We spend so much time talking about how to build great teams—casting vision, creating culture, setting clear expectations. I’ve taught on these things for years, and they absolutely matter. But what we often don’t talk about is the stuff that breaks teams. Not the big, obvious issues… but the small, subtle habits that quietly erode culture and morale.
I call these team killers, and I’ve paid a lot of “dumb tax” learning them the hard way.
This is the first in a three-part series, and today’s team killer is something I’ve seen happen in almost every growing organization. Gaps.
What Are Gaps?
Gaps show up when a task or responsibility doesn’t clearly belong to anyone. It’s not in a job description. It’s not assigned to a person. It just… exists. And in growing churches or departments, gaps naturally multiply. More people, more complexity, more stuff that needs doing—but no clear owner.
That’s when your gap-filling team members show up. These are the people who just get stuff done. They see a need, and they jump in. No complaining, no spotlight. Just ownership and servant-heartedness.
Sounds great, right? It is—until it isn’t.
A Real-Life Example: The Trash Can
At one church I served at, we had a trash can in a shared office area. One of those common spaces everyone uses but no one owns. Every time I walked by it, it was overflowing with coffee cups, paper, and food wrappers.
So one week, I decided to run an experiment: I did nothing. Just watched.
Day after day, the trash piled up.
Eventually, one of our team members quietly took it out. Problem solved, right?
Over the next few months, I noticed the trash was magically emptied on a regular basis. I assumed the team had worked out a rotation, or maybe facilities picked it up. Turns out, it was that same team member. Every. Single. Time.
And it wasn’t just the trash. They were also restocking the printer, cleaning the counter, and organizing supplies—none of it was technically their job. They just couldn’t stand the gap, so they filled it.
Until one day… they quit. Burned out. Unseen. Frustrated. And the worst part? No one else even realized what they had been carrying.
Why Gaps Kill Teams
Gap fillers are gold. But if we let them carry unspoken responsibilities alone—without acknowledgement, support, or shared ownership—they will eventually burn out.
Gaps kill teams because they:
- Create hidden workloads that no one tracks
- Reward silence instead of communication
- Cause resentment when one person always “picks up the slack”
- Lead to burnout when good intentions go unrecognized
How to Mind the Gaps
So, what can we do as leaders?
- Identify the Gaps: Ask your team: “What are you doing that’s not technically your job but you do anyway because no one else is?” Those answers will open your eyes.
- Thank the Fillers: Don’t wait until they quit. If someone’s been silently carrying something, acknowledge it. Publicly, privately—whatever it takes. Let them know you see them.
- Assign the Task: If it matters, make it official. Assign a name to it. Or create a schedule. Gaps need owners—otherwise, they’ll always fall to the same faithful few.
Building healthy teams isn’t just about what we start doing—it’s also about what we stop allowing. Gaps might seem harmless, but they wear people down.
Mind the gaps. Name the gaps. Share the gaps. And don’t let a trash can be the thing that costs you a great team member.
Stay tuned for Part 2.
If you want to learn more from Dennis Choy, check out his class from FILO 2025 – “FILO 2025 Lunch & Learn: How to Work with Different Personalities and Still Be Friends.”
