Global Leadership Summit GroupLife Insights Day 2

Last Thursday and Friday I had the privilege of attending the Global Leadership Summit yesterday. It’s an annual event for me and I’ve only missed a few of them since it began in 1995. If it’s not an annual event for you…it should be. The GLS is always inspiring and refreshing.

Here are my highlights from Day 1 at the Global Leadership Summit.

Friday’s speakers were Horst Schulze, Sheila Heen, Brian Houston, Sam Adeyemi, Liz Wiseman and Craig Groeschel.

Although every speaker had highlights, there were several that particularly pertain to small group ministry and our work as small group pastors and champions.

Here are my grouplife highlights:

Sheila Heen’s talk on feedback might have been the most unexpectedly applicable to what we do. Heen, the co-author of Thanks for the Feedback, has spent two decades at the Harvard Negotiation Project specializing in our most difficult conversations—where disagreements are strong, emotions run high and relationships become strained.

I took furious notes, tweeted a ton of great one-liners, and ran over to the resource center to buy the book (only to find it already sold out).

The primary takeaway for me during Heen’s session was how essential feedback is to spiritual growth:

1. “When you ask for and invite feedback, you will accelerate your professional and spiritual growth.”
2. “Appreciation keeps us motivated, Coaching helps us get better, Evaluation lets us know where we stand”
3. “God’s love for us in nutshell: God accepts us just as we are right now and commands us to learn and grow.”
4. “In order to receive feedback well you need to learn to see yourself clearly.”
5. “What’s one thing you see me doing – or failing to do – that you think I should change?”
6. “Learning to give and receive feedback is what leadership and the Christian walk is all about.”
7. “There are 2 human needs: (1) The need to learn and grow and (2) the need to be accepted or respected or loved the way we are now.”
8. “The fastest way to change the feedback culture in an organization is for the leaders to become better receivers.”

I found myself again and again thinking, “Feedback is essential to spiritual growth. How can I include the practice of feedback in our discipleship pathway?”

Craig Groeschel’s talk was very powerful but one specific line was a game-changer:

“You may be one relationship away from changing the course of your destiny.”

For you and me and the men and women involved (and uninvolved) in our ministries…is this not a game-changing idea?

If you missed them, here are my grouplife highlights to Day 1 at the Global Leadership Summit.