# Where people want to grow

> What people said they would love to grow in, set against the classes, events, groups and resources your church already offers, so you can see where to start something.

For: Pastor, Admin, Owner
Canonical: https://giftwell.app/docs/growth-gaps

![Where people want to grow, on the Overview: each area with how many want it, what is offered and its state.](/docs-img/growth-gaps.png)

## What it compares

Two kinds of wanting, from the assessment:

- **Growth areas**: the choices people pick for "What would you love to grow in right now?" on the last screen, your church's own list or GiftWell's ([Settings](/docs/settings)).
- **Spirit gifts** people are hungry for and still new to (never, or once or twice).

Against everything you already offer on that topic:

- **Classes, events and conferences** on your [Resources](/docs/resources) that haven't ended, matched by their growth topics or their title.
- **Your calendar**: Planning Center Calendar, Check-Ins events and open Registrations sign-ups, and your website's event feed ([Signals](/docs/signals) reads the same calendar).
- **Planning Center groups**, matched by name and description.
- **Things to read or watch**: books, podcasts, articles and videos on your Resources.

A growth area matches on its own words and a few close ones ("Marriage" also finds couples and spouse; "A hard season or grief" also finds loss and lament), by the start of a word. Words that say who something is for, like kids or family, don't count, so a kids' training night isn't read as a parenting class. A Spirit gift matches resources tagged with that gift, and events or groups that name it.

## Gap, only reading, stretched, offered

Each area gets one state, by plain rules:

- **Gap**: people want it and nothing is offered at all.
- **Only reading**: there are books or videos, but nothing to join.
- **Stretched**: there is something to join, but more than 12 people for each class, event or group.
- **Offered**: there is something to join.

Gaps come first, then the most wanted. **Gaps** and **All** switch between the areas that need something and every area anyone picked.

## Acting on it

- **See who** opens the follow-up list filtered to the people who picked that area. Names appear only there.
- The offerings button shows what was matched, with links, so you can invite people to what already exists.
- **Add a class** opens a new resource as a course or class with the area as its growth topic. Once it is saved with a date and a place, the area stops reading as a gap and the people who picked it see it on their page.

## When it can't see everything

When Planning Center isn't connected, or a calendar or groups could not be read, the card says what it didn't check. A gap there may be on a calendar GiftWell couldn't read, so check before you start something new.

## Who sees what

- Pastors, admins and owners see it on the Overview. Leaders and viewers don't.
- It is counts only. A pick is counted only from people who shared with the team, and a Spirit gift only from people who also agreed to keep it, the same as on [Insights](/docs/insights-on-overview).
- Groups are read by name, description and schedule. Who is in a group is never read.
- Nothing here contacts anyone or writes to Planning Center.
- AI agents and [Ask AI](/docs/ask-ai) can read the same comparison with *get-growth-gaps* (pastors and up).