As part of my coaching, I routinely (about twice a year) ask my coach-ees to fill in a ‘skills competency check-up form.’ This focuses on a wide range of skills in different youth work, leadership, and management areas. It’s not, by any means, an exhaustive list, and not all these skills would apply to all roles. It does, however, give a good base reading on where someone is at, and how they might like to grow.

So, here’s your chance to try it for yourself!

The instructions are simple: On a scale of 1 (very confident) to 5 (not confident at all), how do you rate your competency with the following youth ministry skills? Place a number next to each skill.

If you’d like, you can total the sections to find out your weakest and strongest areas, and – if you absolutely must – total the overall score. But take note that although a lower score is more desirable, its designed to give an idea of how confident you are in these skill areas, not necessarily how skilled you are objectively when compared to others or your job description. (Score ranges from 93 – 465).

It’s a long list. Don’t be daunted. If you’re unsure, simply move on to the next skill. This is designed to give some idea of a few areas to work on, and a way of measuring progress in specific skill areas.

These are not listed in order of importance but are grouped with other similar skill areas and headed as such.

Leading teams

• Recruiting volunteers
• Retaining volunteers
• Inducting new volunteers
• Recruiting and managing staff / interns
• Handling disputes, conflict, and complaints
• Discipline and grievance policies
• Managing rotas
• Delegating responsibility
• Taking authority and making difficult decision
• Training and supervising others
• Pastoral care of team members
• Working knowledge of personality types and learning styles in a team
• Creating a healthy team culture
• Developing inclusive environments

Personal management

• General time management
• Setting healthy priorities
• Taking regular time off
• Effectively using holiday time
• Being a learner / attending training / reading books
• Habitual (day-to-day) organisation of tasks

Relational work with young people

• Developing new relationships
• Maintaining relationships
• Defining and maintaining healthy boundaries
• Helping young people build relationships with others
• Pastoral care of young people
• Discipling young people through mentoring
• Discipling young people through teaching
• Developing young people as potential leaders
• Developing young people as worshippers
• Helping young people process difficulties / tragedy
• Helping young people process change (schools, bereavement, exam results, future choices)
• Helping young people process identity development
• Managing difficult behaviour
• Understanding of additional educational, social, mental health needs

Communication

• Giving evangelistic messages
• Giving discipleship messages
• Public speaking generally
• Speaking to a variety of ages
• Speaking to a variety of academic abilities
• Communicating with parents
• Communicating with third parties (social services, schools, local gov., etc.)
• Communicating with line manager(s)
• Active listening
• Different media (phone/post/speaking/email/social media platforms)
• Design (flyers, logos, brand consistency – for different people groups)
• Giving reports to various groups

Working with parents

• Pastoral care of parents
• Connecting with new parents
• Handling disputes with parents
• Providing training for parents
• Managing parent’s expectations
• Keeping healthy boundaries with parents regarding their children
• Working with legal guardians such as child minders, foster parents, and adoptive parents

Third sector management

• Working understanding charity law
• Fundraising / income generation / grant management
• Account and budget management
• Networking / building partnerships
• Current and working knowledge of safeguarding laws and policies
• Current and working knowledge of health and safety laws and policies
• Working knowledge of confidentiality, data protection and GDPR for info and images
• Working knowledge of inclusively and equal opportunities
• Writing and updating risk assessments
• Developing healthy working relationships with senior staff / trustees / boards
• Working with third parties such as the police and social services
• Vision casting and strategy development
• Setting realistic goals and expectations
• Managing resources

Schools

• Giving assemblies
• Teaching lessons
• Mentoring students
• Responding to school-based tragedies and bereavement
• Working with teachers
• Working with the curriculum(s)
• Working with school timetables and calendars
• Working with enrichment and extra-curricular requirements
• Running lunchtime clubs
• Understanding of what is and isn’t allowed as a faith based organisation in school time and spaces

Event /project management

• Event conception and planning
• Working with venues
• Working legal understanding of events (people ratios, fire limits, etc.)
• Briefing and debriefing with teams
• Leading fire drills
• Working knowledge of insurance
• Promotion, publicity, PR

Spirituality

• Basic theological understanding across broad essentials (creation, Trinity, etc.)
• Exegesis/Study & Interpretation of the Bible
• Writing Bible studies
• Leading Bible studies without notes or third party resources
• Praying with young people
• Praying with team
• Teaching others to pray
• Leading/facilitating gathered worship in various styles
• Personal commitment to prayer, worship and Bible study

Photo by Cookie the Pom on Unsplash