Chris, if I hire you, am I hiring a leadership coach or a pastor!

One of the things it doesn’t take long to figure out in business is that we want to compartmentalize what people “do”. Back in my younger years, I was fortunate to have the company I was working define my title. Names like: Mechanical Engineer, Plant Manager, Site Manager, Director, etc. Even with these titles, people wanted to drill down and further understand what I did. You understand, we just have to be able to place people in a box that we can understand and relate.

So, when launching my own coaching and consulting business, imagine how fun it was to go through compartmentalization conversations and market yourself as a coach. Let’s just say it’s not the most favorite part of owning a business; especially, one in the coaching and consulting arena. Obviously, in over 5 years, I’ve learned a few things about the marketing process; however, I can’t say that I like the compartmentalizing “what people do” conversations any better today than prior.

So, one of the things we’re attempting to do in this recent brand refresh is tell more of the story of “who” Chris is versus the things Chris “does”. One of the primary means by which I’m doing this is through my blog content where you’ll now readily see content from my business and personal blogs. In the world of compartmentalization, one question some are likely going to ask is “Chris, if I hire you, am I hiring a leadership coach or a pastor?” So, I thought I would offer a response upfront.

First, with respect to a pastor, the primary road we have to cross is believer versus non-believer in Jesus Christ. While my faith is an integral part of who I am and you’ll likely notice as you get to know me, my clients are both believers and non-believers. I don’t “compartmentalize” my clients on the basis of faith. That being said, my advise and counsel will be weighted on my personal beliefs, understanding of biblical principles, and experience. In one-on-one relationships, it’s not uncommon to address the area of spirituality, however, where these discussions go are more up to you than I. Isn’t that pretty typical of anyone? We all have foundational beliefs that influence our thinking and views on circumstances.

Speaking specifically to biblical principles and effective leadership principles, my experience is that they are one in the same. In fact, many great leadership experts like Dale Carnegie, John Maxwell, Ken Blanchard, Patrick Lencoini, and may others have openly drawn the parallels between effective leadership principles and biblical principles. Like these great leaders, I’m not going to stand at the door of your business preaching a Sunday sermon, however, I am going to integrate the teachings of my Sunday sermon into my ability to teach effective leadership principles. Make sense? So, yes, my faith is a part of who I am and it comes with the package.

So, if you need to compartmentalize me, I recommend you go with “leadership coach” who also has the gift of working with teams. If you select my business blog category, I anticipate it will give you a much better feel of “who” I am and what I “do” as it relates to engaging, equipping, and inspiring leaders and their teams to take their game to the next level.

And, if you need a “pastor”, I’d be glad to help on that as well. Clear up any confusion you may have had?