to bring someone else with you such as your 101 or worship pastor, someone mature in their faith as well and comfortable in this environment.I often send a text confirming the time and placeMeet them and be on time!! (Early is even better)Relax and enjoy the conversation: Don’t be intimidated, pretend you’ve been in the end zonebefore!They want to be treated like regular people and have a lot of the same problems and issues,plus some that others don’t have. There is no need to make it awkward, in fact, start withtheir story.Share the vision for the church, Groups and your excitement and enthusiasm will becontagious.We do not need to ask for anything! We just need to Pastor people.Initiating Conversations, Discipling is relational, be their Pastor.Here are some easy open-ended questions:Tell me your story.How did you come to Saddleback?Tell me about your family?Tell me about your work/company?What are your passions, hobbies, dreams?How is God growing and stretching you?Which areas of your life are easiest to put God first, and which are hardest?What do you think God is working on in your life?Wrap up questions:Is there anything we can be doing better at Saddleback to support you and yourfamily?How can I be praying for you?Offer to pay – but 9 out of 10 times, the member will treat you.Always send a follow up text or note thanking them for their time and for treating you to coffee/breakfast and telling them that you will be praying for what ever they asked for prayers for.Thank them for making an earthly and eternal difference.A couple Don’ts:If they are group leaders with means, never ask for anything for yourself. Don’t forget to follow up on anything they mentioned. Something you said you would send them or someone you promised to introduce them to.Don’t make a commitment that you may not be able to keep such as get Andy to attendtheir kid’s 1st birthday party.Don’t start on your agenda (hard data) but their agenda (soft data) ★ Support this podcast ★

In this episode, Steve Gladen breaks down 5 areas where ministry leaders can re-imagine how they do coaching for their groups ministry. The following is what will specifically be covered in this show:History of CoachingStaff or volunteersServe in one Help in anotherSaddleback’s history—building upon, keeping best of…1.0 version (1998)1:5—I could recruit faster than our growth2.0 version (2005)—why it changed, it was broken1:25 paidIntroduced not equal care, but strategic care4 Buckets and Reactive/pro activeName changed from Coaches to CL’s because of paradigm shiftCare 70% Administration, training, connecting 30%,Get in for right reason, but get out for right reasonCL Retreats3.0 Version (2009)—why it changed, it couldn’t scale financially1:25 volunteered, above sameIntroduced any span of care a CL could do4.0 Version (2014) why it changed, they weren’t sure what to doIntroduced the “Starbuck’s” green apron more developmentalFRIENDLEADERCOACHHard and Soft data collectionSkip Level, Trust but Verify5.0 Version (2017) why it changed, we discovered other factors not giving maximum alignmentIntroduced the Village conceptAlignment6.0 Version (2021) why it changed, discovered different types of CL’sHOST to Leader to CL to MinisterCL CourseTraining ModulesTrack training (next gen beyond Starbuck’s green apron) 5 Areas to Reimagine Coaching The Ethos (the environment the CL lives in)the family system (w/o parents it is risky)How’s the family (you, coaches and Group leaders)Do you know what you are producing—the end in mindThe Reason (for the CL)Directive Disciple MAKING—management and guidance, Space flight PSGWP page 201Tom Landry quoteBaseline, Know the health metrics HA & GHAHow will you give course corrections (ideas, curriculum, encouragement, etc.)The Process (finding CL’s)The Group Leader pathway HOST to Leader to CL (P3) to MinisterCompetency and CapacityRetreatsIntroductory CourseThe Pathway (growing the CL)The Coach engagement pathway to the HOST; FRIEND—LEADER—COACHThe Coach’s pathway of growth for themSGP guidanceModules TrainingCourse(s)RetreatsThe Influences (that help the CL)…what I call the VillageShare the Village, who’s in helping? Who surrounds the Small Group speaking health?People (primary)Small Group Point PersonCL or CoachSenior PastorProcesses (secondary)Training Pathway for the leaderTools (HA and GHA)Training Pathway for the CLNewsletterSmall Group Weekend Table connectionSmall Group Website home pageWeekend servicesLeader Retreats and SGHStreaming content (curriculum and training)Social MediaTestimoniesFAQ’sShownotes:smallgroupnetwork.com/smallgrouphttps://sb-web.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/saddleback.com/connect/smallgroups/9958-SmallGroupsCL-Booklet_Interior_Interactive_092101.pdf ★ Support this podcast ★