Why More Resources Might Be the Worst Thing for Your Leadership

And how to keep innovating—especially when things are “good enough.”

Do you have everything you need to do your job?

Let me rephrase that…

Should you?

It’s a question I encourage leaders and teams to ask often, especially leaders responsible for people, departments, or ministry areas. The logic seems sound: if you don’t have the tools to succeed, you cannot fully succeed.

But over the years, I’ve discovered something a little more uncomfortable—and a lot more critical—for leaders to wrestle with:

Having everything you need might quietly kill your innovative edge.

Let me explain.

The Church That Wasn’t Supposed to Make It

When I first arrived at Watermarke Church, we were a hand-to-mouth organization. Every dollar was spoken for. Every offering mattered. We weren’t just lean—we were threadbare.

We scratched and clawed and cobbled things together for a year.

It was hard.

But strangely… it was also fun. And fast. And full of possibility.

Our constraints became creative fuel. Our lack of resources demanded resourcefulness. And without realizing it, our church developed an innovation culture—because it had to.

Then everything changed.

The Day the Checks Started Clearing

Two years in, we officially became a campus of North Point Ministries. We didn’t get a blank check, but we did suddenly have staff support, strategic guidance, better equipment, better spaces, and a much deeper bench of leadership.

We got healthier. We got better. But something else quietly shifted:

We stopped being scrappy.

It’s hard to notice this erosion at first because improvement feels a lot like innovation. Better systems, better gear, better people. But improvement is mostly about optimization. Innovation is about reinvention.

I didn't realize it then, but I see it now: The less we needed to innovate, the less we innovated.

Innovation Isn't Just a Skill—It's a Scarcity Mindset

I used to think a lack of resources prevented innovation. In some ways, that's true. You can’t build a new kids' space without drywall and ductwork.

But in more critical ways, scarcity was our secret weapon.

It made us try things that weren’t safe.
It made us listen harder to our community.
It forced us to ask, “How can we make this work anyway?”

I’m convinced: The more resourced you are, the less innovative you’re required to be.

But here’s the good news. Innovation doesn’t have to die even if your resources multiply.

Whether you're flush with resources or desperately underfunded, here are five ways to keep your innovative spirit alive: