Welcome to Episode 7 of the Groups Leadership Podcast! Today Chris Short – the host of this podcast and Executive Team Leader at Real Life Ministries, is chatting with two of the leaders from our Real Life Hayden Campus: Wayne Burnham: Associate Pastor/ Real Life Hayden Jenna Fore: Women’s Discipleship Leader/ Real Life Hayden The topic today is small group discussions, and how we as leaders can help make a group discussion truly impactful. Doing this requires certain building blocks that promote depth and meaningful exchange. This episode explores these building blocks and provides practical tips on how to create and facilitate an impactful group discussion. By incorporating these elements, you can ensure that your group discussions are productive, engaging, and contribute to the overall relationships and spiritual growth of your group.   What are some of the elements that help create a good discussion? Group Participation Create a safe space where group members feel comfortable sharing their thoughts, feelings, and experiences. Provide opportunity to go deeper Create a space where individuals are not afraid to express their opinions and are open to receiving feedback from others. Everyone is heard Set guidelines for respectful communication and ensure everyone's voice is heard and acknowledged. People are challenged to grow Encourage group members to think critically, question assumptions, and consider different viewpoints. What are some of the things that can derail a good discussion? Unsafe environment/lack of confidentiality Overtalking/Oversharing No “I” statements Divisiveness/Gossip Listed below are some additional things our guests shared about how you as a leader can help create an environment where great discussions can take place. Be prepared Be intentional Remain curious Know your people Be Prayerful Remember, the goal of a discussion is not just to cover all the questions, but to create an atmosphere where individuals can experience growth and transformation. Let the Holy Spirit guide the conversation and trust that impactful discussions will occur. Last of all, remember that personal growth is a lifelong journey, and it may take time to see tangible results in your group. We encourage you to be patient and persevere, and be sure you recognize and celebrate the small steps your group is making along the way. You can download one of our Basic Group Templates by clicking below: Basic Group Template You can download our Small Group Guidelines by clicking below: Guidelines Bookmark Check out our “Why does my small group need guidelines?” video by clicking below: https://youtu.be/RxZtlCr6Rm4   Here are some more great tools that our leadership has made available for you to use!   Right Now Media: (The Netflix of Bible Studies)Real Life has gifted our people with a free membership to this platform! Find out more at this link.  https://app.rightnowmedia.org/en/user/reallifeministries   Real Life Resources: This digital library contains over 500 tools and resources to help both you personally and those in your group. Podcasts, videos, books, studies and much more at this link. https://realliferesources.org/ If you have any questions or suggestions for future topics, feel free to email us at realforlife@reallifeministries.com.