- Start making it more about vision. A big, compelling, well-defined, life-changing vision.
- Stop making it about need, People won’t buy-in to or commit long-term to great need.
- Start identifying new places to find leaders. Have you recruited youth? College age? Seniors? What new group can you share your vision with?
- Stop doing it alone. Equip other leaders (your core leaders, staff, other church staff, etc.) to recruit with you.
- Start asking! It’s one thing to make the need known…it’s another to actually“make the ask”.
- Stop pigeon-holing people. Have multiple opportunities available for the people you speak with.
- Start being clear about available opportunities – specific functions, commitment time, etc.
- Stop losing volunteers by limiting their freedom to be creative and bringing their own ideas to what they do.
- Start creating systems to make volunteer assimilation easy, not difficult.
- Stop relying on cattle calls or bulletin invitations.
- Start asking personally.
- Stop making excuses that no one is interested in hearing.
- Start expressing appreciation to volunteers (personally, individually & corporately).
- Stop abandoning volunteers once they begin serving.
- Start being flexible with scheduling, training, subbing, etc.
- Stop talking about all the challenges you face in your ministry.
- Start telling stories about great things happening in the lives children, parents & volunteers.
- Stop doing program beyond your capacity to build teams to meet the need.
- Start doing what Jesus told us to do in Luke 10:2:
“These were his instructions to them:
‘The harvest is great, but the workers are few.
So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest;
ask him to send more workers into his fields.’”