MarkHowellLive.com

One of the most frequent questions about coaching is whether someone has to have led a small group themselves in order to serve as a coach.  I answered this question in my post on the essential ingredients of an effective coach but a related question is “how much of coaching is about helping leaders with [...]

Wondering how to make small group coaching work in your setting?  It’s definitely not a walk in the park…no matter what anyone tells you.  But there are steps you can take to build an effective small group coaching structure. Here are what I’ve found to be the some of the most frequently asked questions: What [...]

So you’ve got your org chart filled up.  You’ve got your 1 to 5 ratio (coach to leader) and it all looks good…on paper.  There’s just one problem.  Life change doesn’t happen on paper.  Life change is a result of an actual life touching another actual life. Life change happens when life touches life.  And [...]

One of the most frequently asked questions about coaching is what is the role of the coach?  I believe that this question is a great place to begin building an effective coaching structure…but it’s just the beginning.  Once you’ve determined in advance what the role of a coach is you’ll be ready to do the [...]

Another very frequent question is what does a coach actually do?   Better, “What is the role of a coach?”   It’s a great question…and it’s actually where you should start in building an effective coaching structure. Here’s the sequence: Determine in advance what the role of a coach is. Clarify what a win for a [...]

One of the most frequent questions is, “Do you have to have led a small group before you can be a coach?”  It’s a fair question.  But I think it’s really part of a larger question.  “What are the essential ingredients of an effective coach?” is a much better question.  Here’s what I’ve found to be [...]

Yesterday we talked about the trouble many of us have when trying to add coaching retroactively to an existing small group system.  What to Do When Your Leaders Don’t Want Coaches offers a simple three step approach to that issue. Today I want to talk about the flip side of that predicament: How to jump [...]

One of the most frequent observations (nice word for ‘complaints’) is that coaching doesn’t work because existing group leaders almost always reject retroactively assigned coaches.  If that’s an observation you’ve made…you’re not alone.  If not a no-brainer, it is a fact of small group life.  I often point out that it’s a form of survival [...]

Over the last several years I’ve written a number of articles on small group coaching, an essential but challenging grouplife building block.  Here are my top 10 articles on coaching: How to Build an Effective Coaching Structure (part 1) How to Build an Effective Coaching Structure (part 2) How to Build an Effective Coaching Structure [...]

I noticed a tweet the other day that asked for recommendations on coaching resources…specifically skills and development.  Here are a few that I’ve found very helpful: A must have for every small group ministry library is Coaching Life-Changing Small Group Leaders: A Practical Guide for Those Who Lead and Shepherd Small Group Leaders by Bill [...]