• Traveling With a Yokefellow
Traveling with a Yokefellow?
One of my Coaching Students was trying to use a metaphor to explain my relationship with her. “The image of an oxen yoke comes to mind, which to me explains how you have yoked yourself into a relationship with me and my children’s ministry. It is like you came along side to help me.”
I began thinking about this Oxen Yoke metaphor and how it relates to our coaching experience. It seems to me that she was describing how two people can be joined together for some common cause, one might be setting the pace for the other, but working together to arrive at a predetermined destination.
Kidology Coaching is just that, a partnership, with one more experienced leader coming along side another less experienced leader. Together they can create an active and collaborative relationship working together to accomplish the client’s aspirations. Coaching is a powerful relationship for people wanting to make changes in their life and work.
This relationship requires two things: a commitment to help and a commitment to learn. The commitment to help comes from the coach’s expertise of having been in the trenches and his need to give back and make a difference. The commitment to learn comes from a protégé’s dissatisfaction with how things have worked alone. Add some humility to reveal those needs, coupled with a willingness to try to move forward and step up, with help, makes things happen.
Many leaders are not confident or have enough expertise to accomplish the ministry alone. Children’s Ministry done right, is complicated and complex. It’s more than a job. It’s more than being a program coordinator. It’s a full-blown ministry. Protégé’s who recognize their deficiency and are willing to attach themselves to a veteran, who will provide a helping companionship stand a better chance of accomplishing their goals.
There is something almost magical about having a more studied approach to ministry.
Here are a few observations that allow this partnership to work.
- A willingness to discuss one’s process—the good and the not so good thinking and planning.
- A willingness to show your work. I get to review all her written materials, which allows me to make comment and suggest improvements.
- Willingness to try what the Coach suggests, even though there is some uncertainty in trying something new.
- Staying in the process, working the relationship via long distances.
- It takes longer, than doing your process by yourself. But if you work farther ahead, you end up with a better effort—that works.
- The yoke can hurt, but the process would hurt more without the help on the other side to assist.
- Two are better than one, for they have a good reward for their labor.
Barrowing courage and strength from the other side of the yoke—Coaching just Works! Just imagine how a coaching partnership could work for you!
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