In my last post about the Small Group Tool Box, we discussed the first tool, parameters, and how to use it to lay the ground work for any type of small group.
I opened with a heads up for those (probably a majority, to be honest!) who don’t intend to ever lead a small group. Guess what? You might have greater need of this tool box than you think! Even if you never lead a small group, you may still be a very integral part of getting a small group going.
One person may be excellent at setting parameters while another is skilled with our next tool: planning. Neither one may actually want or have the skills to lead the group, but they can definitely play a part.
Planning: Setting the Details
Planning fits hand-in-hand with setting parameters, but it steps up on the specifics. Once you have the parameters set, you can begin to lay down the details of what your small group will look like session after session.
A small group planner will have a handful of skills that help them rise above the chatter of ten gazillion preferences (an especially mind-boggling reality when you’re only dealing with a small group of people!) and find a solid, consistent format for the small group. Here are those skills:
1. Ability to see big but plan small
This skill comes in handy when trying to evaluate all sorts of things, from the specific resources being used to the meeting schedule.
“Seeing big” means that a planner is able to to recognize that this is just one small group. There will be other small groups. That means that other time frames can be available another time, as can other resources and plans. This understanding enables a planner to accomplish things like picking a meeting date and time or selecting a specific resource knowing that this is simply one opportunity out of many.
2. Ability to communicate a plan
Great ideas often fall apart due to lack of communication. A small group planner is able to recognize when approval is needed for material, when and how to reserve meeting space, how to communicate information to attendees or to anyone responsible for the organizational system.
Sometimes the communication needs are very simple. One person can set a time and place, pick a resource, and openly invite. But, more often than not, there are more people who need to be involved. Many small groups are subsets of a larger organization. This is true whether it’s a group of students (high school, college, whatever) meeting on a school campus, a Bible study group utilizing church resources, or even a small group of friends regularly meeting at a local coffee shop. Other people and organizations are involved, and sometimes making assumptions about availability can lead to unnecessary chaos.
A planner learns the skills necessary to communicate with all of them rather than simply throwing a group together and assuming that everything is going to fall into place around them.
3. Ability to communicate and work within the parameters
A small group planner cannot work outside of the overall concept. The planner is simply implementing the answers to the parameter questions. If the same person sets the parameters and makes the plans, that works beautifully. But if it’s two (or more) different people, there can be situations of disagreement.
The reality is that the planner is not there to assess the validity of a small group choice. The planner’s job is to take the ideas set by the parameter questions and turn them into a workable plan. Will some shifts have to take place to hash out details? Yes, without a doubt. But, ultimately, the planner is working out existing details and communicating the specifics of those details to all involved.
There are many people beautifully skilled at taking ideas and turning them into reality. If that’s you, this is your ideal Small Group Tool Box compartment! It may not sound glamorous or feel particularly fun and exciting (although it can be so incredibly satisfying to see a plan come together), but having the ability to hash out a plan is essential for taking an idea and turning it into a reality.
Next time we’ll get to the final tool in the box: presentation. Stay tuned!
