FIRST IN LAST OUT
STOP COMPLAINING. START LEADING | Todd Elliott
Photo by Gabriel Avalos on Unsplash
“ Will you join in the grumbling, or will you rise above it?”
If you’ re reading this, chances are you know what it feels like to live in the booth; the hum of gear, the quiet shuffle of cables, the glow of screens. It’ s the space many of us chose because we love being behind the scenes. But here’ s the truth: when you step into leadership, you don’ t get to stay in the background. People are watching whether you want them to or not.
WHEN LEADERSHIP FINDS YOU I chose the production life to be in the background, and I am uncomfortable when people start looking at me- in more ways than one. Can you relate? But leadership has a way of finding us. The moment we are responsible for more than our own task list, people will follow our lead, for better or worse.
And some of the most defining leadership moments happen in the quietest ways. A decision from above we don’ t agree with. A frustrated team. A side conversation that turns negative. In those moments, we all face a choice: blend in and grumble or rise above and lead.
THE GRAVITY OF GRUMBLING Here’ s the hard truth: left on its own, every team drifts toward disorder. Physics even tells us so as the 2nd law of thermodynamics says: an isolated system will naturally decline into chaos. The same goes for culture.
That’ s why leaders matter. It takes intentional energy to point a team in a positive direction. Philippians 2:14 – 16 puts it this way:“ Do everything without grumbling or arguing … Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky.”
When we choose encouragement over complaint, we create space for our team to shine.
“ Your team is always watching— not just how production gets done, but how you respond in every moment.”
LEADERSHIP SHAPES CULTURE Whether we realize it or not, we are always shaping team culture. If we want our volunteers to greet the band, they need to see us doing it first. If we want energy during rehearsal, we need to be bringing energy into the room.
“ Once we’ ve figured out what our mission and values are … talk about these things all the time.” Culture doesn’ t form in a single conversation, it’ s built week after week, in the things we say, model, and repeat.
The more we lift our team’ s eyes beyond the
task at hand, the more they’ ll begin to believe their work is part of something much bigger than running cues and managing gear.
YOU’ RE THE LEADER, NOW LEAD At FILO, we believe Church Technical Artists have one of the most unique callings in the Church. Yes, we mix sound, program lights, run lyrics. But more than that, we lead people. We carry influence. And how we all use that influence matters.
Every Sunday, our team is watching. Will we add fuel to the fire of negativity, or model a different way? Will you drift into chaos, or pour in the energy to create health?
Todd Elliott Todd is a writer, speaker, and technical artist in the local church and the Founder & President of FILO, which stands for First In, Last Out. Formerly the Technical Arts Director at Willow Creek Community Church, he started FILO in 2015 to help other technical artists become more effective so that the local church can be more effective.
FILO was born out of his own need as a technical artist in the local church to be in community with other church tech people, to learn new ways of doing things and to be inspired that what he did mattered. The more FILO-type people he met, the more convinced he was that these are things we all need. That’ s why FILO exists: to equip, encourage and inspire technical artists in the local church to become the best version of ourselves.
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