When it comes to helping pastors craft, communicate, and organize their churches around vision, few are better than Shawn Lovejoy, the Founder & CEO of CourageToLead.com.

I recommend Shawn to all church leaders who need assistance with overall church health, maintaining momentum, pastoral coaching, preaching assistance, organizational development, and mission and vision construction.  If you are looking for pastoral coaching, click HERE or on the image above to reach out to Shawn and start a conversation.

Recently, he wrote a great post on why all leaders need to coach.  I wanted to make his thoughts available to my audience as well.  Check out Shawn’s comments below.  And if you are a pastor in need of a good coach, he is a great place to start.

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I just simply believe that every leader should have a coach. I’m so high maintenance I usually have 3-5 coaches regularly speaking into my own life! I process every major decision through a coach…and lots of minor decisions, as well!

Why do I believe in coaching so much? Why do I believe every leader needs a coach? In the next couple of posts, I’ll give you five reasons!

Five Reasons Every Leader Needs A Coach:

1. Coaching is Biblical.

God reminds us over again in Scripture about the importance of seeking counsel and getting advice from wise people around us. Proverbs 19:20 is a great example: “Get all the advice and instruction you can, so you will be wise the rest of your life.” Proverbs 20:18 says “Plans succeed through good counsel; don’t go to war without wise advice.” Notice it says wise advice. It’s easy to get counsel from all our friends. However, what we often need is counsel from someone who’s been where we’re going. Someone more experienced than we are. Someone wiser than us. It’s Biblical!

2. Coaching protects us.

I’m proud of the fact that in 20 years of vocational ministry, I never had a trainwreck. The ministries I lead never went off the rails. Because I’m perfect? No. Because I stayed in relationship with Godly, wise coaches in my life, it helped keep me sane, centered, and married. I sought counsel before every major decision, so it made my decisions better! We never had a trainwreck in the ministries I led because coaches always helped me see the potential train coming and helped me navigate around it. Coaches have helped to save my butt many times!

3. Coaching gives us permission.

I have found that many times we as leaders have a sense deep down in our minds what the issues are. We have a sensing of what God wants us to do. We just need to hear someone else say we’re not CRAZY for thinking what we’re thinking! We need courage to move forward. I call that giving leaders permission.

4. Coaching talks us off the ledge.

There have been many days I have called a coach because I thought the sky was about to fall. Things were not good. Things were about to crumble. The stuff was hitting the fan. My mind was stuck on worse case scenario. However,

5. Coaching inspires us.

Not one time in a coaching conversation did I ever come away discouraged. I went into almost every coaching conversation that way..but didn’t leave that way! I can honestly say that I have been most inspired to think and dream bigger and pursue the vision God has placed on my heart on the heels of coaching conversations. Coaching has that kind of power!  Good coaches inspire their players. I have been inspired and I love doing the same for other leaders.

These are just five reasons why I have surrounded myself with coaches and given my life and ministry to coaching leaders. Couragetolead.com would love to provide all of this for you! Why would you NOT get coaching? Because it costs something? What will it cost you if you don’t have a coach? I believe a far greater cost! Get. A. Coach!