The Coach Approach Ministries Podcast

Episode Overview

Small group leaders often feel pressure to know the Bible thoroughly, supply the right answers, and keep every discussion moving. Brian Miller welcomes Ali Kennedy, founder of Fuel for the Journey and an ACC coach, to explore how a coach approach can help leaders facilitate deeper learning and participation. Drawing on training she developed for her church, Ali shares five considerations for equipping small group leaders with a coaching mindset and practical skills. Together, they discuss how listening, thoughtful questions, and space for the Holy Spirit can help people take ownership of their growth as disciples.

Key Ideas & Takeaways

•

Start by understanding your church's leadership culture. Before designing training, consider how small group leaders see their role and what members expect of them. In Ali's church, a strong expectation that leaders should teach and provide answers made the shift toward facilitation especially important.

•

Explain coaching clearly without overwhelming people. Small group leaders need enough understanding to apply a coach approach; they are not necessarily preparing to become professional coaches. Keep the explanation practical, and move into application before too much detail obscures its usefulness.

•

Offer a brief biblical foundation. Address questions about how coaching aligns with Scripture early in the training. Brian and Ali point to equipping the body for ministry, Jesus' use of questions, and the Holy Spirit's teaching role as connections that support this approach.

•

Change the mindset before adding techniques. Leaders can move from trying to make everyone think as they do toward helping members clarify their own understanding and responses. Recognizing that others bring valuable insight also relieves the pressure to have every answer.

•

Focus on a few useful skills. Ali chose listening and asking powerful questions as the core skills for her training. Brian emphasizes listening beyond the words and avoiding questions designed to steer people toward the leader's preferred answer.

•

Let leaders practice putting it together. Ali invited participants to select a Scripture passage and plan how they would facilitate a discussion using a coach approach. Prompts included what questions they would ask, how they would invite quieter members to participate, and how they would listen more deeply.

•

Keep discipleship as the purpose. A successful discussion should help people do more than remember information or admire the teacher. Coaching can create opportunities to listen to God, explore personal insights, and consider how to respond.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

•

"We're really training the leaders here because this is how you're facilitating the whole dynamic of the group." — Ali Kennedy

•

"It's about hearing and doing. It's about listening and obeying." — Brian Miller

•

"The number one thing I've learned from coaching is how to partner with people." — Brian Miller

•

"You don't have to be a very seasoned, experienced coach to bring this training to your church." — Ali Kennedy

Episode Overview

When a pastor leaves, a church can feel enormous pressure to find a replacement immediately. In this solo episode, Brian Miller, president of Coach Approach Ministries, draws on his experience serving four interim pastorates to explain why he encourages churches to pause first. A coach approach gives congregations time to grieve, discern their direction, and take responsibility for their future before beginning a pastoral search. Brian explores how that preparation can help a church find a pastor suited to its shared vision while growing closer to Jesus throughout the transition.

Key Ideas & Takeaways

•

Make room for grief before moving forward. Whether a pastor dies, retires, or leaves amid conflict, the congregation experiences loss. Brian encourages taking time to acknowledge that hurt while carefully addressing a few obvious problems.

•

Help the church discover its own direction. An interim pastor can facilitate discernment by asking what people long for in their church and community. Brian emphasizes trusting the congregation to do this work and moving beyond familiar answers toward a clearer picture of the church it hopes to become.

•

Give leaders space to think together. Brian describes taking church leaders on a retreat several months into the transition to clarify vision and goals. The process helps them name where the church is now and where they want it to go.

•

Explore what the vision requires of everyone. Once the direction is clear, the congregation needs to consider what must change, where to begin, and what losses those changes may involve. Coaching helps people hear one another and recognize their own responsibilities in the work ahead.

•

Clarify how decisions get made. A church that has relied heavily on its pastor may lack clear leadership roles and decision processes. Establishing those systems helps the congregation navigate the search and support a healthier working relationship with its next pastor.

•

Let shared direction guide the search. Look for a pastor whose skills, gifts, and desire fit where the church has agreed to go. Brian connects congregational ownership with willingness to work alongside the pastor toward those goals.

•

Keep returning to Jesus. For Brian, transition should deepen the congregation's relationship with Jesus. He describes preaching through Matthew as his way of keeping Jesus central while helping people reflect, ask questions, and discern their future.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

•

"You've got to trust people to do the work."

•

"Help people hear one another and consider what their hopes would require of them, not just of the next pastor."

•

"We're looking for somebody who has the skills, giftedness, and desire to lead us toward where we said we want to go."

•

"They just had no say in the conversation of where they want to go."

Episode Overview

Knowing what needs to change in a church is only a small part of helping that change happen. In this solo episode, Brian Miller, president of Coach Approach Ministries, explores the emotional and relational work involved in coaching leaders through change. Beginning with a visiting pastor's accurate but incomplete advice, Brian explains why identifying a problem does not necessarily equip a leader to address it. He offers a coach approach that helps leaders choose what matters enough to tackle, understand the people affected, and build a workable path forward.

Key Ideas & Takeaways

•

Being right does not make change happen. An outside observer may accurately identify what needs fixing while overlooking the relationships and emotional costs involved. Brian challenges advice that leaves leaders with recommendations but little support for carrying them out.

•

Start with what matters enough to the leader. Agreement that something should change is different from willingness to risk conflict, strained friendships, or someone leaving the church. Coaching helps leaders identify a change they believe is worth the effort and vulnerability.

•

Recognize the weight of previous conflict. Brian describes leaders whose painful experiences have left them reluctant to face another battle. Coming alongside them means taking that history seriously while helping them discover where they are willing to move forward.

•

Offer observations lightly. A coach can name what they notice without insisting that the leader adopt their conclusions. A smaller change the leader owns may build the confidence needed to address something more difficult later.

•

Understand what people stand to lose. Resistance can involve grief over something meaningful that will disappear. Ask what will feel uncomfortable, who will experience loss, and how that loss can be acknowledged with empathy.

•

Honor the past while building the future. Moving from traditional worship or leaving an old building can carry personal meaning far beyond the practical decision. Recognizing a family's contribution or honoring a cherished tradition can help people navigate the transition.

•

Build a path people can commit to. Work through timing, practical steps, and opportunities for early wins. Help the team reach its own understanding of what needs to change and how to proceed, creating shared commitment to the work ahead.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

•

"Knowing what to change is only a small part of the work."

•

"We need to identify what matters enough to tackle for that leader to tackle, for them to step up and step out."

•

"We need to think about who's going to need to grieve, what they're going to need to grieve, what way we can honor whatever it is that they're going to grieve."

•

Taking time to understand people's losses can help a church move forward with greater willingness and less avoidable hurt.

Episode Overview

What makes preaching good—and how might coaching help us recognize it? In this solo episode, Brian Miller, president of Coach Approach Ministries, reflects on his experience both preaching and listening to sermons. He identifies five frustrations with preaching and explores how a coach approach can bring greater focus, invite listeners into the conversation, and give people room to respond. His goal is to help people deepen their relationship with Jesus through preaching that encourages them to think, explore, and reach conclusions they can carry into the week.

Key Ideas & Takeaways

•

Give listeners one clear thread to follow. A sermon needs a central idea, with points and illustrations that support it. Brian compares this focus to a coaching conversation: people should be able to follow the thinking without wondering why the topic suddenly changed.

•

Stay grounded in the passage. Brian makes the case for spending more time exploring one section of Scripture and its author's message. He acknowledges using other biblical stories as illustrations, while questioning whether moving through numerous references helps listeners understand the primary text.

•

Notice when preaching becomes an argument. A preacher can sound as though they are fighting an unseen opponent, leaving listeners feeling personally attacked. Brian encourages creating an environment where people feel safe enough to consider challenging ideas and examine their thinking.

•

Include people in the exploration. Questions, observations, and acknowledging what listeners might be thinking can make a sermon feel conversational. Taking a coach approach does not require an open discussion; listeners can participate mentally as the preacher explores the passage with them.

•

Give people room to respond. Pressuring someone into an immediate commitment may ask too much of a person encountering an idea for the first time. Reflecting on Jesus' encounter with the rich young ruler, Brian emphasizes loving people, speaking clearly, and allowing them time to process their response.

•

Look beyond agreement with the preacher. A sermon can prompt different responses in different people: something to stop, something to start, or a change in perspective. Brian's aim is to help listeners recognize what Jesus may be saying to them and take ownership of their next steps.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

•

"I want them to feel like they're in the conversation, like they're exploring it with me."

•

"You have to let people come to their own conclusions."

•

"I feel confident that we're going to have more fruit with less pressure."

•

"My goal for preaching is that you might have a richer relationship with Jesus."

Episode Overview

Church meetings can leave people frustrated, exhausted, and wondering whether anything was accomplished. In this solo episode, Brian Miller, president of Coach Approach Ministries, explores how taking a coach approach can help ministry teams address what matters, build ownership, and leave with clear next steps. Drawing on his experience as a coach and interim pastor, Brian walks through a process for moving from scattered discussion to purposeful conversation. He also explains how participants can help a meeting stay productive while respecting the person leading it.

Key Ideas & Takeaways

•

Prioritize the issues that deserve discussion. Keep reports and updates brief, and identify what actually needs the group's attention. Before diving into the first subject someone raises, rank the issues and agree on the most important ones.

•

Find the real problem. The issue initially named may be a symptom of something deeper. Using an illustration from Moneyball, Brian encourages teams to widen the conversation long enough to understand what they truly need to address.

•

Define a useful outcome. Ask what the group needs to decide or figure out before the meeting ends. A clear desired outcome gives the conversation direction and helps prevent endless discussion.

•

Draw out ideas before settling on a solution. A leader's quick answer can leave everyone else silent and uninvested. Invite multiple perspectives and possibilities so the team helps shape the next steps and has a reason to support them.

•

Keep the conversation focused. Other important issues will surface, but they do not all belong in the current discussion. Acknowledge them, set them aside for another time, and bring the group back to the problem or options it has agreed to explore.

•

Make responsibility and accountability clear. Before leaving, identify who will do what, when it needs to happen, and when the team will hear back. In a ministry setting, asking who will be let down if the work remains undone can connect follow-through to the people the team serves.

•

Use judgment about when to step in. You do not have to lead a meeting to help facilitate it, but timing and respect matter. Brian describes a situation where supporting the leader through a later conversation was more appropriate than immediately intervening.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

•

"What I really want to know out of your report is what do we as a group need to talk about?"

•

"You don't have to know what the real problem is, but you can help the room, kind of think through and figure out what is the real problem here."

•

"If it's their idea, they're a lot more likely to do it than if it's your idea."

•

A supportive-sounding "good luck" can reveal that people see a plan as the leader's project rather than something they own together.

Episode Overview

What changes when we view human development through a biblical lens rather than through the individualism that shapes much of modern coaching and personal development?

Brian Miller talks with MCC coach Laura-Catherine Etheridge about insights she has gained through more than 12,000 hours of coaching. LC explains how years of working with clients, assessment tools, and leadership development led her back to Scripture with a specific question: What does God teach us about human beings and how they actually grow?

Their conversation challenges the assumption that maturity means becoming increasingly self-sufficient. Instead, biblical development points toward greater dependence on God, healthy interdependence with others, and the humility to recognize that we were never intended to possess every strength ourselves.

Brian and LC also explore how coaches can use assessment tools without allowing the underlying assumptions of those tools to define their understanding of people.

Key Ideas & Takeaways

•

Experience matters in coaching. There is no substitute for actually coaching people. Practice develops skill, judgment, and the ability to recognize patterns that cannot be learned from information alone.

•

Coaching itself can be powerful marketing. Especially for newer coaches, getting in front of people and giving them an experience of coaching simultaneously develops the coach and exposes others to the value of coaching.

•

Knowing what to do does not mean we will do it. After thousands of coaching conversations, LC became increasingly interested in why intelligent, motivated people can understand what needs to change and still struggle to move forward.

•

Biblical development is not independence. Much of Western personal development assumes that the mature person becomes increasingly self-sufficient. Scripture presents a different trajectory: increasing dependence on God and healthy interdependence with others.

•

We were not designed to become complete by ourselves. Marriage, family, the Body of Christ, and other biblical pictures of human flourishing consistently emphasize relationship and community.

•

Growth requires more than our own internal resources. From a Christian perspective, development involves Jesus Christ, Scripture, God's work in us, and the perspective and contribution of other people.

•

Assessment tools are useful—but incomplete. LC does not divide assessments simply into "good" and "bad." Almost every assessment can provide useful information, but coaches should recognize the assumptions behind the tool and interpret the results through a broader biblical framework.

•

Assessment results should produce humility rather than entitlement. Knowing your personality or strengths should not become an excuse to say, "This is who I am, so everyone else needs to adapt to me." Greater awareness should help us understand how our strengths can serve others.

•

Working Genius illustrates interdependence well. Brian points out that the model assumes the work requires six different geniuses while an individual typically has only two. Awareness of your strengths therefore also creates awareness of what you need from others.

•

You don't need every skill—but you need enough awareness to recognize what is needed. Mature leaders can identify when someone else's strengths are better suited to the situation and create space for that person to contribute.

•

Completeness comes through relationship. LC connects Jesus' call to "be perfect" or complete with dependence upon a complete God and healthy relationships with people whose gifts differ from our own.

•

Christian coaches need to examine the assumptions behind their training. Coaching models, leadership frameworks, and assessment tools can quietly shape our view of people. Scripture should ultimately provide the framework through which those ideas are evaluated.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

"The only way to get experience is to get experience."

"Just coach as much as you possibly can."

"You can be amazing, but you're supposed to be amazing in an interdependent way, not an independent way."

"Is my dependence upon God growing? Is my healthy interdependence with people growing?"

"I don't have all the skills, but I should have all the awareness."

A different definition of maturity: Growth is not becoming someone who needs nobody. It is becoming increasingly dependent upon God while becoming increasingly capable of healthy interdependence with others.

A better way to use assessments: Instead of asking, "What does this assessment say everyone needs to know about me?" ask, "How can what I now know about myself help me better serve and work with others?"

The humility of strengths: Knowing what you do well should also make you more aware of what you do not do well—and more appreciative of the people who bring those strengths.

Upcoming Webinar: LC Etheridge will expand on lessons from more than 12,000 hours of coaching in an October 8 webinar, including an insight she wishes she had understood much earlier in her coaching career.

Episode Overview

Churches often know they need small groups, but creating a small group movement requires more than good curriculum or a one-time training session.

Brian Miller talks with Jim Jansen about why coaching may be the missing piece. Rather than trying to teach new facilitators everything they could possibly need to know before they begin, churches can give them enough to get started and then surround them with ongoing encouragement, questions, listening, and support as real challenges arise.

Jim introduces a simple structure for sustainable small group movements and explains why the often-missing role—the coach or mentor who comes alongside group facilitators—can make the difference between having a collection of groups and developing a movement that changes a church's culture.

Key Ideas & Takeaways

•

Content usually isn't the problem. Churches already have an enormous amount of small group content available. More information alone won't create a healthy movement.

•

Too much upfront training can actually become a barrier. Jim describes the mistake of trying to give new facilitators everything he had learned over decades in a two-hour training. Instead of preparing people, it overwhelmed them.

•

Give leaders enough to begin, then support them as they learn. A coaching environment allows facilitators to deal with challenges when those challenges are actually being experienced.

•

Not everyone needs the same training. One leader may need help with a participant who dominates the conversation, while another needs to learn how to draw quieter people into the discussion. Coaching allows development to become individualized.

•

There are probably more potential small group leaders than current small group leaders. The gap may not be a lack of capable people. It may be a lack of ongoing encouragement and support.

•

Jim's small group movement structure includes several levels:

•

Participants who belong to the group.

•

Facilitators who lead the groups.

•

Coaches or mentors who support the facilitators.

•

Movement leaders who coordinate the overall ministry.

•

In some settings, the pastor may provide another level of leadership.

•

The coach or mentor is often the missing role. This person comes alongside facilitators, helps them reflect on what is happening in their groups, and helps them work through ordinary leadership challenges.

•

As a movement grows, coaching needs to multiply. A movement leader may initially coach three or four facilitators personally. Once that grows to seven, ten, or more leaders, additional coaches are needed.

•

The coaches may require more intentional development than the facilitators. A mentor who becomes overly prescriptive can unintentionally create dependence rather than develop the facilitator.

•

A coach doesn't assume they know the answer. Coaching helps facilitators develop their own ability to think, discern, solve problems, and make decisions.

•

A coaching approach begins with humility. Jim describes foundational assumptions that the Spirit of God is already at work, people are intelligent, and the coach does not know everything about the situation.

•

Confidence in people is contagious. Facilitators can sense when someone believes they are capable and trusts that God is working in and through them.

•

Powerful questions can redirect a facilitator's attention. Asking, "What is the Lord doing in this group?" can move a leader beyond logistical frustrations and help them recognize what is actually happening in people's lives.

•

Look beneath difficult behavior. When a participant is disagreeable or disruptive, Brian suggests asking, "What does that person need?" rather than immediately focusing on how to stop the behavior.

•

Intentional listening is a core coaching skill. Effective leaders listen beyond words to facial expressions, body language, emotions, and what God may be doing beneath the surface.

•

Observations can create awareness without becoming prescriptive advice. Simple statements such as "You seem frustrated" or "You might need to start on time" give the facilitator something to wrestle with without taking ownership of the decision away from them.

•

Don't assume everyone dislikes the things you dislike. Facilitators can unnecessarily carry responsibilities because they assume nobody else would want them. Inviting others to contribute can develop new leaders and give people meaningful ways to serve.

•

Encouragement matters. Small group facilitators regularly need someone reminding them that they are doing better than they think and that ordinary struggles do not mean they are failing.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

"If content were the problem, we would have had that fixed a long time ago, because we are swimming in content."

"There are probably more people who are capable of leading a small group than are currently leading a small group."

"Sometimes mentors become prescriptive."

"The Spirit of God is working through this facilitator."

"People can feel the confidence you have in them."

"What is the Lord doing in this group?"

"What does that person need?"

"People have to own that decision for themselves."

"You cannot over-encourage these small group facilitators."

From groups to a movement: The key difference isn't simply starting more groups. It is creating an internal support structure that continually develops the people leading those groups.

Train for reality rather than every possibility: Instead of anticipating every problem in advance, equip facilitators with the basics and give them access to someone who can help them think when actual problems arise.

Coaching develops leaders instead of creating dependence: A prescriptive mentor becomes the person with all the answers. A coach helps the facilitator become increasingly capable of navigating challenges themselves.

A simple coaching toolkit: Powerful questions, intentional listening, concise observations, and encouragement can dramatically improve the experience of a small group facilitator without requiring the coach to be an expert in every situation.

Episode Overview

What does it actually look like for a church to make disciples—not just attract people or teach them more information? Brian Miller talks with Jim Jansen about building a clear discipleship pathway that moves people from initial relationships to mature faith and eventually equips them to help others do the same. Jim outlines four essential movements—relational outreach, a conversion moment, faith formation, and evangelization formation—and explains how a coaching approach helps churches discover what each of those should look like in their own context.

Key Ideas & Takeaways 1. Start with Relational Outreach

•

Churches have to answer a basic question: Where and how are we connecting with people outside the church?

•

Evangelism doesn't have to look like door-knocking or street preaching.

•

Coaching helps individuals identify their existing relationships, interests, communities, and natural spheres of influence.

•

Churches can ask the same question collectively: Where has God already given us relationships and influence?

2. Evangelism Should Fit the Person

•

People often resist evangelism because they have one particular model in mind that doesn't fit who they are.

•

A coaching approach asks how someone naturally connects with people rather than imposing a predetermined method.

•

The early church demonstrates that relational outreach doesn't depend on buildings, budgets, institutional credibility, or cultural influence.

3. Create a Conversion Moment

•

Relationships alone aren't the entire discipleship process.

•

Churches need intentional opportunities for people to encounter the gospel and decide whether they will follow Jesus.

•

Jim points to Alpha as one example, but the specific ministry isn't the point.

•

The better question is: What would an authentic conversion opportunity look like for our church and our community?

4. Don't Copy Someone Else's Method

•

Brian describes discovering that traditional altar calls didn't fit him particularly well, while Communion provided a meaningful, tangible opportunity to invite people to respond to Jesus.

•

What works in one church or for one pastor may not work somewhere else.

•

Coaching helps churches discern the right tool rather than simply importing someone else's successful program.

5. Faith Formation Is More Than Information

•

Once someone decides to follow Jesus, they need to learn how to live as a disciple.

•

Churches tend to be strongest in this area, but often default to classrooms, Sunday school, or other information-heavy approaches.

•

Formation is relational and experiential as well as intellectual.

•

A critical coaching question is: How do we want people to live differently as a result of this experience?

6. Start with the Outcome, Not the Curriculum

Instead of immediately asking what should be taught or when a class should meet, Jim encourages churches to ask:

•

What do we want people to do?

•

How do we want them to live?

•

Who already lives this way?

•

What experiences helped form them?

Those questions often produce a very different discipleship strategy.

7. Evangelization Formation Creates Multiplication

The fourth movement may be the most frequently overlooked: helping disciples become people who make disciples.

•

People need to recognize that sharing their faith is part of their calling.

•

They also need to discover how their unique gifts shape the way they participate.

•

Basic skills—sharing your story, starting spiritual conversations, facilitating groups, and explaining the gospel—can be developed.

•

People also need community and encouragement because evangelization works best as a team sport.

8. A Discipleship Pathway Connects All Four Movements

Jim shares the story of St. Francis Cabrini Parish in Omaha, which had experienced decades of decline. The church intentionally developed each stage:

•

Building relationships in the surrounding community.

•

Using Alpha to introduce people to Jesus.

•

Developing home-based small groups for formation.

•

Equipping people to understand their gifts and become disciple-makers.

The result was a dramatic turnaround in attendance, giving, engagement, and the overall vitality of the church.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

•

"Where do you naturally have influence and connection?"

•

"We have a responsibility. We have a mission field."

•

"What does it look like for us to preach the gospel?"

•

"What do you want them to do? How do you want them to live?"

•

"The person talking is the person learning."

•

"Evangelization, at its best, is a team sport."

•

"There is a call on my life to share my faith, but the Lord has made me to do that in a very unique way."

•

A healthy discipleship pathway answers four questions: Where do we connect with people? Where do we introduce them to Jesus? How do we mature them as disciples? How do we send them out to make disciples?

Episode Overview

Regional church leaders occupy a unique position: they carry a larger vision while serving local churches with vastly different needs, cultures, and challenges. In this conversation, Brian Miller talks with Jim Jansen, founder of Anchor Consulting, about why coaching may be one of the most valuable tools a regional leader can develop. Drawing from Jim's years of working with local churches, they explore how coaching can turn denominational leadership from something local pastors resist into a relationship they welcome.

Key Ideas & Takeaways 1. Regional Leaders Have an Advantage Outsiders Don't

•

Outside consultants can bring valuable expertise, but regional leaders already understand the denomination's culture, language, priorities, relationships, and history.

•

They can see patterns across churches and connect leaders with resources and people they already know.

•

Jim describes them as potential "inside coaches."

2. Organizational Authority Can Be an Asset—or a Liability

•

A visit from a denominational leader can trigger the question: "What do they want?"

•

Local leaders may expect another request for money, another program, or the latest organizational initiative.

•

Coaching changes the posture from "Here's what we need from you" to "How can I help you?"

3. People Don't Necessarily Want Coaching—They Want Breakthroughs

•

Jim's team began simply giving coaching away.

•

As pastors experienced progress, encouragement, and helpful conversations, coaching began to "sell itself."

•

The relationship changed because regional leaders were increasingly experienced as helpful rather than intrusive.

4. A Shared Vision Doesn't Require a Uniform Plan

•

Regional leadership still has an important role in establishing vision and priorities.

•

Jim's organization had a clear emphasis on evangelism and mission.

•

Coaching allowed each local church to answer the question: What does that vision look like here?

5. Local Leaders Need to Own the Plan

•

A regional leader can cast a compelling vision, but the local church ultimately has to make it its own.

•

The pastor and congregation understand their particular people, community, opportunities, and limitations.

•

Coaching helps them develop a plan that fits their context instead of merely implementing someone else's strategy.

6. Coaching Demonstrates Trust in Local Leadership

•

Jim argues that regional leaders should trust that the Spirit of God is at work in local pastors and leaders.

•

The regional leader doesn't have to determine exactly how the larger vision will be implemented everywhere.

•

Coaching creates space for local leaders to discern how that vision should come alive in their particular setting.

7. Coaching Can Produce Organizational Fruit

•

Jim describes having roughly one-third of ministry leaders engaged in some cadence of coaching.

•

Over six or seven years, what felt ordinary day-to-day produced significant results.

•

He credits the coach approach as an important foundation for the fruit and goodwill they experienced.

8. Coaching May Be the Missing Tool for Regional Leadership

•

Regional leaders often have vision, relationships, and access but lack a reliable way to help local leaders translate vision into action.

•

Equipping trusted regional staff with coaching skills can extend the ministry of senior denominational leaders across many churches.

•

Coaching connects big-picture vision with local ownership, action, and accountability.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

•

"People don't want coaching. They want the breakthroughs."

•

"How else can I be of help to this local church?"

•

"You could have a vision, but it's the local pastor, it's the local church, that has to not only make the vision their own, but they have to make the plan."

•

"Have a little bit of respect for the Spirit of God at work in local leadership."

•

"Coaching is probably the missing tool to help you extend your ministry to all the local churches."

•

"We saw so much fruit and so much goodwill built when we began to approach things with a coaching mindset."

Why do some people fixate on details that seem irrelevant to you? Why do others jump quickly to patterns and possibilities? And why can a decision that seems perfectly logical to one person feel completely wrong to someone else?

In this solo episode, Brian uses the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator to explore two particularly useful personality distinctions: Sensing vs. Intuition and Thinking vs. Feeling. These preferences describe how people tend to take in information and how they tend to make decisions.

Understanding these differences can increase self-awareness, reduce frustration in relationships, and make coaches more effective by helping them recognize when they are unconsciously expecting clients to process information and decisions the same way they do.

Key Ideas & Takeaways

• There really are different ways of processing the world. Brian opens with a conversation with his longtime friend Travis about a thorn in his thumb. Travis wanted to know exactly what kind of plant the thorn came from; Brian could not understand why that detail mattered. The exchange illustrates how differently two people can naturally gather information.
• Sensing and Intuition describe how we prefer to take in information.

• Sensing tends to focus on facts, details, experience, and concrete evidence.
• Intuition tends to focus on patterns, possibilities, connections, meaning, and what could be.
• Neither approach is better. Each notices things the other can easily miss.

• Our own preference can feel like common sense. Because we have spent a lifetime processing information in a particular way, it can be difficult to understand why another person doesn't see what seems obvious to us.
• Thinking and Feeling describe how we prefer to make decisions.

• Thinking tends to emphasize logic, consistency, and what makes the most sense.
• Feeling tends to emphasize values, people, relationships, and the human impact of a decision.
• Feeling is not the same thing as being emotional, and Thinking does not mean being uncaring.

• Different decision-making styles strengthen communities. Logic matters, but so do shared values and the impact decisions have on people. Healthy families, teams, churches, and organizations benefit from both perspectives.
• Coaches need awareness of their own preferences. Coaching frequently involves helping people gather information and make decisions. A coach who assumes the client should process those things the same way the coach does can unintentionally limit the conversation.
• The opposite preference can generate powerful coaching questions. A coach might invite a strongly Sensing client to consider patterns or possibilities, or ask a strongly Thinking client to consider how a decision fits the values of the people affected. The goal isn't to change the client's preference but to expand what they are able to consider.
• Assessments should create awareness, not pigeonhole people. Myers-Briggs describes preferences rather than limitations. Knowing a preference can help explain differences without turning personality type into an excuse or rigid label.
• Brian closes by introducing CAM 509: Coaching and Assessments, beginning September 22, 2026, an eight-week course exploring assessments and how coaches can use them effectively.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

"I think the easiest recognition of this is when I'm around somebody who I don't understand."

"You are really going to assume that everybody takes in information and makes decisions like you do—and that they should."

"I see patterns before I see specifics."

"Feeling isn't about being emotional."

"I process differently would be a better way of saying that."

"As I'm coaching, I want to try to set aside my own biases and preferences toward how I take in information and how I make decisions."

"There are options out there that you have not considered."

Episode Overview

Do coaches really need credentials? Since coaching isn't a regulated profession, anyone can call themselves a coach—but should they? In this conversation, Brian Miller and Master Certified Coach Mary Selzer discuss the value of coach credentialing, not as a status symbol, but as a commitment to excellence, credibility, and continual growth. They explain how credentials shape the coach as much as they assure the client, creating a solid foundation for transformational coaching.

Key Ideas & Takeaways 1. Credentials Bring Credibility

• Coaching is an unregulated profession, making it difficult for clients to distinguish trained coaches from consultants or advisors.
• A recognized credential communicates that a coach has invested in learning and has been evaluated against established standards.
• Credentials help build trust before the coaching conversation even begins.

2. Coaching Is Different from Consulting

• Many people use the title "coach" while actually telling clients what to do.
• True coaching helps clients think, discover, and take responsibility rather than simply receiving advice.
• A credential reinforces the distinction between coaching and consulting.

3. Credentials Change the Coach

• Mary describes receiving her first credential as a significant mental shift: "I'm legit."
• The process develops confidence as well as competence.
• Credentials aren't merely external validation—they transform the coach's identity.

4. Excellence Requires Preparation

• Coaching people well deserves intentional training.
• Brian and Mary argue that serving clients with excellence means continually sharpening coaching skills rather than relying on natural ability or experience alone.
• Excellence honors both the client and the calling.

5. Every Coach Needs a Foundation

• Every coach operates from a particular coaching philosophy, whether they recognize it or not.
• Credentialing provides a clear framework and common language for effective coaching.
• Knowing where your coaching comes from strengthens both confidence and consistency.

6. Competencies Matter

• Brian highlights the value of the ICF Core Competencies as a practical roadmap for coaching conversations.
• Competencies help coaches understand how to create awareness, establish agreements, listen deeply, and facilitate action.
• They provide concrete areas for ongoing improvement.

7. Great Coaches Never Stop Growing

• One benefit of credential renewal is the expectation of continuing education.
• Mary shares that after earning her MCC, her first question was, "What's next?"
• Coaching is about growth—and coaches should model the same lifelong learning they encourage in others.

8. The Credentialing Process Shapes Character

• Brian reflects that earning his PCC required more than improving techniques—it changed how he thought about people, coaching, and transformation.
• Rigorous standards don't simply test knowledge; they develop the coach.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

• "There are many people who call themselves coaches—but they're really consultants."
• "When I received my first credential, there was a mental shift: 'I'm legit.'"
• "We aren't the expert on the client's problem—we're the expert on the conversation that creates transformation."
• "Excellence honors both the client and the calling."
• "Every coach is coming from somewhere. A credential tells people where you're rooted."
• "Coaching is about change and growth—and coaches should experience that too."
• "Getting my PCC didn't just change my coaching; it changed who I was."

*]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id= "request-69efcff9-c8c4-8325-9b98-b10b2242ece8-9" data-turn-id-container= "request-69efcff9-c8c4-8325-9b98-b10b2242ece8-9" data-testid= "conversation-turn-18" data-turn="assistant"> Episode Overview

Coaching isn't just about asking great questions—it's also about having the courage to speak the truth with grace. In this conversation, Brian Miller and Mary Selzer explore the role of boldness in coaching, from establishing healthy coaching agreements to making difficult observations that create lasting awareness. They also discuss why silence is often the coach's greatest ally and how giving clients space to process can be more transformational than saying one more thing.

Key Ideas & Takeaways 1. Truth Must Be Spoken with Grace

• Coaching requires honesty, but equally important is how truth is communicated.
• Difficult observations should be offered with care, humility, and genuine love for the client.
• Boldness isn't about confrontation—it's about serving the client's growth.

2. Coaches Teach People How to Be Coached

• Healthy coaching begins with a clear coaching agreement.
• Sometimes clients need guidance on what creates an effective coaching conversation.
• Setting boundaries early creates stronger coaching relationships later.

3. Boldness Begins with the Coaching Agreement

• Mary shares the story of coaching a distracted pastor who repeatedly tried to coach while camping and working.
• A simple but courageous conversation about expectations transformed the coaching relationship for years.
• Sometimes the most important coaching happens before the coaching even begins.

4. Great Observations Require Courage

• Coaches must be willing to say what they genuinely observe.
• A well-timed observation can create awareness that no question alone could produce.
• Truth spoken with love often becomes the turning point in a conversation.

5. Silence Is Part of the Coaching

• After a significant insight, resist the urge to fill the silence.
• Clients often need time to process what they've discovered.
• Silence is not awkward—it's where transformation often begins.

6. Marinating vs. Stewing

• Mary compares productive silence to marinating, allowing insight to soak in naturally.
• Coaches often mistake silence for stewing, assuming discomfort means they should jump back in.
• Giving clients room to "marinate" allows awareness to become lasting change.

7. Say Less to Say More

• Powerful coaches use fewer words.
• A concise observation followed by silence is often more impactful than a lengthy explanation.
• The goal isn't to explain the insight—it's to give the client ownership of it.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

• "It's not just telling the truth—it's how you tell the truth."
• "We teach people how to be coached."
• "Speak the truth in love."
• "Silence should be a time of marinating, not stewing."
• "I won't speak again until they do."
• "The fewer words we use, the more powerful our observations become."
• "Let silence do the heavy lifting."

_:empty]:hidden">

*]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id= "request-69efcff9-c8c4-8325-9b98-b10b2242ece8-8" data-turn-id-container= "request-69efcff9-c8c4-8325-9b98-b10b2242ece8-8" data-testid= "conversation-turn-16" data-turn="assistant"> Episode Overview

After serving nearly 30 years in pastoral ministry, Mary Selzer found herself emotionally drained from carrying responsibility for everyone's problems. Everything changed when she discovered coaching. In this conversation, Mary shares how coaching gave her permission to stop rescuing people who weren't ready to change and instead invest in those who were. Along the way, she and Brian discuss why coaching creates healthier ministry, stronger relationships, and more responsible disciples. Based on the transcript you shared.

Key Ideas & Takeaways 1. Ministry Burnout Often Comes from Carrying Too Much

• Mary felt responsible for solving everyone's problems.
• She often became more passionate about people's change than they were.
• That mindset led to exhaustion and diminished her joy in ministry.

2. Coaching Restored the Joy of Ministry

• Learning the distinction between counseling and coaching was a turning point.
• Coaching focuses on helping relatively healthy people move forward.
• Mary realized she had been investing most of her energy in people who weren't ready to change while overlooking those who were.

3. Not Everyone Wants to Change

• Coaching gave Mary permission to stop feeling obligated to help everyone.
• Ministry became healthier when she focused on people who were willing to grow.
• She and her husband discovered a complementary partnership: he naturally served as shepherd and spiritual director while she coached those ready for forward movement.

4. Coaching Teaches People to Think for Themselves

• Mary intentionally taught people how to be coached.
• People who had become dependent on others gradually developed confidence and ownership.
• Coaching produced greater responsibility and independence instead of unhealthy dependence.

5. Maybe "Uncoachable" Isn't the Right Word

• Mary questions whether people are truly uncoachable.
• Perhaps many are simply not ready for coaching yet.
• Readiness often begins when someone recognizes that something in life needs to change.

6. Coaching Requires Psychological Safety

• Brian suggests people become coachable when they believe they will be heard.
• Growth happens when people trust that their ideas and decisions will be respected rather than overridden.
• Coaching flourishes in environments where people feel safe to think out loud.

7. Building Up Rather Than Holding On

• Reflecting on Ephesians 4, Brian contrasts two approaches to ministry:

• Constantly rescuing people who are hanging on.
• Intentionally building people up into maturity.

• Coaching aligns with the biblical vision of helping people grow rather than simply survive.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

• "I became more passionate for people's change than they were."
• "Coaching restored my love for ministry."
• "Not everybody wants to be helped. Not everybody wants to change."
• "You teach people how to be coached."
• "People became more responsible because they realized, 'I can do this myself.'"
• "Maybe people aren't uncoachable—they're simply not ready for coaching yet."
• "Coaching creates an environment where people know they'll be heard and their thinking will be respected."

_:empty]:hidden">

Note

Episode Overview

What makes training transformational instead of merely informational? In this rebroadcast, Brian Miller and Chad Hall explore how coaching principles can dramatically improve training and facilitation. They argue that adult learners don't simply need more information—they need opportunities to process, discuss, apply, and own what they're learning. A coach approach to training shifts the instructor from being the expert in front of the room to the facilitator of meaningful learning.

Key Ideas & Takeaways 1. The Person Talking Is the Person Learning

• Learning deepens when participants explain, discuss, and process ideas.
• Trainers should create opportunities for learners to speak—not simply listen.
• The goal is active engagement rather than passive reception.

2. Move from Lecturer to Learning Partner

• Traditional training assumes one teacher and many learners.
• A coach approach views everyone as contributors to the learning process.
• The trainer brings expertise, but participants bring valuable experience and insight.

3. Don't Respond After Every Comment

• Trainers often feel compelled to summarize or improve every participant's contribution.
• Instead, allow ideas to circulate among the group.
• Real discussion emerges when participants begin responding to one another instead of always through the trainer.

4. Start with Participants' Desired Outcomes

Before introducing content, ask:

• What do you hope to learn?
• What questions do you want answered?
• What would make this training worthwhile?

This creates ownership and aligns expectations.

5. Adult Learning Requires Processing

An effective learning cycle includes:

• Present a key idea.
• Give learners time to discuss and wrestle with it.
• Help them identify practical application.

People don't learn best by hearing—they learn by processing.

6. Content Should Evoke Awareness

The purpose of teaching isn't simply transferring information. The purpose is to provoke thinking.

Even disagreement can be productive if it causes participants to reflect more deeply and engage with the material.

7. Coaching Helps Learners Apply What They Learn

Instead of ending with "Any questions?" A coach approach asks:

• What are you going to do differently?
• What action will you take?
• How will you apply this?

Application creates transformation.

8. Great Training Creates Ownership

The ultimate goal isn't that participants remember what the trainer said. It's that they make the ideas their own.

Transformation happens when learners move from receiving information to owning it.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

• "The person talking is the person learning."
• "The purpose of the content is to make people think."
• "I'm not here to convince you. I'm here to help you engage with the ideas."
• "The trainer becomes less of a lecturer and more of a facilitator of learning."

Practical Framework for Coach-Like Training

A simple structure for designing adult learning:

• Teach — Present one key concept (about 10 minutes).
• Process — Let participants discuss, question, and reflect.
• Apply — Coach them toward concrete action and implementation.

s

Episode Overview

Coaching is a powerful leadership tool—but it isn't the right tool for every situation. In this solo episode, Brian Miller explores when coaching is appropriate and when other leadership approaches, particularly giving direction, are more effective. Using the Situational Leadership model developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard, he explains how leaders can match their approach to a person's level of development and avoid the common mistake of using the wrong tool at the wrong time.

Key Ideas & Takeaways 1. Coaching Isn't Always the Right Answer

• Coaching is one of several leadership skills—not the only one.
• There are situations where people need clear direction more than thoughtful questions.
• The key is knowing which approach fits the moment.

2. Leadership Is Situational

• Leadership isn't limited to people with formal authority.
• Anyone who seeks to influence or help another person is exercising leadership.
• Effective leaders adapt their style to the situation rather than relying on a single preferred approach.

3. The Two Leadership Levers

Situational Leadership revolves around two variables:

• Direction – telling people what to do.
• Support – encouraging, listening, partnering, and building confidence.

Every leadership interaction adjusts these two "levers."

4. Four Leadership Approaches

Depending on a person's development level, leaders should provide:

• High Direction / Low Support
• High Direction / High Support
• Low Direction / High Support (coaching)
• Low Direction / Low Support (delegation)

5. Coaching Fits Development Level Three

Coaching is most valuable when someone:

• Knows how to do the work.
• Needs encouragement more than instruction.
• Is ready to develop ownership rather than receive answers.

This is where asking questions becomes more powerful than giving advice.

6. Coaching Creates Ownership

The greatest return on coaching is not simply better performance—it's ownership.

• People begin to see themselves as the expert.
• They develop confidence in their own judgment.
• Leaders can gradually release responsibility instead of maintaining control.

7. People Don't Stay at One Level Forever

Development isn't linear.

• Stress
• Burnout
• New responsibilities
• Changing circumstances

may require leaders to temporarily become more directive again. Great leadership continually reassesses the situation.

8. Great Leaders Build Multiple Skills

Every leader should learn coaching, but every leader should also know when to:

• Tell
• Explain
• Encourage
• Coach
• Delegate

The best leaders don't overuse their favorite style—they choose the one the situation requires.

Memorable Quotes & Ideas

• "Half the time you shouldn't coach. The important thing is that at least half the time you should."
• "If you're coaching when they don't need coached, you're annoying. If you're telling when they need coached, you're annoying."
• "The greatest return on investment of coaching is ownership."
• "You can only accomplish what you can keep your eye on—coaching helps you expand beyond that."

Mentioned in This Episode

• Situational Leadership by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard
• CAM 501 – Foundations of Christian Coaching, an eight-week introduction to coaching skills including listening, asking questions, making observations, and partnering with the Holy Spirit.

Episode Overview

Coaching is usually discussed in terms of what it does for the person being coached. In this episode, Brian turns the question around: What does coaching do to the coach?

Drawing from more than fifteen years of coaching, Brian describes how the coaching mindset has changed the way he relates to other people, handles his own insights, and carries responsibility. Coaching has made him less individualistic, less compelled to give answers, and less likely to take ownership of problems that properly belong to someone else.

More than a professional skill, coaching has become a way of understanding Christian community, personal maturity, leadership, friendship, marriage, and faith.

Key Ideas 1. Coaching changes how we understand community

Coaching is a fundamentally collaborative process. The coach is the expert in the conversation, while the client is the expert in the subject of the conversation.

That partnership offers a picture of healthy community. People do not need to have identical strengths, roles, or perspectives in order to work together well. They contribute differently to something neither could create alone.

For Brian, this has deepened his understanding of the body of Christ. Christian faith is personal, but it is not merely individual. We are joined together, dependent upon one another, and called to create something collectively that no single person could produce independently.

2. Coaching changes how we steward awareness

Coaches regularly notice patterns, connections, and possible solutions before the client does. The temptation is to immediately share every insight.

Brian has learned that an awareness does not go to waste simply because he chooses not to say it. When an insight is not immediately released, it can continue to work within the coach. It can mature, connect with other ideas, and produce greater depth.

The discipline of not correcting, explaining, or contributing every thought has made him a better coach, trainer, leader, and person.

3. Coaching changes how we carry responsibility

Responsibility is a strength, but it can become unhealthy when we take responsibility for things that properly belong to other people.

Coaching has helped Brian ask:

•

What is genuinely my responsibility?

•

What belongs to the other person?

•

How can I support someone without taking over?

•

Can my presence help them carry what is theirs to carry?

Sometimes helping means solving a problem. At other times, it means listening, encouraging, remaining present, or allowing another person to make a difficult decision.

Memorable Quotes

"I am a better person because I am a coach."

"The coach is the expert of the conversation, but you are the expert of the topic."

"That awareness that I don't share doesn't go to waste. It actually piles up in me, and it works on me."

"I don't tend to grow when I share everything I know. I grow when I don't share everything I know."

"Coaching has changed how I carry responsibility."

"Christianity brings something to my coaching, but I think coaching brings something to my Christianity."

"Coaching has given me a better life."

Reflection Questions

•

How has coaching changed the way you understand relationships and community?

•

What awareness are you tempted to share before another person is ready for it?

•

Where might you be carrying responsibility that properly belongs to someone else?

•

How could you support someone without solving the problem for them?

Mentioned in This Episode

Brian will teach CAM 501: Foundations of Christian Coaching, beginning August 6, 2026. The eight-week course introduces the foundations, practices, and mindset of Christian coaching.

Learn more at coachapproachministries.org.

Episode Summary

Brian Miller records a solo episode on a common leadership frustration: people ask for advice, receive good advice, agree that it makes sense—and then do not follow it.

Brian explores why advice often fails to create change. The issue is not always that the advice is wrong. The deeper problem is that advice often skips the internal process people need in order to act. Coaching offers a better kind of conversation by helping people come to their own awareness, develop stronger action steps, and take ownership of the result.

Big Ideas & Takeaways

•

Awareness: Advice gives people someone else's insight Advice usually starts with what the advice-giver sees: "Here's what I think you should do." The advice may be wise, but the awareness belongs to the person giving it.

People change more deeply when they come to awareness themselves. A coach approach creates space for someone to notice assumptions, patterns, fears, desires, and possibilities they had not seen clearly before.

Brian illustrates this through his diabetes diagnosis. Being told he was diabetic did not instantly create full awareness. Later, a simple comment from his brother about giving up diet drinks helped Brian realize he had not yet tried everything. The awareness had to become his own before he could act on it.

Key implication: if people do not own the awareness, they are unlikely to own the change.

•

Action: Advice often produces weak action Even when people accept advice, the action can be vague, minimal, or borrowed. They may nod, agree, and even try something—but without a clear plan, the action rarely holds.

A coaching conversation helps the person build a stronger action step. The action becomes specific, realistic, timely, and connected to the awareness they just discovered.

Brian contrasts merely telling someone what to do with helping them think through the next step: What will you do? When will you do it? Who needs to be involved? What resources do you need? What could get in the way?

Key implication: people are more likely to follow through on action they helped design.

•

Ownership: Advice creates compliance; coaching creates responsibility Advice can produce compliance, especially when the advice-giver has authority. But compliance is not the same as ownership.

Compliance says, "I am doing this because you told me to." Ownership says, "This is my responsibility, and I choose to act."

Brian connects this to leadership, parenting, ministry, board meetings, and personal growth. The goal is not merely to get people to behave correctly. The goal is to help people become mature, responsible, and transformed.

This is where accountability comes in. Accountability is strongest when it grows out of ownership. The person names the action, owns the responsibility, and identifies what will help them follow through.

The Coaching Framework

Awareness People need to see something for themselves.

Action People need a concrete, supported next step.

Ownership People need to take responsibility for what they choose to do.

Memorable Quotes / Moments

"People don't take advice."

"No one ever washes a rental car."

"Advice gives people my awareness."

"People do what they tell themselves to do."

"What's going to ensure that you take this action?"

Timestamped Highlights

● 0:17–1:27 Intro: why people don't take advice ● 1:27–2:40 Story: nonprofit employee quits despite good advice ● 3:17–4:16 Conversations can be transformational ● 4:16–5:35 Advice gives people someone else's awareness ● 5:56–9:33 Diabetes diagnosis + brother's comment about diet drinks ● 11:53–14:33 Advice often produces weak action ● 16:53–18:38 Advice creates compliance instead of ownership ● 18:38–21:17 Accountability, counting carbs, and owning the next step ● 22:21–23:19 CAM 501 invitation and closing

Links Mentioned

● Coach Approach Ministries: coachapproachministries.org ● CAM 501: Foundations of Christian Coaching ● Course start date mentioned: August 6, 2026 ● Schedule mentioned: Thursdays at 2:00 Eastern for eight weeks

Podcast Notes: Presidents, Pressure, and the Myth That Things Used to Be Simple

Episode Overview In this solo episode, Brian Miller reflects on America's 250th anniversary and his recent effort to memorize the presidents of the United States in order. What began as a personal history project became a reminder that American life has never been as simple, stable, or unified as we sometimes imagine.

Rather than entering today's political debates, Brian uses presidential history as a lens for leadership, pressure, maturity, and perspective. The episode explores how history can help us become less reactive, less nostalgic, and more grounded as we lead through complicated times.

Key Ideas & Takeaways

•

History Is More Turbulent Than We Remember

From a distance, history often looks cleaner than it actually was. We remember presidents as names, portraits, monuments, and eras. But they were real people leading in real time, often with incomplete information, competing pressures, personal limitations, and public criticism.

The past was not as simple as we sometimes imagine. American history has always included conflict, ambition, division, compromise, courage, failure, and uncertainty. Remembering that does not minimize the challenges of the present, but it can help us hold them with greater perspective.

•

Leadership Is Always Contextual

Presidential history reminds us that leadership is never abstract. Every leader acts inside a particular moment, with particular pressures and constraints.

Some presidents were prepared for the moment they inherited. Some were not. Some shaped their era. Others were overwhelmed by it. But each one had to carry responsibility inside circumstances they did not fully control.

That matters for how we think about leadership today. It is easy to judge leaders only by personality, decisions, or outcomes. But a more mature view also asks: What pressure were they under? What limitations were they facing? What assumptions shaped their choices? What did the moment require of them?

This does not excuse poor leadership. But it helps us understand that leadership always happens inside pressure.

•

Perspective Helps Us Become Less Reactive

One gift of history is that it lowers our shock. Not because the present is easy. Not because today's problems do not matter. But because history reminds us that conflict, uncertainty, and pressure are not new.

Without perspective, every crisis can feel unprecedented. Every disagreement can feel like proof that everything is falling apart. Every leader can become either savior or villain.

Historical perspective helps us become steadier. It allows us to care without being consumed, to act without merely reacting, and to tell the truth about the present without being swallowed by anxiety.

This is also where the episode connects to coaching. Coaching helps people make meaning under pressure. It creates space for awareness, discernment, responsibility, and faithful action.

Possible Coaching Questions

What pressure are you carrying right now? What are you assuming about this moment? What are you afraid will happen? What responsibility is actually yours? What are you carrying that is not yours to carry? What would a less reactive version of you do next? What does faithfulness look like in this moment?

Closing Thought

As America turns 250, we do not need to pretend the story has been simple. It has not. It has been pressured, conflicted, unfinished, and often complicated.

But that does not have to lead us to cynicism. It can lead us to maturity.

History helps us tell the truth about the present without being swallowed by it. It reminds us that leadership has always required courage, humility, wisdom, and restraint. And it invites us to ask a question that is historical, spiritual, and deeply practical:

What does faithfulness look like now?

In this episode, Glenn Smith and I explore the journey of building a successful coaching practice and what it really takes to sustain meaningful work over time. Glenn shares wisdom from his own coaching journey, including the challenges, mindset shifts, and personal growth required to create a practice that aligns with both purpose and impact.

We discuss:

• What defines a successful coaching practice
• The difference between building a business and living a calling
• Why authenticity matters in coaching
• Trust, relationships, and long-term growth
• The importance of self-awareness and personal development
• Common struggles coaches face early in their journey
• Finding alignment between values, purpose, and work
• Coaching as transformation rather than performance
• How meaningful conversations create lasting impact

This conversation offers encouragement and practical wisdom for coaches, leaders, and anyone seeking to build work that is both sustainable and deeply meaningful.

#Coaching #Leadership #PersonalGrowth #GlennSmith #CoachingPractice #Transformation #Purpose #Podcast

In this final conversation with Paul Burns, we explore the "Social" dimension of the GPS discipleship framework. Paul explains how a secure relationship with God and growing personal maturity free us to genuinely love and connect with others.

We discuss:

• Why empathy is central to spiritual maturity
• The connection between security and healthy relationships
• Moving beyond codependency
• Loving others for their sake instead of our own needs
• The social implications of discipleship
• Sacrificial and unconditional love in the way of Jesus
• Emotional freedom and relational connection
• How discipleship transforms communities and relationships

Paul unpacks how deepening discipleship ultimately leads to greater compassion, empathy, and the ability to love others more fully and authentically.

#Empathy #Discipleship #Relationships #PaulBurns #SpiritualFormation #ChristianCoaching #Faith #Podcast