Volunteers 1.0

How to develop committed, competent volunteers.

I need to confess something to you that I'm not proud of but unfortunately it's a fact in my youth ministry experience. I struggle with being a "Lone Ranger".

I went through years of youth ministry doing it on my own, with the help of many volunteers around me, yet still doing it by myself.

I've come to realize that developing leaders is an art form. I had no idea that it requires a lot of work and commitment from me as the lead youth worker.

Here are a couple of steps I've learned about volunteerism  and building my volunteer teams with wisdom:

1. You are not desperate for the wrong volunteers.
2. It's easier to say "no" to a potential volunteer than it is to remove them later.
3. Don't answer for them. (ask them and let them say "no" before you answer for them).
4. ASK. If you don't have volunteers, you are not asking or making needs known.

Next Week: Volunteer Process

Jeff Smyth is a youth worker who has been involved in both the local church and non-profit areas of Canada for more than 15 years. Jeff lives in Toronto with his wife Heather and son Nathan.Connect with Jeff online: ThinkYouthMinistry.com, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+