The Healthy Church Staff Podcast
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The Healthy Church Staff Podcast
Before You Go - Preparing for the Transition Process
Transitioning from a church role requires intentionality, planning, and deep reflection. In our latest episode, we discuss the key steps for leaving well, including clear communication, thorough documentation, and the importance of celebrating relationships formed during your time in ministry.
• Importance of clear communication within the church
• Creating a comprehensive transition plan
• Reflecting on and celebrating your ministry accomplishments
• Providing documentation for your successor
• The significance of saying goodbye with gratitude
• Preparing emotionally for the transition
• Praying for both your current and future churches
• Action steps for creating a transition checklist
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Leaving a church staff role isn't just about packing your office and moving on. A healthy transition can set you up for success or can make things really, really complicated. Hi, welcome to the Healthy Church Staff Podcast. My name is Todd Rhodes, one of the co-founders over at chemistrystaffingcom, and today we are breaking down the key steps to leaving well where you have been and starting strong where you go. So transitions in ministry are always complex. They just always are. They involve a lot more than just packing up and starting over. They involve a lot more than just packing up and starting over, and a healthy transition requires some intentional planning, intentional communication and some intentional closure. And in this series we've been working through Wade Hodges' book called Before you Go, and Wade in his book emphasizes that how you leave matters as much as where you're going. So here are some key steps that I want to share with you today from Wade's book that will hopefully help you prepare for this transition.
Speaker 1:So here's where you are. You've already decided that you're going to leave, you've already announced it and you know where you're going next. What do you do now? Well, the first thing that I think is really really important is you need to communicate clearly. I mean, be upfront with everybody on your leadership team, your current staff, your congregation, everyone about your decision and why you made that decision, as much as you can. You know transparency is going to build some trust and it's going to minimize any understandings from the top down, from other staff members, key volunteers, all the way down to the congregation. And once you've done this and communicated well, actually it's not a do this then that it's. Everything works together. Right, you need to create that transition plan, so work with your church's leadership and develop a timeline for your departure. And again, this is part of a plan that really needs to be written down on paper. So I would include all of this on paper so that both you and the church's leadership are on the same page. So include any milestones for handing off responsibilities, maybe wrapping up any projects that you're currently doing. All of those kind of things need to be put into that transition plan and it really does need to be written down and shared, not just with yourself but with the church team as well. So everybody is on the same page and there's no way for anybody to, you know, kind of deviate from the plan. Everybody knows what the plan is, okay.
Speaker 1:Third, you know, celebrate your time. You know, take some time to reflect and even if you're leaving a bad situation or someplace where you know you're actually kind of excited about leaving and starting something new, still, I mean, take some time to reflect and celebrate on the work that God has done during your time there. You know, even if it isn't going to end the way that you maybe wanted it to, there still have to be some good memories. You still hopefully had to make some good friends and some good relationships. So take time to reflect on that and celebrate that and get together with those groups of people that you're really going to miss, you know, maybe host an event or write some letters to acknowledge some of those relationships and accomplishments.
Speaker 1:And then another part and this goes back to number two, which is part of the plan is make sure that you leave clear documentation for your successor. There's nothing worse and maybe this has happened to you when you get to your new job and you're getting ready to go to a new job and you have no clue about anything. You know you don't have any idea what the last person did, you have no idea what the landscape is, you're kind of flying blind. So don't do that to the person that follows you. Make sure you leave behind some clear documentation for your successor. I mean, include any kind of contact lists, that you have, any key processes, that you do, any other resources that would ensure a smooth handoff. That is just really, really important. And then we also want you to be able to say goodbye well. I often say, you know, don't burn your bridges here and don't skip this step. I mean, don't skip this step. How you leave is important, more important, actually, than where you're going, at least with your current staff and your current church right. So meet with your staff and meet with your volunteers and meet with your congregation and express your gratitude and affirm their role in your ministry journey, because it is really important and you do need to leave well, and leaving well means saying goodbye really really well.
Speaker 1:And then, just as you get ready for this move and this announcement and everything that happens, as soon as you make that announcement if you haven't already as soon as you make that announcement, everything starts to move really, really quickly. And before you make that announcement, make sure that you prepare yourself, make sure you prepare your spouse and your family, your kids, prepare them emotionally for what's going to happen. Acknowledge that, man, emotions that come with leaving are going to be all over the place. Sometimes you're going to happen. Acknowledge that, man, emotions that come with leaving are going to be all over the place. Sometimes you're going to be extremely happy and excited. Other times you're going to grieve. Other times you're just going to be uncertain. You're going to second guess, if you're like most people. Second guess am I doing the right thing? Was this the right place to go? Is this the right time, you know? Give yourself permission to work through all of those things that you're feeling and be sensitive to those of your spouse and your family as well.
Speaker 1:And then, finally, and this is really important because during this transition, you're right in the middle You're at your current church, but you're preparing and really excited about going to your next church, hopefully. So pray for both churches. I mean pray for the church that you're leaving, that God will take care of them, and pray for your successor. And also pray for the church that you're joining. I mean, cover both of those churches, both of those ministries, in prayer, because both institutions are going through some really big transitions. So here's the bottom line for today A healthy transition really is going to help set the stage for what's next in your ministry. You know, preparing intentionally helps you leave well and start strong. So here's what I want you to do today Create a checklist, write down all the tasks that you need to complete before leaving and if you haven't announced yet, let's start here.
Speaker 1:Write down all the tasks that you need to complete before even making your announcement. Include all the practical things, all the practical items like paperwork that you need to do. Write down some of the emotional things that you're going to have to do, like saying goodbye. Schedule any key meetings. Put those on the list that you're going to have to do, like saying goodbye, you know. Schedule any key meetings. Put those on the list that you know I'm going to have to meet with this person. You have to meet with that person. You're going to have to meet with this board. You're going to have to meet with this volunteer and then start to plan some kind of a closure event, and then sometimes churches do that publicly. Sometimes that's kind of on you just to kind of do that with kind of a tight group of leadership people or people that you really feel like you need to work with, or at least say a special goodbye. So that's this week's action.
Speaker 1:Step is start to draft your transition plan. Include all those timelines and tasks and key conversations that you need to have, and you know what? It'll make a huge difference. You want to leave. Well, as I said, how you leave is almost well it is. How you leave is more important than where you're going, at least to the church that you're leaving. How's it going for you? I'd love to offer support. You can email me anytime.
Speaker 1:I read each and every email podcast at chemistrystaffingcom. Also, don't forget to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any future episodes. And if your church is looking to hire a new staff member, visit chemistrystaffingcom. Reach out to me. Podcast at chemistrystaffingcom. We're here to help you build a healthy team, and that includes helping you find brand new staff members. You can reach out to me. I would love to talk with you and see if there's any way that we could help you.
Speaker 1:And finally, we've been working through this Wade Hodges book called Before you Go. If you would like a copy a free copy, a free PDF download of Wade's book, just reach out to me with an email podcast at chemistrystaffingcom and I will make sure that you get a free copy of that today, and I will make sure that you get a free copy of that today. All right, thanks so much for spending some time with me. Remember how you transition out of a role, out of your role, is just as important as how you begin the new one. So you need to do that intentionally, you need to pray a whole heck of a lot and you need to trust God to guide you every step of the way. Very good, thank you so much. I will talk to you tomorrow.
