Factfulness: The Generalization Instinct in Church Leadership

Do we really know the people in our congregations, or are we letting stereotypes cloud our judgment? This episode of the Healthy Church Staff Podcast tackles the profound implications of Hans Rosling's "generalization instinct" on church leadership. By assuming that young people are disengaged or that older adults resist change, we miss out on the rich tapestry of individual experiences and talents. Tune in as we explore how these sweeping generalizations can cause misunderstandings and missed opportunities, ultimately hindering our ability to build a truly inclusive community.

Join us as we challenge ourselves to see beyond superficial characteristics and get to know individuals on a deeper level. Hear compelling stories about the power of first impressions and how overcoming our initial biases can lead to stronger, more meaningful connections within our church community. Let’s question our assumptions, appreciate the unique gifts each person brings, and work towards a more inclusive ministry that truly values every member of our congregation.

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:07

Hi there, welcome to the Healthy Church Staff Podcast. My name's Todd Rhodes, one of the co-founders over at chemistrystaffingcom. Thanks for joining us. It's a brand new week.

Speaker 1: 0:17

If you're listening to this on the day that it's released, it's Monday and we are right in the middle of a series we've been doing on Hans Rosling's book. It's called Factfulness and we're looking at different instincts that we have in the church. If you haven't listened, I think this is a really valuable and really important series for all of us that lead in churches. Go back and listen, subscribe to the podcast. Go back and listen to last week because we're we started last week and there's 10 episodes in this series, so five were last week and then we're going to talk about five different instincts this week. Today we're going to talk about what Hans Rosling calls the generalization instinct and if you want to follow along or you're really, this podcast is piquing your interest on this whole factfulness and instinct ideas for church leaders. You can catch the book probably over at amazoncom and really probably anywhere that you order your books from. It's called Factfulness by Hans Rosling, r-o-s-l-i-n-g. So today we're talking about the generalization instinct in the church.

Speaker 1: 1:26

Now, in the church, we're not immune to this instinct. We might generalize about certain demographics, assuming that all young people are disengaged, or maybe that all older adults are resistant to change. We might even make assumptions about people based on their appearance or their background, or even their denominational background, how they grew up in church. But these generalizations, while sometimes can be based on some truth, or even a kernel of truth, they can lead to misunderstandings and missed opportunities and even some unintentional harm. So the generalization instinct can prevent us from truly seeing and appreciating individuals, and it can lead to stereotypes and prejudices, a one-size-fits-all approach to ministry that really fails to address the unique needs and gifts of each person, and it can also create barriers to connection and hinder our ability to really build a truly to connection and hinder our ability to really build a truly inclusive community in our churches. How do we overcome this generalization instinct?

Speaker 1: 2:35

Rosling suggests that we really need to put everything on the table and start to question our categories, and this is challenging because it means that we have to take a second look at our assumptions and look for differences. Looking for differences within groups that we thought were all homogeneous and seeking out similarities across groups. It means that, recognizing that individuals are complex, they're multifaceted and that generalizations rarely capture all the picture, at least the full picture right In the church. That means taking time to get to know people as individuals. Don't just lump everybody into a group. It means listening to their stories and understanding their perspectives and appreciating their unique gifts and contributions. It means resisting the urge to make assumptions based on just superficial characteristics.

Speaker 1: 3:26

That's too easy, right, just looking at somebody and sizing them up and putting them in a bucket because you don't know them. You really need to take some time to get to know them. Instead, you really need to seek to understand the deeper realities of their lives. You've never had this happen to you. It's just you and me. Can we talk? Have you ever met someone and kind of sized them up?

Speaker 1: 3:48

They say first impressions are really important, and they are. And this generalization instinct is one of the reasons why first impressions are maybe powerful and maybe almost too powerful at some point. If you ever met somebody, maybe somebody new to your church, and you only know a little piece of information, like maybe the last church that they went to and maybe it's a different theological church, so you put them in a different theological bucket. Maybe it's a church that has had some. Let's just say it's been a little bit of a dumpster fire. So you immediately put those new people at a distance, thinking they came from that church. So they were probably part of that dumpster fire. They probably had a part in that. All these things could be true, but they couldn't be further from the truth. At other times, and until you get to know people, if you just put people in those buckets initially and never get to know them, guess what, you'll never get to know them and you might really be missing out.

Speaker 1: 4:49

So here's the bottom line on this one, anyway, the generalization instinct. If you're not careful, leader, it will blind you. It will blind you to the richness and the diversity of God's creation, and we need to be mindful of our tendency to categorize and make assumptions and instead strive to see each person as unique and a beloved child of God. This goes back to something that we always told our kids, dawn and I, when they were growing up, and we say it, I say it to my team here at Chemistry Staffing as well is when we're talking to candidates and to churches, because people can be can we say it, they can be a little difficult at times. Right, this is what I've always said to my kids, and what I say to my team members now is if someone is important to God, they better be important to us, and what that means for us. Bottom line as we're talking about the generalization instinct, bottom line is that we need to not put people, not stereotype people, not put people in buckets without getting to know them.

Speaker 1: 5:54

So here's a few next steps for you to consider and, as I've been doing on the podcast, what I want to do is have you think about this throughout the day. If you're listening to this in the morning, if not, think about it as you lay in bed tonight, I guess maybe wake up at two in the morning and not be able to sleep because you got to think about this, right? Sorry, that's me, but here are some things to consider. I hope that you will consider these throughout the day. The first one is challenge your assumptions. When you find yourself making generalizations and my guess is, if you really are open, you will find yourself sometime today making some kind of generalization about someone or something. When you find yourself doing that, though, particularly making a generalization about a group ask yourself if those assumptions are really accurate or if you're just taking the easy way out and using this generalization instinct.

Speaker 1: 6:44

And then, secondly, drill down, seek out individual stories. Take time to get to know people on a personal level, maybe those people that you had set aside before but you've never really given them a chance. Take some time to get to know them. Maybe schedule a coffee date or a lunch date with somebody that fits into this category for you. Listen to their story, hear their story and start to understand their perspectives. You might really be surprised. And then, finally, as you listen to stories, practice empathy and understanding. Put yourself in somebody else's shoes and try to see the world from their perspective. You might really be surprised. So remember, the church is called to be a place of welcome and belonging for all of God's children. So let's strive to create a community where everybody feels seen and heard and valued, regardless of their background or circumstances. If people, if an individual, is important to God, he darn well better be important to us or else something's off with us.

Speaker 1: 7:44

I hope this has been helpful. Join us again tomorrow. We've got four more of these instincts that we're going to unpack this week. You can reach out to me anytime. I'd love to hear your feedback. I'd love to hear your story. If there's any way I can help, I'd love to hear your feedback. I'd love to hear your story. If there's any way I can help, I'd love to hop on a call with you. Any way I can help you or your church or your ministry with coaching or staffing or anything like that. Feel free to reach out to me anytime you can reach out at podcast at chemistrystaffingcom. All right, Until tomorrow, have a great day.