Alliance Coaching.net

Coaches, you have been chosen for this role because of what Christ has done in your life and because of your obedience to Him. While you may feel overwhelmed with such a great responsibility, we want to affirm God’s calling on your life and are committing to walk with you through this coaching journey. We will be praying for you and are available to help in any way we can.

Click here to read more about The Goal of Coaching.

The First Meeting: The main focus of the first meeting between you and the candidate is all about beginning a relationship built on trust. You will need to effectively influence and guide the candidate in unlocking his or her calling. We suggest that you set aside at least two hours for the first meeting.  Ideally, it should be a face-to-face encounter in a relaxed, relational setting (like a coffee shop).  If it’s not possible to meet in person, please do whatever you can to build a trusting relationship over the phone or via web video conferencing.

If you feel you need to get to know your candidate better we suggest you use the Coaching Intake Form. It provides some questions to help you get to know the candidate better. You can either ask the candidate to fill out this form prior to your meeting, or you can use the questions as the format for your first meeting. The main point is for you to get to know the candidate’s passions, dreams, and their story. Try to avoid making this session feel like a job interview; remember the key is to build the relationship, not to acquire data.

Following the initial two-hour meeting, we recommend regular coaching sessions either once a month or ideally every other week.  Again this is best in person, but over the phone or Skype can be effective as well.  This helps to keep the appointment focused and the action points more manageable.

Personal Growth Plan: We want every candidate to complete a Personal Growth Plan. This gives the candidate an opportunity to assess how they are doing in the Five Core Characteristics of an Alliance Worker. Once the Candidate completes their growth plan, we will forward it to you to use as you coach him or her. Please encourage the candidate to complete this by your second meeting together. From there you can develop an action plan together of areas they need to grow in and how to get there.

Relationships: Relationships require at least two people, so be prepared to share your passions, dreams, and story as well.  Appropriate transparency goes a long way in building trust. We expect that you will show wisdom and discernment as to what and when you share; use your best judgment as to when it is appropriate to share your experiences, and remember to keep the focus of the conversation on the candidate.

Finally, this is a spiritual relationship so make sure you pray for sensitivity to discern areas where Christ is at work in the candidate’s life. While it is appropriate to celebrate with the candidate areas of victory, you will want to avoid any challenging conversations until trust is established in the relationship. Always look for opportunities to bring the conversation back to Christ; a great way is to end the first session with a prayer of blessing over the candidate.  Building a Christ-centered, trusting relationship with the candidate will take time. Don’t rush it: laying a foundation of trust in each session is crucial.

Goals for your Coaching Relationship:

• Connecting: Building a healthy relationship is the basis for establishing trust, and trust allows change.  If possible, we recommend that you occasionally get together to build your relationship outside of the regular coaching meetings.

• Agenda: Keep in mind that the developing leader is the one who sets the agenda. A key question for the coach is, “What results would you like to take away from our meeting today?”

• Discussion and Discovery: Through reflective dialogue you will help the developing leader to celebrate wins, clarify realities, identify obstacles, and guide him/her toward action.

• Action: Focus on the one or two actions steps which you’ve agreed to follow up on. They must be specific and measurable for successful completion.

Coaching Resources: After the candidate has completed the Personal Growth Plan you both should have an idea of their areas of strength and areas they need to grow in. We have developed a list of Coaching Resources for you to use.  To find resources on a specific topic use the TAGS in the menu on the left, all the way at the bottom.

Again, we thank you for investing your time and are praying God’s blessing for you. Please let us know if there is anything we can do to help you in your coaching role. If you have any questions about the coaching relationship feel free to contact us at called2serve@cmalliance.org.