- Intro: movie about and performance by a gifted musician
born blind and crippled. His dad works the graveyard shift to hae
time to push his son around in a wheelchair in the marching band.
- The son's perseverance and the father's dedication is inspiring
- Hasn't talked on inspiration in any of the Leadership Conferences because he wanted to do the topic justice
- Four questions
- How much does it matter if someone is inspired and motivated? (3% difference? 10%? 30%?)
- Whose job is it to keep me motivated?
- What is the best way to inspire me?
- What would it look like if a church (every one in it) were inspired?
- How much does it matter if someone is motivated?
- ~40% better performance
- 87% less likely to leave. Fewer sick days, employee theft, etc.
- Ex: Jr. High basketball team: During the end of one
game the coach said that he [Hybels] was the only one playing with all
heart and no fear, then told him to step it up a notch. Played
like he was on cocaine. (And they still lost)
- Whose job is it to keep me motivated?
- For a long time Hybels thought other people were responsible to motivate him: board of elders, wife, pastors, etc.
- Saw a passage in Samuel where David had lost a battle, his
followers were disgruntled, etc. Says he "went to a quiet spot
and encouraged himself." We are are responsible for motivating
ourselves.
- How to keep yourself inspired
- Remind yourself of your mission. Keep it clear. Remember Who we are doing it for and why.
- Form of war torture: moving dirt piles from one side to another for no reason.
- When his calling is clear, is easy to withstand anything. When fuzzy, the work feels like moving piles of dirt.
- If you don't have a clear vision, need to pay the price to
walk with God and wait until He reveals Himself. (It will not
come cheap) But we need to pursue Him.
- Make sure to leverage our spiritual gifts
- Hybels only has three spiritual gifts: leadership, evangelism, teaching
- Needs to use them in that order. If he does not, is not effective.
- Make sure the people on your team are inspiring people
- Eventually had to de-invite an extremely demotivating person on a team
- By the books you read: Hybels loves reading about people who pay the price of doing what is necessary
- Rub shoulders with exceptionally inspiring people from time to time
- Participate in exceptionally inspiring events. For
Hybels these are helping disabled kids at the fishing derby in the
Willow Creek pond and helping young churches raise money.
- What eents do you need to go to in order to be inspired?
- Pay attention to physical disciplines: diet, exercise, etc.
- Pay attention to your surroundings in your office
- Your environment can motivate or demotivate you.
- Have an inspiring recreation outside of work
- Colin Powell fixed Volvos even during war because it pumped him up.
- Whart part of nature re-invigorates you? For Hybels it's water.
- Daily practicing spiritual devotions
- Having God speak directly can pump you up for a week
- Saturation reflection: study one chapter of the Bible for an entire year. Changed his life.
- Motivating others
- The single best way to motivate others is to live a motivated life in front of them.
- So, are you willing to pay the price and make the effort to motivate yourself?
- Connect your followers to a grander vision
- Telling Ritz-Carlton bellhops, etc. "We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen."
- Principal telling teachers they are not dispensing information but building the future
- Hybels telling the landscape crew that they are shaping the first impressions of their guests.
- Learn the inspiration language of your team and speak that language
- Some people want public praise. Some want a gift of a
small plaque. One guy just wants to be told that his work is
meaningful.
- Identify and reduce every demotivating factor if possible.
- Frederick Hertzberg in a study about job satisfaction found
that even highly motivated people will eventually leave if demotivating
factors are not addressed and resolved.
- Some examples: unclear job descriptions, meagre salaries, underfunded ministries, etc.
- Celebrate every sign of progress towards the team goals.
- What would a church look like if everyone were inspired?
- Acts 2:42: Devoted. Awe. Started giving to
the poor at unprecedented levels. City held them in high esteem.
- People have a deep desire to be living in a surpernatural
community where people are fired up about God, helping the poor, loving
each other, being real with each other.
Copyright ©
2007 by Geoffrey Prewett