Leading a group on MKDSCPLS
Everything a group leader needs on one page. Print it, keep it beside you, and you will not need to be shown twice.
Companion to the course “Leading a Group on MKDSCPLS”. Everything below is in the platform today.
First
Three words that mean specific things
What you can see about a person depends on which of these you are to them.
| Role | How you get it | What it gives you |
|---|
| Leader | The group belongs to you. One per group. | Every member’s progress, their DNA where shared, leader notes, and the Monday email. |
| Co-leader | Set on a member’s row by the leader. | The same group view and the same notes. The group is not handed over, and the Monday email does not come to you. |
| Mentor | Somebody chose you, from a course page. | Their reflections in that one course. Nothing else in their account. |
You do not appoint yourself. A leader is given a group; a mentor is chosen. Both are somebody else’s decision, which is the point.
Getting people in
Four doors, and which one to use
| Door | Where | Use it when |
|---|
| Add a member | Groups → your group → Manage | They already have an account. Type a name, click Add. No email, no waiting. |
| Invite by email | Same box | They are not on the platform. Creates the account, joins your group, enrols them in what the group is studying, sends a temporary password. Paste a whole list separated by commas. |
| Invite a Friend | Left menu | “You would get something out of this”, rather than “join us Tuesday”. No group. |
| Assign content | Manage view | A course or reading plan to everyone at once, with your name on it. |
The asking is not on the platform. The first thing Andrew did was find his brother and bring him (John 1:41-42). Ask face to face. Ask to something finite: “Eight Tuesdays, six thirty, we are doing Character.” Ask two men at once. Send the invitation the same day, while the yes is warm.
Walking together
Three shapes, chosen on the course page before enrolling
- A chaver. Two people take it together and each sees what the other shares. Mutual.
- A mentor. One walks another through it. What the learner shares goes up; nothing comes back unless the mentor writes it.
- A recommendation. Starts them on a course and creates no relationship at all.
Your people will not find these unless you point at them. Raise it before the group starts something, not three weeks in. Start Mentoring in the menu puts you in the pool your church can draw from.
Your people
One screen, and what is on it
Groups → your group → Manage. Most leaders have never opened it.
- Where they are. How far in, and when they last did anything. Sort by this and the people who have stopped rise to the top. The bottom of that list is your next conversation.
- Discipleship DNA. Identity, Gifts, Story. Open reads what they chose to share with you.
- Safeguarding. Cleared, Expired, or Not on file. You will never see why somebody is not cleared.
- Role. Leader, co-leader or member, and the way to hand the group over.
- Click any name for that person alone: how they are wired, what you are doing together, your notes, and Reach out.
- The season. “What we are covering” holds a first meeting date and one session per week. Add a week, Extend 4 weeks, Finish the season. Men turn up to something with a shape.
- Notes belong to the leaders of that group. The member never sees them and neither do church admins.
- “Email me this list on Monday” sits under the roster. Off unless you turn it on. Quiet weeks send nothing. It goes only to the group’s leader, not co-leaders.
“Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds.” Proverbs 27:23
Who reads what
A reflection goes to one person, and it stops there
When somebody writes an answer they pick who sees it, and the platform now names that person on the screen.
- Only me means only them. Nobody reads it, including you.
- If they pick their chaver, you do not see it, even though you lead their group. That is deliberate.
- If they pick their group leader, that is you, and their chaver does not see it.
- If they pick their group, everyone in the cohort sees it.
- Church admins read only what was addressed to them, by somebody with nobody else walking with them.
This puts the weight on you. If a man writes something heavy and picks you, you are the only one who knows. Nothing is escalated and nobody is copied. That is what being trusted actually costs, and it is worth saying out loud to your group.
Multiplying
Raising the next leader out of the group you already have
- Notice with the DNA column rather than a hunch. Not the most talkative man: the one who notices who is missing.
- Make him a co-leader. The Role dropdown on his row. He gets the roster, the DNA, the notes.
- Hand him something real. One week of the season, three men to follow up, whoever has gone quiet, or one newer man to mentor.
- Put the craft in front of him. Leading Your Group, Facilitating Small-Group Discussion, How to Mentor, or the Called to Lead path.
- Hand it over. Role → Leader gives him the group and steps you down to co-leader. One click. Then start the next group.
“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.” 2 Timothy 2:2
What to do this week
- Open your group and sort by “Where they are”. Look at the bottom three.
- Click one of those names and write one note about them.
- Send one of them a message. One sentence is enough. Being noticed is the point, not the paragraph.
Start Discipling