\n\u201cIt\u2019s important that people know you are consistent and fair in how you think about making decisions and that there\u2019s an element of predictability. If a leader is consistent, people on their teams experience tremendous freedom, because then they know that within certain parameters, they can do whatever they want. If your manager is all over the place, you\u2019re never going to know what you can do, and you\u2019re going to experience it as very restrictive.\u201d<\/p>\n
– Laszlo Bock, Google\u2019s Senior Vice President for People Operations<\/i><\/p>\n
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Are You Consistent?<\/b><\/span> Consider how you deal with your teams. Do you micromanage one person but never say anything to another? Or do you sometimes micromanage the tasks one week, but not the next? Do the parameters for \u201csuccess\u201d change week to week?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll tell you if I don\u2019t like it\u2026\u201d<\/b><\/span> With no guidelines, the poor creative simply throws a bunch of stuff against the wall hoping something will stick. The only hope is to avoid being scolded too severely if they miss the mark that wasn\u2019t there in the first place. There are few better ways to demotivate creatives.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Box of Freedom<\/b><\/span> Inside of those parameters, the guys can do whatever they want. Now that the lighting guys know what not to do<\/i>, they have a ton of freedom to do<\/i> what they feel the moment needs.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Consistency Wins<\/b><\/span> When everyone knows the expectations, the stress level goes way down. We have a lot more fun, and our team gets better results with more longevity. We can apply this principle throughout the church. Define the parameters, then give the team freedom to do whatever they want inside those parameters. When we lead with consistency, everyone wins.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mike Sessler is the Technical Director at Coast Hills Community Church in Orange County, CA. He also writes\u00a0ChurchTechArts.org<\/a>\u00a0 and hosts the\u00a0ChurchTechWeekly.com<\/a>\u00a0
\nThink about that concept for a little bit. If you know what your boss or pastor wants from you, there is tremendous freedom to figure out how to do it, what tools to use and even what the end product looks like. But if he\u2019s all over the place, you never really know what you can do and what you can\u2019t.<\/p>\n
\nDo you (or does your boss) not give any parameters for the result, but simply point out what you don\u2019t like? That is the worst way to lead creatives. When someone tells me, \u201cI don\u2019t know what I want, but I\u2019ll tell you what I don\u2019t like,\u201d I cringe. If I have the choice, I won\u2019t work with that person.<\/p>\n
\nWe implemented a process that we call the Freedom Box. We got the key stakeholders together and defined some parameters\u2014in this case for lighting. As a team, we drafted an outline of things we definitely don\u2019t want, like shining lights in the eyes of the congregation. We also defined lighting levels for various parts of the service. The parameters are not good or bad, they are simply what we do or do not want to see.<\/p>\n
\nWe no longer have to get on the guys for doing things we don\u2019t like. It\u2019s consistent because everyone knows the expectations. I spend less time policing them, and they are challenged to come up with different looks and effects within the bounds we defined.<\/p>\n![\"1pxx750\"](\"https:\/\/www.sharefaith.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/1pxx750.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Mike-Sessler-notext\"](\"https:\/\/www.sharefaith.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/Mike-Sessler-notext.jpg\")
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