As coalition staff, it can be really easy to become overwhelmed by all that needs to be done with the coalition. You are likely in a staff position because you are passionate about the work of the coalition. You realize that there are so many needs and opportunities that it is difficult to say “no” to anything. Even though it is really difficult to prioritize and clarify staff roles, it is essential for you and for the coalition! Join me this week as I provide three steps to take to get clear on roles for coalition staff.
Identify interests
Identify areas of interest and passion. What topics or types of activities get your staff particularly excited? What are those things that they enjoy doing most? Who are the people they enjoy serving the most? Spend some time encouraging your staff to reflect on these interests and passions and schedule time to discuss them as a group.
Recognize skills
Consider your staff members strengths and areas of expertise. What are they particularly good at doing? What experience or expertise do they have? When you combine their interests and passions with what they are good at doing, this will provide great clarity in the best role(s) for them to play. Alternatively, if you are consistently asking staff to do things in areas of weakness or outside their expertise or skill set, it will be frustrating for everyone. If you want more resources on this, I recommend reading the book Free to Focus by Michael Hyatt.
Be realistic
This is often easier said than done. One of the best ways to practice being realistic is to take your best estimate of how long something will take and add twice as much time to it! 🙂 Also, when you have new staff or student interns, it is wise to add even more time to accomplishing tasks. You may experience a season where your staff are weary because you overcommitted your time. Learn from this experience and attempt to be more realistic in the next season.
So what about you? What is going to be your first step toward clarifying roles for your staff?
If you would like additional guidance on clarifying roles for staff, download my new free worksheet, Clarifying Roles and Responsibilities.
Photo by Tyler Lastovich on Unsplash
