Although he is a Christian, Daniel Harkavy’s Becoming a
Coaching Leader is written primarily for business people. Harkavy has built his consulting business
around training leaders to coach their team members to become high performing
people. The book is an overview of the
system of training he has developed and taught for over a decade.
For the past several months, I have worked through this
book with a group of ministers who serve small to medium-sized churches. We began with the understanding that we would
have to adapt this to a church context.
In all honesty, this was a bit difficult. Participants struggled with how to implement
Harkavy’s strategy in the often chaotic life of a local congregation. Doing so is difficult but not impossible. I wish I could say that we had been more
successful in the attempt! Every
minister would be more effective if he or she could follow the practices and
processes that Harkavy presents.
For example, every one of us can benefit from working through
the author’s Core Four Success Puzzle® that includes the development of a Life
Plan, a Business Vision, a Business Plan, and Priority Management. A Life Plan involves identifying the “accounts”
(God, spouse, family, finances, etc.) in
your life that are important, your desired outcomes in each area, and
strategies to pursue those outcomes.
Your Business Vision is what you want your organization to look like in
20 years based on convictions, purpose, and “Mount Everest Goals.” Your Business Plan is the what, where, how
and when of the Business Vision.
Priority Management is how you put all of this together in your work and
life.
The final step is the most difficult for clergy to handle
because we are always dealing with the “tyranny of the urgent.” Most of the things that take up our time are
urgent but not really important! The
challenge is to be willing to name those things that are important and make
time for them. This is where a good
coach can help a person pursuing life balance.
A coach can help a person develop clarity, set goals, and encourage
accountability.
Some of Harkavy’s best insights are in the chapters that
deal with the knowledge, skills, disciplines, and systems that a person needs
to become a coaching leader. This is the
primary idea of the book—to challenge every leader to become a coach to those
with whom he or she works. In so doing,
the coaching leader brings out the best in the team member, providing job satisfaction
for the person and a stronger, more effective organization.
The most positive thing that I can say about Harkavy is
that he takes stewardship seriously, whether it is using time wisely, recognizing
and encouraging potential, or investing oneself in family, associates, and
friends. The book is meant as a
standalone product, but additional resources are available at www.becomingacoachingleader.com
and participation in one of his training programs would certainly help in
developing the lifestyle proposed in the book.
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