A Noble Plan

The qualities of initiative, diligence, creativity, wisdom and enthusiasm are nurtured by good leadership in the home. Good leadership requires planning and preparation that involves those who will be doing the work. The greater the involvement the greater will be the commitment. I use what I call a Noble Plan to involve my children in the process of developing chores. It includes five elements that cover the vital issues and clarifies the expectations.

1. God’s Will Be wise and consider the latter end. What are your desired results?

• What will success look like?
• What will failure look like?

2. God’s Way What are the principles and commands I must follow and not break?

• What are the things a child needs to ask before doing?
• What are the things you would like your child to recommend before doing?
• What are the things you would like your child to do and report back the results to you immediately?
• What are the things you would like your child to do and report back issues, or results on a routine basis?
• What are the things your child has the freedom to take initiative in, be diligent at, and exercise their own creativity and wisdom to accomplish?

3. God’s Resources What are the resources you will need to accomplish God’s Will?

• What training will a child need to accomplish this chore?
• What tools will a child need to do this chore effectively and efficiently?
• What people can help this child when they need assistance?

4. God’s Accountability How will we measure progress?

• Who will do what by when?
• What will we use as a measurement to show progress?
• When will we check progress?
• How will we handle failure?

5. God’s Consequences What will be the consequences if we succeed or fail?

• What are the natural consequences if a child successfully does their chores?
• What are the rewards a child will gain for doing their chores successfully?
• What are the natural consequences if a child fails to do their chores?
• What will be the applied consequences when a child is fails to do their chores successfully?

People are free to choose because they have a free will, but people are not free to choose their own consequences!

My Personal Story of Chores

One of the big chores we have to deal with as a family is picking up branches leaves and sticks in our yard. We have five acres of woods and two of those need grooming. In this past year we have experienced a tornado, a record-breaking ice storm, and a 15-inch snowfall, which has left our yard full of broken limbs. Fortunately this year I am better equipped to handle it because I learned a few years ago in the aftermath of another ice storm that the same tools I used in business would work with young children. I had a half day at home before leaving for a business trip and we had a large crowd of company coming the day I returned home so I needed to get the whole yard cleaned up before I left. As I came down for devotions with this overwhelming feeling I thought about having a meeting just like I would have if a crisis situation occurred at work.

I sat my children down and used their white board easel to draw a picture of our home from an aerial view and asked the children what they thought God’s Will for our yard would be. They responded by saying, “Our yard would be all cleaned up and we would put all the sticks on the burn pile.” I went through the five elements of a Noble Plan and collaborated with my little children who were at the time ages 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, and 10. I asked them what they thought would be the best way to clean it up, should we do it as individuals or as a team. My youngest began singing a song about teamwork, which they had learned, at character camp, so we outlined a plan on which sections of the yard we would do in priority order.

I next asked them what equipment would we need. I already knew the answer but the key was to get them involved. My seven year old son responded with an answer and said he would go next door and get it all from Grandpa’s storage garage. I then asked, “Who will do what job?” Each child picked a responsibility, three of them would rake, two would pick up larger sticks, and Josiah would go around picking up the piles with a yard cart. We also decided on how quickly we could do it and set a goal time to complete the task. I then asked, “What they thought would be the best reward for accomplishing it?” My children weren’t sure so I suggested we open a family Christmas present early that they would all enjoy as a family.

Once we finished with planning I saw a big grin on my wife’s face and she let me know how pleased she was with my leadership. She confessed later that she had been wondering when I was going to use all this leadership expertise I had acquired from running a business – for the good of the family. The greatest part of this whole process was the joy we had working together, we were all in agreement and therefore committed to doing what we agreed to do. I have often made the comment that “Keeping children focused on completing a chore is like herding cats.” This day however I realized that when I do my part in leading, my children are amazingly productive.

We were able to turn what is typically a 2-3 day job for myself into a two hour job for all of us. I had underestimated my children’s ability and only when I was backed up against a wall was I willing to test my own leadership skills and their character and competence. I have never forgotten that day and it propelled me to a new level of character and competence in family leadership. When it was all finished and we opened the present, my children told me, “The greatest present was the joy they experienced when I was working by their side with gentleness and kindness.” It was everything my wife had been telling me was possible but I had not listened until that day when I needed their help so badly.

Just recently my son was balking at doing his chore of cleaning the wood floors. We had a courageous conversation as family concerning chores and came to some amazing conclusions. When one person refuses to do their chores, then the rest of the children don’t feel it is fair to have to do theirs and lose all motivation to take initiative, etc. I shared with them the five qualities they could develop if they took chores seriously and what it would do for them later in life. We did a verbal noble plan for each child and I took longer with my son.

I realized I had not properly equipped and trained him for the job, he was unsure of what was expected of him. Once we got clarity about what was lacking we made a special trip to the local DIY hardware store and bought the necessary tools that a boy would enjoy using to do the job. My son has taken ownership in this area of jurisdiction and has his own tools to do it like a man would want to do it. Managing a home is more than setting up a list of chores, it is about the leadership competence and character we display as we train and equip our children to be mighty in Spirit. My little daughter Savannah, after completing some yard work, gave me a report card on my leadership when she stated, “Daddy, your getting more and more gentle with us and it makes being with you a lot of fun.” I realized this is most true when I am enjoying a vital daily walk with God, whose gentleness has made me great. (See Psalm 18:35)

“The leaders of the future will be askers, not tellers.” – Peter Drucker

Chores Part 1: A Key Factor to Success

Chores Part 3: Maintaining the Momentum

Chores Part 4: Six Pointers to Keep in Mind

Resources available through IBLP IBLP Store

Posted by Chris Hogan on Friday, March 16, 2007 at 12:21 PM