Don’t Judge Me! You’ve recruited, begged for help. Now, when that operator shows up, don’t be afraid to judge them. Check references. Make sure they measure up. Can you fire a volunteer? Well, if they don’t show up, walk off with headphones, sneak up into the tech fridge at other times during the week to “refresh” themselves, or just have a generally critical and stinky attitude towards the “talent”… sure!
Who says you can’t judge whether someone deserves more or less responsibility? If you were looking for someone to babysit your kids you would most certainly judge them. Just be sure to genuinely try to help direct them to another area where they may be able to serve your church, otherwise someone else may miss out on that blessing. Unless, you judge them to be a curse. In that case, you may want to give a heads up to the leadership if there is a blatant issue that needs to be looked out for if they attempt to serve in another area. As long as they are a genuine believer, I tend to think there is SOMEwhere they will be a good fit though.
Check (and ask for) References!
Just because someone shows up and says, “I was a sound guy for a Third Day show”, doesn’t mean you should take their word for it. Ask for a reference you can check out before you turn your mix over to them. Maybe they meant, “I once ran monitors for my buddies’ band that opened for Third Day in 1994 one time”. Or… maybe what that meant was, “I once answered a call for volunteers to help with load in for a Third Day show on the radio”.
A Little Leaven…. (Galatians 5:9)
Man, there are plenty of critics. Be careful that someone’s public claim of a “servant’s heart”, is not actually a secret desire to right act out on their private agenda . Several times a year I get emails from people just livid about poor sound, video, or lighting issues. We are in a 110’ x110’ gymnatorium, with LOTS of reflective surfaces, a poorly designed exploded JBL cluster, with a 45 piece orchestra and a 100 voice choir mixed in with a “blended” contemporary praise band. There is plenty to complain about. The point is, I have had no shortage of those who aimed to “fix” this with their “expertise” (pushing a fader a different direction). Bitter people don’t make good tech artists.
See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no "root of bitterness" springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; (Hebrews 12:15)
You're Fired?
Related to this, we came up with a “team commitment card” that our whole team physically signs off on that in one way or another hits on these criteria. That way, if it becomes necessary to intervene in a situation we can just pull that card out and ask, “is this your signature?” Then, it becomes clear that they have disqualified themselves, and it is not you that has branded them “disqualified”, or “rejected”. So, really, you shouldn't ever actually have to "fire" a volunteer. If they recognize they haven't come through on their commitment, its pretty cut and dry. In fact, I try to give volunteers LOTS of grace. Typically I will just talk through the issue first and define it clearly for them. Then, if that doesn't bring results, I will give someone a quarter off the schedule, and give them another chance if it looks like they have a genuine servant's heart. This can go a long way, even with someone who seems to be wholeheartedly bent against cooperating. That kind of uncooperative attitude is REALLY rare genuine believers though. if all the the other attempts to reconcile fail, then you have to follow through and send them on their way. Do yourself AND that volunteer a favor and tell them you will no longer be scheduling them for the team, and tell them exactly why.
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