I was talking to two different couples I know who are attending a church currently in transition (one couple is retired while the other has two small children). My question was simply, "How is the transition going?" I was curious to see how the transitional principles were being implemented in their church.
To my surprise they really couldn't tell me anything about the details of the transition. They knew who their Transitional Pastor was but beyond that they were pretty much in the dark about the process or where their church was in their journey towards welcoming their next Senior Leader. Those two conversations sparked an idea that is was time to discuss this issue of communication during a pastoral transition.
What is Communication?
Webster's Dictionary defines communication as "sending, giving, or exchanging information and ideas." You share those ideas or that information in written form, verbally or in non-verbal ways. Your tone of voice and body language either support your message or contradict it. During transition, communication will either be effective and facilitate the exchange of information and ideas or it will be ineffective and leave people wondering what is going on and how they fit into this transitional journey.
There is no "one right way" to communicate during a transitions since every situation is different but I do believe there are some principles that can help guide our communication and help facilitate healthy dialogue between the leadership and congregation.
Five Principles that Facilitate Communication During Transition
1. Effective Communication Includes Listening
One mistake leaders sometimes make during a transition is to assume that since they have spoken or written down information and passed it along to the congregation that they have communicated. That is often very far from the truth!
A leader follows a three step process - they first of all listen, then learn from what they heard, then lead based on what they heard and learned. During transition, good communication begins with listening.
In the words of Fred Flinstone, "She who jumps to conclusions may not like where she lands." Before you jump to conclusions about what people are thinking and where they are in their personal journey with the church and its transition, take the necessary time to listen, learn from what you glean, and allow that learning to shape what you say and how you say it.
2. Pay Attention to Where People Are Emotionally
Leaders need to be aware of where their congregation is emotionally in order to communicate clearly and appropriately. Typically because leaders have spent so much more time talking and processing the various aspects of a church's transition, they have traveled farther down the emotional roller coaster road of change and transition.
The Transitional Journey includes an ending, a wilderness and a new beginning. Endings can range all the way from emotionally messy to relative calm and the role of leadership is to monitor their own emotions as well as the emotions of the congregation. People who are stuck in grief are not ready for logical arguments for why they should move on and get over the past. They need leaders to be with them in their grief and exercise the ministry of "being present" without feeling like words are required.
Communication whether verbal or written needs to be "stage appropriate" as you travel through the change journey.
3. Communicate Often and Repeat Your Message
They used to say it takes people six times to hear a message before they will act. I think in this day and age of information overload, that number is far too low.
The role of leadership during a congregational transition is to communicate so that people engage in the process of transition. That can takes time and patience and a realization that not everyone spends the same amount of time thinking and dealing with the issues related to the transition like leaders do.
People need to know where they are in the transitional process and why they are where they are (if you know). It's not enough for leaders to simply say "just trust us, we know what we're doing" if one of your goals is full congregational engagement in the life and ministry and future of the congregation.
Communicate often and say things more than once. Take personal responsibility to share the transitional vision and the game plan with the congregation.
4. Get Feedback Regularly from Your People
Remember I said earlier that as a leader you need to listen, learn and then lead. That needs to continue throughout the transition and form a template for what you say and how you say it. If you are continuing to learn from what you're hearing, you can adjust your message to speak and write and communicate what the congregation needs to hear.
Ken Blanchard states that "feedback is the breakfast of champions." Leaders who are successful as Transitional Leaders and Coaches give people regular opportunity to give them feedback about what they see and how they are feeling. This doesn't mean you give people what they want because that isn't always appropriate but it does mean people will feel like they are being "heard" which is huge!
A wise man one said: "Learn to listen with three ears: listen to what people are saying, listen for what they are not saying, and listen for what people would like to say but can’t put into words."
5. Use Effective Communication to Breathe Hope into People's Lives.
Hope prevents us from clinging to what we have and frees us to move away from the safe place and enter unknown and fearful territory (Henri Nouwen).
Transitional Leaders are dealers in hope which can be in short supply during a time of transition. Repeated messages that offer hope whether in the form of a sermon, a bulletin insert, a team leaders testimony, a listening forum - give people courage to believe differently about their future, deal courageously with their past and live non-anxiously in their present.
I have merely scratched the surface here and encourage you to give this some more thought alone and with your leaders. The reason is simple: effective communication is what leader do!
To discuss this further, go to my blog and enter your comments. Your input is welcome! What is working for you?
Reflection Questions to help sharpen your Communication:
1. What methods are we currently using to communicate what is happening during transition? What's working? What needs improving?
2. How are we listening to people? What do we need to do at this stage of our transition to continue to listen and learn from others?
3. Review the Eight goals of a Ministry Transition. How are we educating our congregation on these eight goals? What are the gaps and what will be do to address them?
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