Last week we compared remembering the past for nostalgia or for future vision. Practically speaking, most of us are not able to pursue a compelling God-inspired future vision without first navigating some changes.

Few of us aspire to lead congregational change. Many times it leads to a short tenure. And, almost all the time, it creates people who are no longer happy with our leadership.

Some of it is to be expected. It’s inevitable.

But leaders are wise when they recognize that they probably could have done it better if they had avoided the common mistakes that leaders make when navigating change. 

Here are the 7 common mistakes made when leading change.

Few leaders…

1. Recognize that today’s “problem” was yesterday’s solution, and some of today’s people faithfully invested in what they propose to change.
2. Name people’s sense of loss as lack of commitment, and so they miss being compassionate toward people and their grief.
3. Recognize people’s “fear” of an unknown future, and instead see it as stubborn resistance.
4. Understanding that people are afraid to hope, especially after a string of disappointments.
5. Help people understand why “we can’t stay here.”
6. Steadily demonstrate integrity and deeper relationships and so they don’t build trust, or they forget to build teams of change advocates who can be trusted.
7. Paint a picture of the future that inspires and connects the proposed changes with the mission of God.

It is possible to lead well and wisely through change, and to survive it! If you are leading through change now, or preparing to introduce change to your organization, and you want to do it in a healthy way, our upcoming online workshop can help. “Leading Change and Living to Tell about It” will give you practical tools that you can implement now. Space is limited, so register today!