As many of you know, part of my calling is to Coach other pastors & leaders across the country. Today I want to introduce you to...

Today, I am reposting an article written by one of the pastors I coach in Newark, Delaware, Mark Johnston. Mark is one of the brightest, passionate and articulate communicators I've heard in along time. Our coaching relationship began 2 years ago and in that time, I've seen Mark grow & expand as a leader. The church he leads, "The Journey" has also gained incredible traction in that time as well.

 

Mark & I meet monthly face-to-face on Tokbox.com for about an hour. Mark has also participated in my Next Level Coaching 1.0 Virtual Coaching Group.

 

You can follow Mark's blog at: 

 

http://yourjourney.typepad.com/mark_johnston/

 

Their Church's Website is: http://www.YourJourney.tv

I highly recommend listening to his podcasts... brilliant.

I hope you enjoy this article he wrote on "Coaching."

 

 

Send Me In, Coach

I’m not very athletic.  Okay, I’m not even slightly athletic.  Consequently, I didn’t have much of a chance growing up to interact with a coach.  (I tried out for the basketball team once, in seventh grade.  The coach was kind… but honest.) 

It wasn’t until much later that I began to understand the role of coaching in areas of life other than sports; and it wasn’t until a few years ago that I began to realize the explosive value coaching can bring.

Like you, I’m sure, I have some degree of talent – but I’m not even close to the top of the pile.  And along with my average abilities I also bring lots of naiveté, insecurity, bad habits, wrong attitudes, and ineffective tendencies to the table.  Coaching has helped me tackle (*gratuitous sports reference) all of these: systematically and much more effectively than I could have on my own.

Here’s what I’m learning about coaching:

• A coach doesn’t have to be an all-star player.  On any great sports team, most of the players can out-run, out-tackle, out-hit, or out-pitch their coach.  A coach isn’t just someone who’s great at the game, it’s someone who’s great at pointing out where you are great (and not so great) at the game.  The best coaches are people who blend analysis, encouragement, and discipline into every interaction in a way that leaves you informed, motivated, and determined to change.  When you’re looking for a coach, don’t just pick the person with the biggest successes; pick someone with admirable successes and a proven ability to train others.  You’re not choosing a coach you can brag about to your friends, but someone who can help you grow.
• The best coaches have a niche.  That’s why you’ll usually need several.  I asked one of my pastoral coaches once, “So, what are you doing to grow spiritually?”  His response?  “Probably the same things you’re doing.”  He’s still a great coach for church leadership, but I needed to look somewhere else for the specific spiritual growth stuff I was craving in that moment.  There’s nothing wrong with that!  If you play football and basketball, you probably won’t have the same coach for both (unless your school has some serious budget problems.)  Chances are good that no one person will be able to help you seek excellence in every area at once.  One of my goals this year is to find a parenting coach.  Don’t just seek out a coach, seek out coaches.
• Coaching only reaches maximum effectiveness when it’s paid forward.  I’ve experienced coaching for a few years now, but it’s only over the past several months that I’ve started coaching others.  I’m hugely humbled by the opportunity to spend monthly intentional time with a handful of people who are seeking insight, accountability, and support as they pursue leadership and ministry.  There’s something potent about this, about closing the loop – it perpetuates the growth you’re experiencing.  Look for people you can download from; and then look for people you can upload to.  It will take coaching to a whole new level for you.

I’m not good enough and I don’t have long enough to accomplish everything God has called me to accomplish.  That’s why I need coaching.  How about you?

“Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come” (I Timothy 4:8 – NLT).

Dimension #3: The Storyteller

This week, we're looking into what Michael Gerber calls the 4 Dimensions of the Entrepreneurial Personality. The 3rd Dimension could be my favorite because it is: The Storyteller.

No vision will ever come to reality unless an Entrepreneur becomes great at telling the story. People cannot and will not connect with a vision without a story. It's just that simple. Here are a few thoughts on telling your story:

1. A leader in a start up has to work hard at telling the story in a compelling and concise way. As my friend, Mike Ash, likes to say, "No one likes to hear your story like you do." And it's true. The danger in telling the story of the vision of your start up is that you will go into too much detail because you think everyone likes to hear it.

2. Don't share too few details. The other side of the pendulum is to leave out too much detail and consequently not move the emotions of the listener. Every great leader knows how to incorporate just the right amount of emotion and detail in telling the story.

3. Practice telling the story. Tell everyone. Tell the 3 minute version, the 30 second version and the 30 minute version. the only way to get good at telling the story of your vision is to practice, practice practice... and...

4. Critique yourself. The greatest leaders of start ups are watching how listeners respond while they are telling the story of their start up. Make a mental note when an audience looks uninterested or glazed over. Note when they are completely engaged or moved emotionally and then critique yourself afterward. It's the only way to get better.

? How well do you tell the story of your start up? ? Is it compelling or dry? ? What response do you get from your hearers?

Tomorrow we will look at the final dimension of the Entrepreneurial Personality. It's probably the most important... by a long shot!

Matt

Dimension #1: The Dreamer

The first of the four dimensions of the Entrepreneurial Personality as described in Michael Gerber's new book, "Awakening the Entrepreneur Within" is The Dreamer.

Every great church, organization or business begins as a Dream. And in the Dream State, they are amazingly fragile. A Dream can be crushed, shattered or broken with just the slightest bit of pessimism or dissent. Here are a few of my own thoughts on The Dream that we Dreamers often dream:

1. Protect your dream. In the early stages of a start up dream, you've got to be very careful who you share your dream with. Inadvertently, most people will crush a dream without even intending to. The reason is, "People like the status quo." And any real dream always threatens or challenges the status quo. This is precisely why most people are not dreamers.

2. Surround yourself with Dream Expanders, not Dream Killers in the early stages. Chances are you have a couple of people in your life that are Dream Expanders. In the early stages of your dream, find those people and paint clear expectations for them. Stay up late "Dreaming" together and expanding the dream. I can remember no small amount of Smarties and Mountain Dew that was consumed in the early stages of many of my dreams.

3. Recognize the difference between Daydreams and Real Dreams. Not every dream we dreamers dream is a dream worth chasing. One of the most mature things a leader can do is learn to recognize the difference between a Daydream and a Real Dream.

4. Real Dreams consume us. When you find a Real Dream, you'll know it, because over an extended period of time, the dream will eventually consume you. It will become the only thing you can think about. It will keep you up at night, and it will spread. Suddenly others around you will start asking you when you're going to do something about your dream. In that moment, you'll know you're probably on to something big.

? Are you a Dreamer? ? Do you have a dream that is consuming you? ? Who are the 2 people you can share your dream with that you trust to expand it and not crush it?

* Share your dream with those people in the next 48 hours.

Tomorrow we'll look at the 2nd Dimension of the Entrepreneurial Personality,

Talk to you then,

Matt