A
Career in Coaching Ministry Leaders
By Tony Stoltzfus
Many
Christian coaches or coaches in training want to coach pastors or ministry
leaders as part of their practice. How do you get into this niche? And what
makes a successful ministry coach? Here are some answers.
The number
one thing you need to know about ministry coaching is that it is all about networking. Because ministry is by nature
relational (it is about producing people, not a product), ministry leaders tend
to heavily favor resources that come to them through their network of
relationships.
There are
many different philosophies of ministry and value systems in this arena. In
addition, bringing in someone with different values or a character problem can
cause conflicts or relational fallout that is very costly to a ministry
organization. Therefore, most ministry leaders want a recommendation from
someone or some organization they know and trust before they will sign on for
coaching or training. It’s all about who you know. So before you launch into
this niche with high hopes, ask yourself: do
I have an existing network of relationships with ministry leaders who know and
trust me that I can leverage to meet others? If you don’t know many
pastors, or you aren’t involved in ministry in a way that will give you
significant exposure, building a ministry coaching practice will be an uphill
climb.
Second,
think through what kind of person a pastor, missionary or para-church leader
would want as a coach. If you were an executive, would you tend to hire a coach
from a management level several tiers below you, or with much less or no
experience in your industry? Or would you want someone who has functioned at
your level, knows your world and has tools and experience relevant to you to
bring to the table? Most people would want the second.
So take an
honest look at yourself. Are you a peer professionally to the leaders you want
to coach? Do you have leadership experience on par with theirs and relevant to
their world? You don’t have to have been a pastor to coach pastors, but you do
need to have a life that they respect and want to draw from. Experience as a
small group leader or having preached two or three times doesn’t qualify you as
a pastor’s peer – remember, this is an individual leading a large volunteer
organization (the most difficult kind of organization to lead), often with a
graduate degree and years of experience. What has God put into your life that
pastors, missionaries and para-church leaders want and need?
Third, if
you want to coach ministry leaders, you need to take a ministry approach. If
you are pursuing ministry coaching in order to make a great income from home,
do significant work and lead the ideal life you want, you are in it for the
wrong reasons. With the average pastor’s salary in the
The church
is the place where God brings up all our hurts, character issues and problems,
so we can deal with them in a redemptive environment. That means you will meet
with more failures, disappointments and difficult situations coaching here than
you will working with business clients. Coaching ministry leaders is not a safe
place where you can just work with other Christians like you who will treat you
right and pay you on time so you can have a safe, comfortable life. Ministry
coaching is a calling to sacrificially contribute to the
If this
article challenges you and fires you up instead of feeling like a wet blanket,
then maybe you do have a calling to ministry coaching. If so, rise up! We need
more ministry coaches!
To
see our five-star resources for launching a successful coaching practice, visit
www.Coach22.com/practicebuilding.html