The First 48

They say the odds of solving a murder go down drastically outside of the first 48 hours. Now, as worship leaders, you probably are not having to solve many murders, but one of the things I have found happens best within a 48-hour window is feedback. It is so important to create, establish, and maintain a culture of feedback when serving together.

I have both given and received feedback that was too early as well as too late.

When we give feedback that is too early, often we are reacting rather than responding. It is easy to speak from being held hostage by our emotions, rather than taking a moment to collect ourselves to respond with love, grace, and humility. Waiting a day or two gives us the ability to calm down, and ask ourselves if addressing this is really necessary. It gives us time to consider the individual and their story - is the most loving thing to address this, or simply let it go?

When we give feedback that is too late, we are often remembering our emotions more than the ins and outs of the experience. Bringing something up so far past the time it occurred can begin to seem petty or silly. As though you’ve been holding onto something for the purpose of hurting someone rather than healing what may have been broken.

How can you better love, serve, encourage, and equip your team by finding the sweet spot of feedback?

Creating a Culture of Feedback

In any role, feedback is essential for growth.  If we desire for ourselves and our team members to grow, we must create a consistent, and safe space to give and receive feedback.  Here are some things to consider when trying to establish a consistent and safe feedback environment:

Creating new rhythms.  If your team currently has no opportunity or rhythm to give and receive feedback, recognize that you will have to create new rhythms and patterns.  Creating a new culture, setting a new direction usually takes much longer than you would like or expect.  Don’t get discouraged, stay the course, it will pay off in the long run.

Give the why.  One of the best pieces of feedback I was ever given was ‘you have a reason and intention behind all that you’re doing with the team, but they don’t understand those reasons - walk them through the decisions you make and help them see why.’  People are often more willing to support an idea when they understand the larger purpose and intention driving the decisions.

Remove sarcasm.  Sarcasm is a cowardly way, to tell the truth.  It sets up a dynamic where people don’t understand what is honest and what is joking.  Laugh and enjoy one another, but removing sarcasm from the way you relate and interact will allow times of feedback to not be clouded by misunderstanding.

Set the time and space.  Whether it is immediately following a service, or between services, find the time, place, and time where everyone knows that feedback will occur.  This allows people to expect, and anticipate what is coming.  And avoids situations where feedback is only given when something goes catastrophically wrong.

Go first.  Invite feedback from your leaders, pastors, and the team.  Point out things you wish you would have done better, or changes you’re planning to make for the next time.  As leaders, we need to model what we want to see.

Celebrate.  Part of creating healthy rhythms of feedback is celebrating and honoring the good, not only pointing out the opportunities for improvement.  What can you celebrate in the team as a whole and the individual members?  Not just in their playing but the way they are serving, the heart behind their participation, and what God is doing in them and through them.

The team and the individual.  Some feedback needs to be given in front of the whole team, some feedback needs to be given face-to-face with the individual.  If there is a larger, deeper issue that needs to be addressed, it will always be better to cool your own emotions, and set a time with the individual outside of the regular rhythm of feedback.

Feedback is essential for growth.  Let’s serve our teams well by giving timely, honoring, consistent feedback, and inviting the same from our leaders and team.