Every great organization shares common values unique to them. Whether it’s a church, a para-church organization, or a business, prevailing teams know and breathe their values, their shared assumptions about how they do things. I’ve served in U.S. churches and my latest church in Canada for a total of 42 years. One of the first things I did when I came to Canada was to share the 10 core values I wanted our team to embrace. I call them ‘permission to play’ values. In other words, if you want to play in our sandbox, here’s how we play. You may already have a great set of values that work for you, but if you don’t, this list I’ve developed over the past several years might provide a starting point for yours. Both Bill Hybel’s and Rick Warren’s lists have influenced mine. Here they are.
We value . . .
- Integrity.
- Is. 32.8 But the noble man makes noble plans, and by noble deeds he stands. (NIV)
- A positive, coachable attitude.
- Phil. 4.8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things. (NIV)
- Volunteers
- We work for them; they don’t work for us.
- Body, soul, and spirit care.
- Luke 2.52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. (NIV)
- Simplicity
- Simple is best.
- Authenticity
- We are in private what people see in public.Authenticy means that you are in private what people see in public.CLICK TO TWEET
- Teamwork and trust.
- We keep short accounts with each other and subordinate our personal agendas to the church’s agenda.
- Continual growth and learning.
- We welcome constructive feedback.
- A healthy work ethic.
- We work hard and have fun.
- Taking bold faith steps.
- We aren’t afraid to fail.
What staff values would you add to this list?
