Your corps will not become effective by chance - it will become effective by change!

A leader is a change agent!

Jesus is all about change. 

His teaching is all about changing the lives of individuals and of society.  He was radical.  This means he promoted fundamental or revolutionary changes in current social conditions, religious practices, habits of mind, political conditions and institutions1.  (If you do not believe this read his major speech on "How to live" in Matthew 5, 6 and 7.  You will not find anything with the message "Don't change this".)

The Salvation Army is about change. 

In Taiwan, the reason that every corps, social programme, ministry, officer and soldier exists is . . .  

To lead people to faith in Jesus Christ,

Change!

Help Christians grow in spiritual maturity,

Change again!

Serve the community in the name of Christ.

Change yet again!

We are called to reach out to the lost and the least, for many of us a change from the self-focus of our previous lives. 

We campaign and advocate for a change in the conditions for the disadvantaged and downtrodden. 

Yet we all know that most people do not like change; we are resistant to it.  But it is the leader's job to promote change, show people why it is necessary, point  the way through it, and help them take the journey step by painful step. 

The saddest kind of resistance to change is when a corps had become stuck in patterns of thinking and behaving that are out of date and no longer effective. 

Perhaps the soldiers have a romanticised view of how great the corps used to be.  Perhaps they are clinging on to an old format in the hope that the 1960's style will come back in.  

Or perhaps they are just comfortable with everything the same, week-in, week-out.  The same meeting format, the same seat, the same old songs, same, same, same.  Nothing is threatening, nothing is challenging.  In this environment nothing challenges them to become more spiritually mature, nothing challenges them to do difficult things for Jesus.  Everything is comfortable. 

If you were the newly-appointed officer to such a corps, what would you do?  You definitely have a problem getting the corps to function as it should.  You may feel like ranting and shouting and shaking everyone up, but if you fail to get soldiers, adherents and friends invested in the changes, you are likely to fail in the change process.

Somehow you have to be both a prophet, stirring the status quo with an unpopular message from God, and a shepherd, leading the sheep to where God wants them. 

Corps members (like the rest of the human race) do not like to just be told that new things are happening. They want to have a say in the goings-on of the corps, and to know that they are part of the decision-making process.

Occasionally, I have come across a corps that is so stuck in old habits they could not be moved at all.  In that case, the leader has to "move with the movers", influence those he/she can, and leave the rest behind. 

But generally, if you keep meeting with people, keep discussing things, keep explaining the need for change,  a small minority will start to come with you.  If you share the tasks of effecting change, promote the ideas and attitudes, the few will become a few more. 

Keep them involved by discussions to outline the changes and hand out material detailing the changes and the change process, be prepared to compromise on some of the detail  without throwing away the general direction, then the support will grow. 

Ask for volunteers to work on change committees or to carry out extra tasks (invite specific individuals if you don't get a take up), answer questions openly and honestly and, after time, the majority will come with you.

There will always be some who will never come with you and, worse still, some of them who will be a constant source of disruption taking up more of your time than their issues really deserve2. 

1. From <http://www.thefreedictionary.com/radical

2. For a good two-minute vid on how to divide up your leadership time have a look at this: http://video.about.com/management/Pareto-s-Principle.htm

 Questions to Consider

1. Are there areas in which I personally am resistant to change?
2. What changes do I need to drive in my area of responsibility?
3. What am I doing to help people overcome their resistance to change?

A Leadership Exercise

Imagine you are the officer of a corps that is stuck, ineffective and resistant to change.  Draw a up one-page, dot-point plan about what you are doing to do to manage the changes.  To help you get started this article might help; Change Management; What are some of the tips to handling change?

(If you would like to discuss your plan with me, feel free to email me at taw_leadership@taw.salvationarmy.org or contact me (Michael Coleman) on Live Messenger.)