5th Commandment: You shall allow people to live in a world they help create.
By Guest Blogger Shawn Wood
The first mistake of most communications professionals is to write a policy manual. Policies are an admission that we cannot lead and really, who reads them anyway? In our context at Seacoast Church, a multi-site church with 13 campuses and more on the way, I have made that mistake in so many unique expressions. Policy does not have to be in a manual. It can be implied in a conversation, written in a hostile email, delivered through a passive aggressive remark or actually put in writing, but the end result is the same. We are asking people to live in a world that we construct, that we do the maintenance and that we serve in the role of ruler and chief. Here are a couple of ways to keep from paying the dumb tax I have paid over and over again:
- Ask a lot of questions. People like to be asked questions and when you ask questions here is a unique thing that happens. You get answers. Most of the time we make the mistake of only asking ourselves the questions and then sharing the answers with our team mates as if simply by title we have also attained some level of intelligence and all-knowing that we did not have before. Be authentic and admit you don’t know all.
- Don’t be so married to your ideas. If you guys are like me, I am making a whole bunch of stuff up as I go, so chill out and except that there is a good chance your opinion is wrong. Be willing to be corrected, be willing to not be “wise in your own eyes” and change your rules. I find that people love the rules to change when they are the ones suggesting the change.
- Go for a world that is created by others, not you. Some self examination will tell you why are you in this. Do you like being in control or being effective? Do you like everything to follow the rules or to see more people following Jesus? When you are able to truly work with people to help create the communication culture that you all live in there will be more communication and community and most of all more Kingdom.
We all want to live in that world. But it will be leaders who help take us there. I pray that you will be such a leader.
Read the other commandments
1st Communication Commandment
2nd Communication Commandment
3rd Communication Commandment
4th Communication Commandment
About Shawn:
Shawn Wood is the Experiences Pastor at Seacoast Church on the east coast of the America. He is the Author of 200 Pomegranates And Audience Of One and Wasabi Gospel.
As the Experiences Pastor Shawn helps create spirit-filled, yet not creepy but kind of mystical connections with God on 13 Campuses and the web at Seacoast Church. You can follow him on Twitter, or subscribe to his blog (like me). Well worth it!
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