If you are part of a nonprofit or a church, then there’s a pretty good chance you have noticed a trend. To put it mildly volunteerism is down. There are a lot of things that have happened to get us to where we are currently. We could get all teary eyed over the way it used to be but that’s really not going to be of any value at all. I’m less the sit and whine type and more the let’s find a solution type, so let’s get to it.
Before we throw out a simple one – two punch of what seems to be working, it’s important to say that you first of all need to know your organization and culture. Don’t just grab something that someone else is doing and apply it assuming it will work. There has to be some sort of local cultural connection that makes it stick to your context. But there are some basic principles that I feel are transferable. Here are my two key filters when it comes to volunteerism.
Raise The Bar
The first thing I would say is that we need to raise the bar. And I know it sounds counterintuitive, but stick with me here. I look at this one like the whole chicken and egg scenario (which came first). Is it that people aren’t connecting so we lowered the bar, or we lowered the bar of expectations and now people aren’t connecting?
I think it’s a little bit of both but the lower we move the bar the less people will actually get involved. Think of it this way. When you tell a child to clean up their room, rarely will they not only clean the room but also volunteer to clean up the basement, toy room, and siblings rooms as well. We don’t usually do more than is expected. So if we keep the expectations high, then we allow a greater possibility for those we serve to stay heavily engaged.
Practically speaking, we have to set expectations for how much we want from the people we lead/serve. In the congregation I serve, we have a very clear set of expectations for everyone. The rule of the day is that everyone does something. Not everyone likes this mentality. As a matter of fact, I’ve talked to people connected to our congregation who didn’t want to get involved. They said they wanted to rest and not serve. Well unfortunately that’s not how it works. You can lessen your engagement but you can’t disconnect from service. Just not possible. Your hand can’t fall off your body for a few days because it’s tired, and still function properly. In the same way, you and I can’t disconnect from the organization where we belong and expect for all to be well forever.
We’ve even had to release people from the church because they did not see this as an important part of their lives. And to be honest, that’s ok. I’ve connected people who do not see service as important with other congregations who don’t put as high an emphasis on service as we do. And I pray that they are able to connect well in those locations!
So set the bar high and allow the people in your organization to move to a place of ownership and intentional, dedicated service.
Short Term Is Key
This is another problem I see many non profits and churches making. They make service in the organization seem like a lifelong commitment! From term limits to number of terms you’re able to serve, it just seems like we’re more interested in filling a role than actually connecting someone with their passion for the purpose of promoting their individual thriving. So we keep commitments short.
We only have two groups with terms and limits. They are our leadership team and board of elders. Aside from these two groups, we have no boards or committees or anything of the sort. Instead we have task forces or teams for the purpose of accomplishing a goal. When that goal is achieved, then they are able to go about business as usual or plug in somewhere else.
From Vacation Bible School to fall parties to trunk or treat to Christmas parade decorating, there are tons of ways a person can serve the church without standing in front of people or being a long term commitment.
Have short term service teams that are easy to onboard. This will allow people to jump on the service train at their interest and ability level and jump off the train when they need to without feeling super guilty.
I know this all sounds too simple to be true, but in the congregation I serve we have over a 90% involvement rate by those who call themselves members of the church.
Look it’s not magic and I’m not perfect at this by any means, but it’s also not impossible. Getting people involved and into service can be significantly easier than we might have imagined. It just takes reworking some definitions and reframing our mindset when it comes to volunteers!
In the next post I’ll give you a way that works wonders when it comes to seeking out and asking those volunteers that takes the pressure off of everyone. But for now step back and check your expectations and terms of involvement. Do they make it too hard to serve or not valuable enough? That’s something you can control easily.