I began as Lead Pastor at my current church, West Park Church in London, Ontario four years ago. When I started I faced a steep learning curve. I not only needed to understand a new church culture, but a new country culture as well. So, I developed what I called my six month on-boarding plan to best discern what needed to be done early on. If you are starting a new ministry role or are simply starting a new ministry project, if you’ll put in place these 5 essentials as you begin, your chances of success will increase. In this post I state those 5 essentials.

A book that’s helped me create my plan and one that I recommend for pastors transitioning to a new church is, The First 90 Days: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter by Michael D. Watkins. He also has an iPhone app as well. The book is a must read. He suggests that before you implement a change, you must make sure you have these five supporting pillars in place.

• Awareness. A critical mass of people aware of the need for change.
• Diagnosis. You know what needs to be changed and why.
• Vision. You have a compelling vision and a solid strategy.
• Plan. You have the expertise to put together a detailed plan.
• Support. You have developed a sufficiently strong group of supporters to implement your plan.

So the next time you plan a new ministry initiate, consider these 5 pillars.

What other pillars would you add?

Related posts:

• Strategic Planning for Dummies
• 7 Benefits of an Overlooked Planning Tool

Reference: Watkins, Michael D. (2013-04-23). The First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter (Kindle Locations 1711-1715). Harvard Business Review Press. Kindle Edition