If you are anything like me, you’ve been on more Zoom calls in the past two weeks than in the previous two years. COVID-19 and the social distancing we are all living through has changed the way we work with each other. It has been quite a learning curve for me as I figure out how to keep my staff team of nine people connected, motivated, and encouraged in their work in this season.
In my research I found a few articles and practices that have helped me transition from leading in person to leading from a distance. I hope you find them helpful, too, whether you’re leading a team at work, a small group at church, a PTA committee, or a neighborhood association meeting.
Of course, the best guidance for leading and working with a team during any season comes from God’s Word. In these past few weeks, the verse that continues to come to my mind is Philippians 2:3–4:
3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. 4 Everyone should look not to his own interests, but rather to the interests of others. — Philippians 2:3–4 (CSB)
Our goal in our Zoom meetings, Slack messages, texts, and phone calls should be to glorify God and serve others. As you consider what others are thinking and feeling, you will naturally adjust your leadership to serve them well, no matter what season of life you and I find ourselves in.
