Coaching Churches

If you are in a significant leadership role and you hate conflict, then you might want to either move down into management or seek development.  If you need the approval of the crowd then you will avoid the hard choices that will  eventually lead the organization to failure.  This HBR post delivers a clear message:

“In 25 years of working with leaders to do all the above, I have found a pattern that I share in my new book, Leading with Emotional Courage, consisting of four essential elements that all great leaders rely on to rally people to accomplish what’s important to them. To lead effectively — really, to live effectively — you must be confident in yourself, connected to others, committed to purpose, and emotionally courageous.”

Read More …

There is always some new tool to help us find our greatest strength or develop in an area of weakness.  The mistake we often make is to either lean into our strength or obsess over what we don’t do as well.  My conclusion is that both areas are important but the best approach is to be effective in all the critical path areas of leadership.  This Forbes Council post gives you that list:

“Let’s face it: We’re all engaged in a rat race. We want to make our mark, to be known for something, forever competing, chasing, challenging, outthinking, outpacing and outdoing the next guy. Why? Because if you think outside the box, it will make you stand out and make it easier to mark the territory that you wish to claim.”

Read More …

One of the most significant changes in executive leadership is moving from being the person who has all the answers to the person who knows how to ask the right questions.  In reality, this is not a diminished role for the leader but an expanded one that maximizes the potential from every leader present.  This post by Jeff Boss is a great read:

“Some of the best experiences in my life have come from perceived failure. I use the term “perceived failure” because where others see failure as a roadblock to success, I tend to see it as a pathway to get there.  Failing is about putting in your time and learning hard lessons along the way–lessons that shape you as a person and as a leader.”

Read More …

I spend my life in the world of leadership development.  I am constantly reading and listening to all of the current best practices on how to lead yourself and your teams more effectively.  The hard fact though is that knowledge is not growth.  Unless what we are learning can be applied, it will all be soon forgotten.  The priority of this post by Ken Gosnell is on execution:

“Leadership is about action. Real leaders are not afraid to take risks, make decisions and create ideas. In fact, the effective leader takes action every day to ensure the future success of an organization or a company. As Pablo Picasso is credited with saying, “Action is the foundational key to all success.”

Read More …

Because we are so busy as leaders we can confuse activity with effectiveness.  Sometimes it becomes critical to have an outside voice to help us regain perspective and create positive momentum.  I have benefited greatly from having a coach and absolutely love helping others through my executive coaching.  This Forbes post helps define the rational:

“All great athletes have coaches, so do most world-class executives. You are a leader. Growth is your job.Coaching is the most effective way to see into your blind spots, enhance your vision and reduce or remove challenging behaviors.”

Read More …