The Importance of Communication

Worship Leaders, think back through your conversations with your volunteers over the past couple of months. Do any of this sound familiar?

“I didn’t know we were supposed to be here at 4:15pm.”

“We changed the rehearsal time? No one told me.

“I’m going to take the next month off. It doesn’t seem like you really need me anyway.”

“Why did we change that song to C? We always play it in G.”

Or maybe you’ve had a few of these thoughts in response to those conversations:

“I announced the new practice time at our meeting last month.”

“Does anyone even read their Planning Center emails?”

“Why aren’t my people committed?”

“Isn’t it obvious that we have to change keys with different singers sometimes?”

If you’ve been hearing these things or thinking these thoughts, your ministry is probably suffering from a lack of communication. Here’s the truth: communication is absolutely paramount, and it starts from the top.  Assumptions kill ministries, because assumptions hurt relationships.

We all know about the importance of communication in our marriages and with our kids, so we recognize how vital it is within our family. The same is true about our relationships with our volunteers and with our leaders in the church.  A prime example of this comes from the experience that I had with a friend who was a door greeter at my church, who I noticed hadn’t been at the doors in a while. I asked if he decided to take a break for and his answer honestly frustrated me. He said, “Well, I haven’t heard from anyone in awhile so I assumed they didn’t need or want me anymore.” When I approached the ministry leader to see what happened, her reply was, “He always did it on the first Sunday of the month so when he stopped coming, I just assumed he didn’t want to do it anymore.” Those assumptions cost this ministry a volunteer and put a chink in their relationship, and it all could have been avoided with proactive and preemptive communication.

As leaders, we must develop, cultivate, and grow a culture on our team that encourages good communication habits.  These habits include:

Over-communication

Over-communicate everything. We cannot tell our volunteers something one time and expect them to remember it for next week or next month. From my experience, I have found that three is the magical number here.  Take scheduling for example. As we are headed into the middle of May, I start looking at the June schedule. I send an individual text (or phone call, depending on the person) asking for their availability in June. After they reply and I have the schedule set, I send another text to confirm the dates they are scheduled to serve. Next, I put everyone in Planning Center and plug in the music. When I send the Planning Center request, I write out a detailed email that includes rehearsal times, vocal plans, and any other special notes about the music. Everyone knows I expect them to read it and click “accept.”  Before our weekly rehearsal, I send a text to the people who are scheduled with those special notes and vocal plans. Planning Center automatically sends out a reminder email the day before the service.

Is that a ton of work? Yes. But it’s worth it. Everyone knows when they are scheduled and are reminded in different ways. Everyone knows what is expected of them. They know we are going to play “O Praise” in the key of C because they have been informed at least twice.

[Editor’s Note: We are aware Planning Center does have the built-in ability to do all of that extra work that Laura mentions above, using templates, scheduled emails and personalized notes for the people who are scheduled to serve, et cetera.  And while PCO can do all of the work for us, Laura’s excellent example of bypassing PCO and utilizing different and personal outreach methods to achieve her goals of over-communicating with her team is next level.  Whether you reach out to your team personally or use PCO, the point that Laura is making about over-communicating with your team remains unchanged and should be followed.  Sometimes, a personal touch has a greater impact than a mass email.]

Over-communicate everything.  Upcoming special events, schedule a team night or game night, talk about how  much you appreciate your volunteers, if you’re meeting for prayer or devotional before rehearsal, everything.  Social media is your largest ally in this department.  Post it on your team Facebook page, tweet it, and throw it on Instagram. Make time for individual conversations with each of your team members.
You may be saying to yourself, “I’ve said this a million times,” But that doesn’t mean your bass player has heard it at all.

Use ALL forms of communication

Giving information out in several different ways will ensure your volunteers will retain and remember the information that you’ve given them. For example, let’s say you made five announcements at your Team Night this month. Chances are that people will latch on to one or two, and forget the rest. After your meeting, send out a mass email with those announcements, and highlight everything that you went over. A few days later, post them in your Facebook group or on your Instagram. If you have anyone who missed the meeting, set up a one-on-one time to go over what they missed. The great thing about this is they will immediately feel valued as a volunteer and they will see the importance of attending your meetings.

Get to know your team members and how they communicate best. I have a few team members that I only talk about scheduling face-to-face. Some people prefer a phone call over a text. Identify their preferred form of communication and use it.

Make time to listen

Communication is a two-way road, so don’t forget the other half! Be a leader who is available and willing to listen. This means your time AND your attitude. Foster a culture where suggestions are heard and feelings are listened to. Create meet-ups in a more casual environment. You could invite a couple of your singers to coffee after rehearsal, have your band members over for a BBQ, or get together for a game night. These types of settings will help your team feel more comfortable and they will be more likely to open up to you. Be ready to listen! Listening to someone share about their rough day at work is a great way to show you truly care and love them as a person. This element is crucial to volunteer commitment. Volunteers are more likely to stay committed to a cause when they feel valued, needed, and appreciated. Be sure you are communicating those things!  Create one-on-one time with people on your team who are struggling.  There’s always budget to take someone out for coffee.  Listen to their issues or grievances, and see if you can work through why they are struggling.  Their lack of performance on-stage could be a result of something happening at home, or a misunderstanding, or perhaps something else.  The point is, you cannot work through that issue without first talking about it.

Be intentional. Maybe communication is not your strength, and that’s totally okay. Make a plan. Set reminders on your phone to remind you to communicate with your team.  You could schedule your various communications in your calendar. Or make a list of you volunteers and keep track of the times you are meeting one-on-one or sending thank you cards. This will help you not overlook someone. Do whatever works for you and your team. Just don’t ignore the necessity or the importance of communication.