3 groups of people you can get input from

We all need input in our ministry to help us determine whether or not we are doing a good job and being effective. However, sometimes finding the right places to get that input from was not always easy for me…especially when I was working at smaller churches…so I thought. The reality is that there are always ways to get input no matter what size your church is. And with social media and other online tools, getting input has never been easier.

Here are 3 specific groups of people any minister can get input that will directly help them make the necessary changes and updates.

Ask your volunteer leaders. Your leaders are ones who usually have a great sense of what is happening because they are having conversations with people they are ministering to who may not feel comfortable sharing information with you, the lead guy. So tap into your volunteer leaders and find out what they are hear AND what they are thinking. Get their input on what they are hearing but also on what they think can be changed or altered. They are with you in the trenches, so see what they think.

Ask those you are ministering to. Want to learn how you can make your ministry better? Simply ask the people you are ministering to. You can ask them directly by taking them out to coffee, giving them a call or shooting them an email. Or, you can do a survey. I did a survey via Wufoo recently for our Online Campus and it was very helpful on giving us insight we needed to make changes so we could best minister to them.

Ask other ministers (not affiliated with your Church). This could be done by other ministry friends you know locally OR it could be done via social media and email. The Wufoo survey I did was not my original idea on how to get input from others. I thought about doing a word document I would email to others. But then I asked 4 other Online Pastors what they do to get input and one of them told me about Wufoo. It was amazing because it simplified the process for both me and the people I wanted info from.

In times past, it has been completely common for me to pick up the phone and call a ministry pal to debrief some things and get some input. You can still do that today but you could also get on a Facebook group like this one for Church Communicators or this one for Student Ministers and ask their opinions. It happens all the time and people are really happy to help you process what you are going through because at least one other minister has gone through the exact same situation or has had the exact same question. It’s a great network.

Getting the input is extremely necessary but gaining the right input is invaluable. By reaching out to your volunteer leaders, those you are ministering to and others ministers not affiliated with your Church you are sure to get the input you need to make the right decisions for your ministry. Then, once you get all your input, go before God  and have Him lead you through all the decisions you make.  He will lead you through it all.

So, what do you think? What do you do? Where do you get your input from? Share your thoughts below or on social media using #ymsidekick as part of your tweet.