by Gary Reinecke | Jan 30, 2017 | Uncategorized |
How many times have you bought a highly recommended book just to let it collect dust on your shelf?
One of those books for me has been “The Fifth Discipline” by Peter Senge. This book has been and continues to be a strong proponent for creating a culture of coaching within an organization, whether it be a business, a church or mission agency. How is that you ask?
Let me explain the five disciplines of healthy organizational life according to Senge.
- Personal Mastery – is the discipline of continually clarifying and deepening our personal vision, of focusing our energies, of developing patience, and seeing reality objectively.
- Mental Models – are deeply ingrained assumptions, generalizations, or even pictures or images that influence how we understand the world and how we take action.
- Shared Vision – involves the skills of unearthing shared “pictures of the future” that foster genuine commitment and enrollment rather than compliance.
- Team Learning – starts with “dialogue,” the capacity of members of a team to suspend assumptions and enter into a genuine “thinking together.”
- Systems Thinking – integrates the disciplines, fusing them into a coherent body of theory and practice.
With these as a framework for healthy team life, contemplate how the following might enhance your team.
- If you could help people continually see reality objectively.
- If you could challenge team members unpack their mental models.
- If you could engage people in a shared vision.
- If you could foster a value for team learning.
- If you could integrate these disciplines in a systematic way in your team…
What difference would it make?
I want to challenge you to pick-up the book. If it is on your shelf and you have already read it, browse the titles and subtitles or take note of text you highlighted. Now reflect on the points above and envision how the five disciplines might impact your team, organization, or ministry.
by Gary Reinecke | Jan 20, 2017 | Uncategorized |
The hard work of coaching requires the coach to slow down, go below the surface and uncover key issues.
Not too long ago I was meeting with a pastoral leader who wanted help supervising a new staff member. The new staff member struggled with feedback. They winced when it was given and quick to excuse or diminish the helpful insights. On top of that, he continued repeating the same mistakes. I had several ideas swirling around in my head but I stopped, challenged and chose to remain present.
Then I asked him the following:
- What was the source of the staff member’s insecurity?
- What had the pastoral leader tried to help him receive feedback?
- What had worked in his past experience?
- What strategies could he brainstorm?
- What would he do?
Receiving feedback is a learned skill. Helping someone grow in this area can be a game changer. What are some ways you have helped those you coach exercise this important leadership muscle?
by Gary Reinecke | Jan 17, 2017 | Disciplemaking, Leader Development, Personal Development |
A life-giving gift you can give those you coach is what I like to call “pruning”. I have found that the four categories below serve as a helpful guide to follow using Covey’s, “First Things First” matrix. Take a moment right now to review how you are using your time this week.
- Pull-out your calendar.
- Prioritize your scheduled activities in one of four categories:
- Quadrant I – Important & Urgent.
- Quadrant II – Important & Not Urgent.
- Quadrant III – Not Important & Urgent.
- Quadrant IV – Not Important & Not Urgent.
- How can you spend more of your time in Quadrant II in 2017?
Coveys’ point is that most of us spend too much time in Quadrants III & IV; to the neglect of Quadrant II. Imagine how this exercise might benefit the people you coach. Fast forward to December, if a leader doubled her or his time in Important & Not Urgent activities, what impact would it have on their:
- Personal development
- Disciplemaking
- Leader Development
Happy pruning!
by Gary Reinecke | Jan 6, 2017 | Church Multiplication, Disciplemaking, Leader Development |
To kick-off the New Year, I propose a guiding question for you and those you coach to further the work of catalyzing disciplemaking movements:
What is your most fruitful activity this year to catalyze disciplemaking movements in your community?
Reflect on that for a moment. What is your strategic focus for 2017? …for those you coach?
I look forward to reading your response below.
by Gary Reinecke | Jan 3, 2017 | Coach Training, Disciplemaking, Leader Development, Personal Development |
I’ve found that one of the ways to help leaders learn how to coach is to first, be coached.
I remember serving as a coach mentor for a network of church planters. A leader in that group had a particular understanding of the posture of a coach that collided with the non-directive approach I was taking. If you mapped out a continuum with “non-directive” on the left side and “directive” on the right side – he was on the far right end.
Over the next couple of appointments I reinforced the power of coaching using a non-directive, self-discovery process until he came to the realization that he really did not like that style of coaching. He concluded that his advice-giving preference suited his personality. I agreed – but challenged him to call it something other than coaching When you experience what it is like then it is easier to embrace (if your goal is to facilitate a self-discovery process) or REJECT coaching.
Justifiably, there is room for confusion about coaching as it relates to developing leaders, disciplemaking and church planting. After-all, many people use the term “coaching” to describe what they do.
Here are three reasons why it is helpful for people to experience coaching:
- Put flesh to the coaching process e.g. it is difficult to understand what you have not experienced.
- Illustrate what makes coaching unique e.g. the power of “self-discovery” vs. receiving advice.
- Contrast other ways of helping people e.g. mentoring, counselling, consulting, etc.
Coaching tip of the month:
If your desire is to empower people – then use a process that allows the individual to discover and choose.
One of the best ways to take good intentions and move them to action is through coaching. If you are interested in taking your vision to the next level in 2017 please contact InFocus for an exploratory conversation. Please let us know how we can serve you.
by Gary Reinecke | Dec 30, 2016 | Disciplemaking, Leader Development, Uncategorized |
The last two blogs I’ve shared questions to help you reflect on your accomplishments this year (2016) to prepare for the year ahead (2017), by envisioning where you believe God is encouraging you to grow. These questions are also intended for you to use with those you coach. It is always energizing to put the final touches on one year and anticipate the possibilities to come.
As I reflect on the year ahead I am reminded of the words of the the prophet in Jeremiah 29:11.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
I encourage you to rest in that knowledge.
Moving into next year, I am excited about the many ways God wants to use you and your unique gifts to catalyze disciplemaking movements. InFocus is committed to your success and E.source is a vehicle focused on that vision. Here is what you can expect every month as we move into the New Year.
- Week #1: A Coaching Tip
- Week #2: A Question of the Week
- Week #3: A Leader Development Tip
- Week #4 & #5: A Resource &/or Book Review
May the Lord richly bless you, may He surround you with a team of people that will make your vision a reality and provide the resources to fulfill what he has called you to accomplish.
by Gary Reinecke | Dec 19, 2016 | Uncategorized |
December is a very important month to help leaders reflect on the past and set goals for the upcoming year. A friend and colleague of mine, Brian Howard, gave me a list of questions that he uses. Last week I shared questions to reflect on 2016.
Here are a few samples from that list to help leader reflect on the year ahead:
- What would you like to be your biggest triumph in 2017?
- What advice would you like to give yourself in 2017?
- What would you be most happy about completing in 2017?
What questions do you use to help leaders reflect on the year ahead? Take a moment to identify some of the questions you have used. Please share a question to help leaders project into the new year to formulate goals they want to pursue.
by Gary Reinecke | Dec 13, 2016 | Uncategorized |
December is a very important month to help leaders reflect on the past and set goals for the upcoming year. A friend and colleague of mine, Brian Howard, gave me a list of questions that he uses to help leaders he coaches reflect on the past. Here are a few samples from that list:
- What was your biggest triumph in 2016?
- What was the smartest decision you made in 2016?
- What one word best sums up and describes your 2016 experience?
It would be easy to move into a goal-setting exercise for the year to come. However, asking leaders to pause, reflect and celebrate is a life-giving exercise – giving gratitude and thanks to the Lord. This establishes a healthy foundation to craft goals for the upcoming year.
What questions do you use to help leaders reflect on their year, progress made and challenges encountered? Take a moment to identify some of the questions you could use this month. Next week I will share some of the questions I use to help leaders project into the new year to formulate goals they want to pursue.
by Gary Reinecke | Dec 6, 2016 | Uncategorized |
I have a long history of following the Arsenal Football Club. One of the most successful coaches in the football (soccer) world is Arsene Wenger (see photo above) who has served the club since 1996. His resume includes three league titles, six cup titles and an amazing run in the Champion’s League since 2005. He is one of the most sought after coaches in the world but has remained true to Arsenal. Arsene Wenger has coaching credibility.
I’ve had several conversations with leaders who aspire to grow their coaching ministries. These include pastors, church planters and network leaders who want to become more adept at coaching and some who are considering the possibility of branding their coaching practice with a website, blog, etc. The conversation inevitably lands on the question, “how do you engage people in a coaching relationship?”
Coaching credibility matters. It is the most fruitful way to attract disciples and leaders. It is the best way to grow a coaching ministry.
Here are a few ideas to spot people who you might want to coach in 2017:
- Start with people you currently know.
- Be aware of where people are on their discipleship journey.
- Ask the Lord to bring people across your path who you should invest your time.
- Be open to people who approach you and are interested in their leadership development.
- Approach 1-2 people that you believe have the desire and capacity to raise their discipleship or leadership game.
What are some other ways you engage people in coaching relationships? Thank you for sharing your thoughts below.
by Gary Reinecke | Nov 27, 2016 | Uncategorized |
I have always been interested in finding ways to preserve the planet in the manner we design living spaces, buildings and parks. In addition, a vision I had as a college student was to preserve God’s creation by using environmentally-friendly materials that would reduce the carbon footprint. That led to a degree in Environmental Design. What I lacked was a theological framework to anchor my vision. This is one reason why I am enjoying “The Skeleton’s in God’s Closet: The Mercy of Hell, the Surprise of Judgment, the Hope of Holy War” by Joshua Ryan Butler. A book like this creates a theological framework for issues like environmental stewardship, issues of social-justice, racial inequality, engaging the poor and oppressed.
The author acknowledges the difficult questions that gnaw under the surface for many a follower of Christ. As I read the author’s argument to these thorny issues, I reflected on missiological questions that have implications for catalyzing disciplemaking movements.
- What is the Gospel message?
- How do disciplemaking movements keep the centrality of the Gospel message?
- What gaps exist in your missiology?
- How does this change the way you catalyze disciplemaking movements?
- What is the most important shift that needs to occur in your praxis?
We live in an exciting era. Butler represents one of many voices rediscovering the radical intent of the Gospel. I’m curious what other authors are dealing with similar issues as “The Skeleton’s in God’s Closet: The Mercy of Hell, the Surprise of Judgment, the Hope of Holy War”. Please share the names of authors and books that challenge your missiolgy, I would be interested in hearing who you are learning from below.
