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The Summit party continues

May 16, 2012 in Bill Hybels, Events, The Global Leadership Summit, Video, Willow Creek Association with 6 Comments

Only 87 days til the 2012 Summit kicks off in full force! But who’s counting? Yes, we’re a little bit excited – and you should be too! The speakers are great and we’ve got amazing musicians! In case you hadn’t heard, we’re having a little party this week – giving away cool Summit stuff. Just our little way of reminding you to register before the price goes up on 5/22 and tell everyone you know how fabulous you think the Summit is!

Today is a big day for another reason – and aren’t you glad you didn’t miss it? Making its blogosphere debut is the 2012 Global Leadership Summit promo video! Let us know what you think & don’t forget to pass it along!

Since it’s such a great day we’re throwing in TWO giveaways today!

First, free to all for a limited time is Bill Hybels’ classic Summit talk from 2002: The Sky-High Stakes of Leadership (mp3). Get it now because it’s only here through 5/22!

Second, our friends over at Zondervan were kind enough to send us a set of Bill’s new releases: Leadership Axioms, Courageous Leadership & The Call to Lead. Give this post a shout on Twitter or Facebook and leave us a comment telling why you’d like these books. We’ll choose one random winner on Thursday at 3:00.

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On meetings & culture

May 15, 2012 in Events, Leadership, Patrick Lencioni, Webcast with 8 Comments

When you think of your team and your culture, would you say that you enjoy your meetings? Most people would not. Most would say it is the part of their job that they dread. 2012 Global Leadership Summit speaker, Patrick Lencioni, has some advice on how to improve your meetings, which in turn will help improve your culture.

“…when I’ve talked to most leaders they said, “If I don’t have to go to meetings anymore or if I don’t have to manage people, I’d really like my job more.” Which doesn’t really make a lot of sense, does it?

Truth of the matter is, for most of us who work in the business world or even in churches, if we aren’t preaching or leading music we’re going to meetings and getting stuff done. So, if we say that we don’t like our meetings we’re kind of admitting that we don’t like our jobs. And that’s a problem. And unfortunately in society we’ve come to the position where we’ve actually accepted this and just said meetings are bad they’re just a cooperate penance — they are something we have to do to get through the day.

The fact of the matter is meetings are not inherently bad. There is nothing wrong with meetings. But most meetings really stink. They just don’t need to.”

According to Patrick there are two reasons why meetings are bad and both of them are fixable. Watch the video to learn more about what Patrick says on the culture of meetings.

How can you start to build these ideas into your team and culture?

Transforming Teams

May 15, 2012 in Changing Lives, Events, Transformation Intensive with 0 Comments

Intensive teamTwo weeks ago, the WCA held an event called The Transformation Intensive. We witnessed the power of focused teams as churches from around the nation gathered together. For three solid days, church leadership teams sat together at round tables to experience soul-stirring worship, extended times of facilitated discussion and strategic planning, and teaching from experts like Dallas Willard, Lance Witt, and Henry Cloud.

Everything was focused on one simple task: Helping teams develop a plan for becoming more effective in leading their church community.

Henry Cloud explained the critical factors that must be present in ANY culture that supports transformation. And to get to these factors, he challenged the teams with these questions:

  • What does it feel like to work here?
  • What tends to happen to those who work here for a length of time?
  • How do decisions get made?
  • What are our spoken values? What are the unspoken values?
  • What happens when a team member violates a value?

How do these questions apply to your team?

Teams left the event charged. They asked tough questions, discussed the realities, and walked away with an action plan to lead them to effective solutions.

We don’t know where you and your team are, but we hope you are willing to ask tough questions too.

Here is a FREE chapter from the newly released monograph BECOME like Jesus: Regaining Clarity on Transformation in the Local Church. We hope this book will help lead you into a conversation with your team about authentic transformation. Check out the free chapter and then order a copy and let us know what you think.

From 81 Million to Zero in Three Years

May 15, 2012 in Changing Lives, Events, Innovation, Leadership, The Global Leadership Summit, Willow Creek Association with 2 Comments

In 2009 DuPont generated 81 million pounds of landfill waste annually at their 15 global sites. The landfill disposal met all corporate, country, and local requirements, but with a commitment to environmental stewardship, DuPont believed they could do better. Dave Walter, North American Strategic Project Manager at DuPont Building Innovations led a large global project with a goal to reduce the landfill to zero in three short years.

Dave, a self-proclaimed “huge advocate” of the WCA’s Leadership Summit, realized one company did not have all the tools it took to get DuPont to their zero landfill goal. It would take inclusive innovation and the strength of many—values speakers have addressed at previous Leadership Summits. “There have been many insights I have gained from each of the five Summits I have attended,” says Dave. “All of that learning went into my thinking and day-to-day approach [of the project].”

Reaching zero landfill in three years was an ambitious goal, but DuPont’s Building Innovations did it. Today DuPont reduces, reuses, and recycles waste, and generates more than two million dollars of revenue each year through the sale of by-product materials that previously wound up in landfill.

“The Leadership Summit has definitely helped me to be a better leader and a better expander of the kingdom of God,” says Dave.

Has the GLS inspired you to take action and ‘Lead Where You Are’? We want to hear your story! Leave a comment & let’s connect!

Continuing with our week of giveaways, tweet this post and leave us a comment – we’ll choose one random winner tomorrow at 3:00 to receive a 2011Team Edition DVD set!

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A Soccer Mom Changes the World

May 9, 2012 in Africa, Changing Lives, Events, Leadership, Stories, The Global Leadership Summit, Video, Willow Creek Association with 0 Comments

Kristen Chandler thought changing the world meant doing something big. “I didn’t see how one person could possibly do anything to help the millions of hurting people in the world,” she says.

When she attended The Global Leadership Summit in 2008, she was challenged by the words Lead Where You Are. “Where I was most of the time was with my kids at the soccer field,” she says. And youth soccer didn’t exactly line up with her idea of ministry, but Kristen was open to God’s direction.

If You’re Not Failing, You’ve Stopped Dreaming
At the Summit, Craig Groeschel (LifeChurch.tv) said: “If you’re not failing, you’ve stopped dreaming. And if you’re not dreaming, you’ve stopped living.”

“When I heard that,” says Kristen, “it gave me permission to try something…even if it failed.”

Kick for Hope Is Born

She got the idea to hold a soccer tournament to raise money for something life changing. Researching various charities, she found some that didn’t just throw money into a pot, but gave people something tangible so they knew what they were giving their money to. And Kick for Hope was born.

The first year 89 teams with kids between the ages of 8 and 18 participated. The next year, there were 124, and last year there were 134 and more than two thousand children. “We’ve raised $84,000,”says Kristen. That might not sound like a lot, but it has meant a well in Africa that provides clean water, mosquito netting that protects against malaria, aid for Sudanese refugees, and more.

“We got a picture of our well in the mail and it had our name on it,” says Kristen. And she’s been to Africa to see how the money is used and how it has impacted people’s lives. “I’ve met people whose lives have been changed because of Kick for Hope.”

Along the way, Kristen has gained leadership skills and life tools. “Youth soccer is the fastest growing sport, so the potential is huge,” she says. “There are kids all over the world playing soccer—sometimes without shoes or even a ball. Even though their lives are different, kids around the globe are connected through this beautiful game.”

Who knew a soccer mom could change the world?


What ideas are you brewing that might change the world? What’s stopping you?

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