A Lead Pastor’s Guide To Understanding Their Creative Staff

Whether you are a creative staff member or a lead pastor, it helps to have some understanding as to how each other thinks.

A few weeks ago I posted an article on The Worship Leader’s Guide to Understanding Their Senior Pastor. It’s so important to adopt the vision and values of your lead pastor.

Fulfilling their vision is part of your God-ordained role.

I figured I would turn it around and offer a lead pastor some insight into their creative staff. Most of the time they don’t see eye to eye but a little understanding into how we creatives work will go a long way.

Here we go:

1. Give them space to be creative…don’t micromanage – as creative people, we need environments where we can do our work. We tend to be stifled when we’re micromanaged and hounded over to complete our tasks. Help us see what we should be working on and then let us achieve those goals in our own unique way. Obviously, if we’re not reaching our goals, something needs to change. But I think a big part of creatives reaching their goals is giving them the freedom to work how they want.

2. Teach them the benefits of task & time management – this has been massive for me. My pastor has taught us well how to set goals, manage our time, use a task manager, and work smart. This is essential for we creatives. I don’t think this comes naturally. If we’re not trained, we tend to wait for inspiring circumstances to get anything done. It’s important to get up and go to work everyday. Be patient with us and teach us how to manage our time better.

3. Allow their input on office hours & location – I think it’s important for us to be held accountable for getting our work done, but I also think the traditional “office” style of hours and same location can be stifling. It will go a long way to allow the input of your creative staff on the hours that work best for them. Measure their performance based on output, not sheer hours in the office. Allowing us to work in random locations can be very inspiring for what we do.

4. Give them an outlet for their ideas – don’t shut our ideas down. Give us a safe place to vent our thoughts, no matter how audacious they may be. They may just help you see things from a new perspective.

5. Trust them – I work so much better when I know I’m trusted. My expertise is respected. My opinion matters. I’m trusted to do what I’m here to do. Express that trust and watch our productivity soar.

6. Understand their art drives them, not money – Actually, money is awesome, but it’s not everything. Creatives would rather do something they love for less pay than do something they hate for great pay. I promise you that. Creating our art drives us. We want to get better. We want to create. Don’t stop paying us :), but realize that our work is way more than money.

7. State expectations up front – It helps to communicate exactly what you’re looking for from your creative staff. If you’re not specific, it’s easy for us to busy ourselves on random things that don’t line up with what is necessary for the organization. Make it clear.

8. Verbally appreciate their work…often – we artists are a sensitive bunch. Extremely sensitive. We crave appreciation and highly respect you as the leader. Your praise is important. You may not need much affirmation to do what you do, but it’s important to us. On the flipside, criticism can also drain us if it’s not expressed properly. Sorry we’re like this, but it’s just the way it is 🙂

9. Speak your vision – speak it often. Describe your vision, your values, the reason you do what you do. Vision inspires us to create.

10. Give us deadlines – we love to create, but get cold feet when it’s time to ship. In the goal setting process, help us develop reasonable deadlines for our work. Otherwise, we may never finish on our own.

If you are a creative staff member at your church, my desire is not to make you discontent with how your pastor or supervisor treats you. My passion is to see the two work together because together we can accomplish so much for the Kingdom of God.

Though it can be awkward at times, it’s so important that we communicate openly about what drives us and motivates us to give our best.

Question: Are you a lead pastor or a creative staff member? What do you like best about working on your team? You can leave a comment by clicking here.