1. Ask more questions than you give answers.
2. Surround yourself with people that you want to be like. You will become like the people you spend time with.
3. Spend more time equipping others for ministry than doing ministry yourself.
4. Keep re-casting the vision. Vision cast yesterday that is not revisited today will be forgotten tomorrow.
5. Focus on doing a few things well. Less truly is more.
6. Be a servant leader. People don't follow a title...they follow someone they know cares about them.
7. Your most important ministry is your family. Let your schedule reflect this.
8. Never make important decisions alone.
9. Do the small things well. Excellence is found in the details.
10. Say "thank you" to your volunteers every week.
11. You will get hurt in ministry. Don't get bitter or try to get even.
12. Don't focus on being successful. Focus on being faithful.
13. Great teams are built one person at a time. Invite people to join your team every single week.
14. Never stop growing. Always be reading, asking questions and stretching.
15. Always be thinking about how you can influence parents. If you really want to change a child's life, you have to influence his or her parents.
16. Provide first-time guests with an exceptional experience and they will return.
17. One of the best things you can develop is your people skills.
18. Focus on being "productive" rather than being "busy."
19. Evaluate...evaluate...evaluate...all the time.
20. Stay humble. Always be aware of what you still don't know.
21. Find a pace you can maintain for the long haul. It's a marathon, not a sprint.
22. Find your identity in Christ, not in your ministry.
23. Learn to lead adults. You can't succeed in children's ministry if you can't lead adults.
24. Make change a process instead of a surprise. Bring people along. Timing is everything.
25. Your passion will determine the passion level of the ministry. Lead the way.
Your turn. What other advice would you give children's ministry leaders? Share with everyone in the comment section below.
